title: Computed tomography findings of aspiration pneumonia in 53 patients.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  No large case series has so far shown the chest computed tomography (CT) features in patients with aspiration pneumonia, despite the fact that aspiration pneumonia is the most common pulmonary disease in the elderly and is regarded as gravity-dependent pneumonia. The aim of the present study was to elucidate the CT features based on the patients' status in patients with dysphagia-associated aspiration pneumonia.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 53 patients, who were hospitalized because of pneumonia and subsequently confirmed to have dysphagia by videofluorography, were entered into this study. The CT findings were independently evaluated by two radiologists who were unaware of the patients' clinical information. The relationships between the patients' status and the CT patterns of pneumonia or their distributions were analyzed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There were eight patients (15%) with lobar pneumonia, 36 patients (68%) with bronchopneumonia and nine patients (17%) with bronchiolitis. Posterior lung predominance was seen in 49 patients (92%). In the craniocaudal observation, lower lung predominance was found in 25 patients (47%) and diffuse distribution was seen in 28 patients (53%). A decreased performance status was significantly associated with a diffuse distribution (P=0.039).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Aspiration pneumonia more frequently presented as a bronchopneumonia pattern followed by a bronchiolitis pattern on CT. Their distributions were characterized by gravity dependence, and anterior- or upper lung-limited pneumonia might not be due to dysphagia-associated pneumonia.
authors.affiliation: Internal Medicine 2, Oita University Faculty of Medicine, Yufu, Japan. komiyakh1@oita-u.ac.jp
authors.forename: Kosaku
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Komiya
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ishii
authors.forename: Kenji
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Umeki
authors.forename: Tadao
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kawamura
authors.forename: Fumito
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Okada
authors.forename: Eiji
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Okabe
authors.forename: Junji
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Murakami
authors.forename: Yukio
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kato
authors.forename: Bunroku
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Matsumoto
authors.forename: Shinji
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Teramoto
authors.forename: Takeshi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Johkoh
authors.forename: Jun-ichi
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kadota
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003680:Deglutition Disorders / Q000150:complications*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011015:Pneumonia, Aspiration / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000209:etiology; D011379:Prognosis; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed / Q000379:methods*