Optimization and standardization of lung densitometry in the assessment of pulmonary emphysema

Currently, lung densitometry for the assessment of pulmonary emphysema has been fully validated against pathology, pulmonary function, and health status, and it is therefore being applied in pharmacotherapeutic trials. Nevertheless, its application for the early detection of emphysema has not yet been introduced in daily clinical practice. The main reason for this is the fact that it is not yet regarded a fully optimized and standardized technique. In this work, an overview is given on the current status of different standardization aspects that play an important role in this, ie, image acquisition, choice of densitometric parameter and image processing. To address these issues, solutions have been sought from the literature and from original data from previous studies. Standardization and optimization of lung densitometry has reached a more advanced stage than has been reported so far. If normal values will become available, this technique will be feasible for clinical practice. As a result, standardization for the detection and assessment of other density-related lung diseases can be achieved in a shorter period of time.