Lung imaging

Abstract

Nuclear medicine provides physiological and sensitive methods for assessing regional lung perfusion and ventilation. In children, both perfusion and ventilation imaging have been used for a broad range of indications. In children with congenital heart disease, perfusion scintigraphy is used to assess differential (left vs. right) and regional lung perfusion. Perfusion scintigraphy also is useful for demonstrating shunts between the right (pulmonary) and left (systemic) circulation. In children with parenchymal and airway diseases, static or dynamic ventilation scintigraphy can be used to assess lung ventilation and differential lung volumes. Ventilation/perfusion (V/Q) uses both ventilation (V) and perfusion (Q) scans for the evaluation of pulmonary embolism or to demonstrate ventilation/perfusion mismatches in developmental or acquired lung diseases.