Quantification of bleomycin induced lung injury by means of H magnetic resonance elastography

Introduction: Interstitial lung disease (ILD) induced end-stage fibrosis is a multiphase process that includes: 1) an initial or exposure phase; 2) an exudative phase; and 3) a final stage with one of two outcomes; a) edema clearance associated with alveolar wound healing and recovery, or b) organization of the alveolar space filling material followed by scar formation associated with loss of normal structure and function. It has previously been demonstrated that an MR-based method of quantitating shear modulus (μ) known as magnetic resonance elastography (MRE) can be used to assess normal lung [1]. However, the ability to quantitate lung injury with MRE and whether or not these changes differ from normal lung remains unknown. The purpose of this work is to investigate whether or not MRE-based estimates of μ reflect changes to normal rat lung parenchyma following administration of bleomycin, a known agent for regulation of pulmonary fibrogenesis.