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COMPUTER SIMULATIONS OF HUMAN LUNG STRUCTURES FOR MEDICAL APPLICATIONS
Citation:
Martonen, T., Y. Yang, AND J. Fleming. COMPUTER SIMULATIONS OF HUMAN LUNG STRUCTURES FOR MEDICAL APPLICATIONS. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, D.C., EPA/600/J-95/557, 1995.
Description:
Knowledge of the structure of the human lung has salient health effects applications. he clinical issues encompass (1) aerosol therapy, delivery of inhaled particles to enhance the efficacies of pharmacologic drugs, and (2) nuclear medicine, where planar gamma camera imaging, SPECT and PET assess thedistribution patterns of radiolabeled diagnostic particles and gases. f theresolution of such images could be enhanced, medical regimens would greatly benefit. herefore, the focused objective of our work was to develop 3-D mathematical descriptions of the complex airway networks within the lung. ilicon Graphics workstation was used to depict the daedal structures. he computer-generated color illustrations presented herein are intended to complement medical investigations. hey will assist the clinician by serving as templates for the lung, and thereby, providing a real basis for the analysis of relatively abstract images. he illustrations identify individual airways and could be of great importance to physicians in the treatment of airway diseases occurring at well defined locations (e.g., bronchogenic carcinomas). o demonstrate that computers can be actively integrated into medical research and practice we have addresses SPECT images of a subject who had inhaled a radiolabeled aerosol. he computer templates will aid future clinical investigators in two major ways: (1) the interpretation of planar gamma camera, SPECT and PET images, and consequently, (2) the design of drug testing protocols using inhalation exposures.