Radiology, Vol 160, 337-340, Copyright © 1986 by Radiological Society of North America
Stripe sign in pulmonary perfusion scintigraphy: central pattern of pulmonary emphysema. Work in progress
K Murata, H Itoh, M Senda, S Noma, G Todo, Y Yonekura, K Nishimura, T Izumi, S Oshima and K Torizuka
Morphologic changes and ventilation abnormalities in the lung that resulted
in the peripheral perfusion stripe (the stripe sign) on pulmonary perfusion
scintigrams were studied in six patients. Chest radiographs, computed
tomography (CT) scans, and positron emission tomography (PET) scans
obtained using N-13 were compared. Although there was no apparent
correlation between the presence of the stripe sign and the findings on the
chest radiographs, PET scans depicted ventilation abnormalities in all of
11 lung areas with the stripe sign in six patients. In addition,
ventilation was affected more severely in the central part of the lung than
in the subpleural region in ten of the 11 lung areas. CT scans demonstrated
emphysematous changes, with low attenuation values located mainly in the
central part of the lung in all four patients examined. The results suggest
an intimate relationship between the stripe sign and the central pattern of
pulmonary emphysema.
