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Radiological imaging method
| Details |
Inventors: Fishman, Royce S.;
Assignee: Praxair Technology, Inc. (Danbury, CT)
Primary Examiner: Cohen; Lee S.
Assistant Examiner: Casler; Brian L.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Ktorides; Stanley
A radiological imaging method employing a contrast enhancement agent comprising stable xenon, oxygen and helium, for use with computerized two and three dimensional X-Ray systems and software used with said systems, in the imaging and quantitative measurement of pulmonary ventilation, patency of, distribution of and gas flow in the trachea, bronchi, bronchioles and alveoli, evaluation and optimization of respiratory therapy gas mixtures and pressures separately and in combination, liver blood flow, renal blood flow, cerebral blood flow and brain tissue function. |
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DETAILED DESCRIPTION X-Ray radiological imaging takes advantage of the fact that certain structures within a body attenuate or absorb X-Rays to a greater degree than do other structures enabling an X-Ray image to show certain structures which could not otherwise be seen without surgery or an invasive procedure using a physical instrument, and to provide quantitative functional information based on the degree of contrast present.
The X-Ray images show internal bone structures well, but provide poor images of soft tissue and gas filled areas.
It is therefore difficult to distinguish different normal soft tissue areas from each other, and gas filled areas from soft tissue areas.
An X-Ray image enhanced with iodine cannot be used to enhance gas filled areas.
An X-Ray image by itself also cannot measure the dynamic distribution or exchange of gases in the structures of the lung, or of gases in and out of the blood within the body.
The invention is an improved method for carrying out radiological imaging of the gas spaces in the lung, the distribution and exchange of gases in the lung and the quantification of the distribution and exchange of gases in the lung.
Furthermore, the invention is a novel way of producing images or data of a quality that reveal obstructions or constrictions of the tracheal air passage entering, and the bronchial air passages in, the lungs that are not otherwise obtainable by X-Ray radiological imaging procedures.
The invention comprises in general the provision of helium along with stable xenon and oxygen to a patient, human or veterinary, while taking a radiological image and/or gathering radiological data using a computerized radiological imaging device.
The stable xenon distributes throughout the gas passages of the lungs in direct correlation to the ability of gases to transit the gas passages freely, or where it is blocked by obstructions as in the case of chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases, or where the flow of gases are reduced due to constrictions as in the case of asthma as well as other disease states
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Image Analysis 
