The diagnostic accuracy of the hounsfield unit value in pulmonary embolism

Abstract

Objective: Pulmonary embolism (PE) a vascular disease. Computed tomography pulmonary angiography (CTPA) is the radiological imaging technique used to diagnose PE. In this study, we aimed to demonstrate the diagnostic accuracy of Hounsfield Unit (HU) value for PE based on the hypothesis that acute thrombosis causes an increase in HU value on computed tomography (CT).

Methods: This research was as a single-center, retrospective study. Patients presenting to the emergency department (ED) diagnosed with PE on CTPA were enrolled as the study group. In addition, patients admitted to the same emergency department who were not diagnosed with PE and had non-contrast CT scans were included as the control group. A receiver operating curve (ROC) was produced to the diagnostic accuracy of HU values in predicting PE.

Results: The study population (N=74) consisted of a study group (N=46) and a control group (N=28). The sensitivity and specificity of HU value for predicting PE on thoracic CT were found 61.5% and 96.4% at a value of 54.8 (Area Under the Curve (AUC):0.690) for right main pulmonary artery; 65.0% and 96.4% at a value of 55.9 (AUC:0.736) for left main pulmonary artery; 44.4% and 96.4% at a value of 62.7 (AUC:0.615) for right interlobar artery; and 60.0% and 92.9% at a value of 56.7 (AUC:0.736) for left interlobar artery.

Conclusion: HU values may exhibit high diagnostic specificity on CT, for thrombi up to the interlobar level. An HU value exceeding 54.8 up to the interlobar level may raise suspicion of the presence of PE