CT imaging of peripheral pulmonary vessel disease.
The diseases concerning the small pulmonary vessels are difficult to diagnose. Pathologic findings are rarely limited to the small vessels, and a continuum between the involvement of small and large vessels is frequent. Moreover, small vessels can be affected by various disease entities with overlapping radiologic features and a wide spectrum of clinical manifestations. Nevertheless, these various entities can be easily separated into two different groups by imaging techniques, particularly by computed tomography: obstructive and inflammatory diseases. Radiologic findings of obstructive diseases are relatively constant, dominated by the manifestation of pulmonary hypertension. In contrast, radiologic manifestations of inflammatory diseases are often florid and nonspecific. After a recall of the classification of small vessel diseases and the imaging techniques, we show the computed tomography features of the principal diseases involving the small pulmonary vessels by classifying them in these two principal groups.
Resten
Arnaud
A
Service de Radiologie, Hôpital Antoine Béclère, 157 rue de la Porte de Trivaux, 92140, Clamart, France.
Maitre
Sophie
S
Musset
Dominique
D
D001157:Arterial Occlusive Diseases / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D008168:Lung / Q000098:blood supply; D016491:Peripheral Vascular Diseases / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology; D011651:Pulmonary Artery / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology; D011667:Pulmonary Veins / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology; D011668:Pulmonary Veno-Occlusive Disease / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology; D011857:Radiographic Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed / Q000379:methods