Hyperpolarized 129Xe MRI images acquired pre/post-bronchodilator treatment in COPD (N=17) provide a new means of evaluating gas evaluating gas exchange in regions of new, existing, and lost ventilation. Here we demonstrate via longitudinal image registration that, despite improvements in FEV1 and regional ventilation following treatment, no changes in region-based measures of 129Xe barrier or RBC signal were observed. This suggests the presence of persistent vascular abnormalities in COPD that are not addressed by bronchodilation.
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