title: Diffraction enhanced imaging of a rat model of gastric acid aspiration pneumonitis.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Diffraction-enhanced imaging (DEI) is a type of phase contrast x-ray imaging that has improved image contrast at a lower dose than conventional radiography for many imaging applications, but no studies have been done to determine if DEI might be useful for diagnosing lung injury. The goals of this study were to determine if DEI could differentiate between healthy and injured lungs for a rat model of gastric aspiration and to compare diffraction-enhanced images with chest radiographs.
  
  
  METHODS
  Radiographs and diffraction-enhanced chest images of adult Sprague Dawley rats were obtained before and 4 hours after the aspiration of 0.4 mL/kg of 0.1 mol/L hydrochloric acid. Lung damage was confirmed with histopathology.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The radiographs and diffraction-enhanced peak images revealed regions of atelectasis in the injured rat lung. The diffraction-enhanced peak images revealed the full extent of the lung with improved clarity relative to the chest radiographs, especially in the portion of the lower lobe that extended behind the diaphragm on the anteroposterior projection.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  For a rat model of gastric acid aspiration, DEI is capable of distinguishing between a healthy and an injured lung and more clearly than radiography reveals the full extent of the lung and the lung damage.
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology and Radiological Science, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA. connord@musc.edu
authors.forename: Dean M
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Connor
authors.forename: Zhong
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Zhong
authors.forename: Hussein D
authors.initials: HD
authors.lastname: Foda
authors.forename: Sheldon
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Wiebe
authors.forename: Christopher A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Parham
authors.forename: F Avraham
authors.initials: FA
authors.lastname: Dilmanian
authors.forename: Elodia B
authors.initials: EB
authors.lastname: Cole
authors.forename: Etta D
authors.initials: ED
authors.lastname: Pisano
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D005744:Gastric Acid; D008168:Lung / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D011015:Pneumonia, Aspiration / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology; D013902:Radiography, Thoracic; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D014961:X-Ray Diffraction / Q000379:methods*