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Lung inflammation and simulated airway resistance in infants with cystic fibrosis

Emily M DeBoer1, Julia S Kimbell2, Kaci Pickett3

  • 1University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, United States; Breathing Institute at Children's Hospital Colorado, Aurora, CO, United States.

Respiratory Physiology & Neurobiology
|June 22, 2021
PubMed

Insights

Infants with cystic fibrosis (CF) show higher airway resistance than controls, as measured by computational fluid dynamics (CFD). This increased resistance may link to early airway inflammation in CF patients.

Area of Science:

  • Pulmonary Medicine
  • Medical Imaging
  • Computational Biology

Background:

  • Cystic fibrosis (CF) primarily affects small airways, but central airway involvement is also observed.
  • Early detection of airway abnormalities in infants with CF is crucial for timely intervention.
  • Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) offers a non-invasive method to assess airway function.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate if infants with CF exhibit higher central airway resistance compared to healthy controls using CFD.
  • To determine the association between early airway inflammation and central airway resistance in infants with CF.

Main Methods:

  • Central airway models were constructed from CT scans of 18 infants with CF and 7 controls.
  • Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations were used to estimate central airway resistance.
  • Airway resistance was correlated with inflammatory markers from bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid.

Main Results:

  • Airway resistance was significantly higher in CF infants compared to controls, even when models were simplified.
  • Increased airway resistance in CF infants was associated with inflammatory markers detected approximately 8 months prior to CFD analysis.
  • No association was found between airway resistance and inflammatory markers obtained concurrently.

Conclusions:

  • Infants with CF demonstrate elevated central airway resistance, measurable via CFD modeling.
  • Early airway inflammation may be a contributing factor to increased airway resistance in infants with CF.
  • CFD modeling shows promise for assessing early airway changes in pediatric CF.

Keywords:
Airway mechanicsComputational fluid dynamicsPediatrics

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