CHEST Guidelines-CT-Scan-Segmental-Airway-Lumen-Area

CT-Scan-Segmental-Airway-Lumen-Area_chest

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In a correspondence published in CHEST, David J. Ross and Victoria J. Sebbage discussed a study by Thomson and colleagues which found reduced airway lumen in CT scans of asthma patients who smoke compared to non-smokers. Ross and Sebbage propose that both smoking and airway size might reflect socioeconomic status (SES) from early life, with lower SES historically linked to poorer lung function and higher smoking rates. They critiqued the use of body surface area over height in the original study, as the latter could serve as a better indicator of childhood SES. Additionally, Ross and Sebbage pointed out a transcription error in the study's data, citing discrepancies in the reported sizes of certain airway lumens.<br /><br />Thomson and his team responded, acknowledging the possible influence of early-life SES on airway size but noted that height was similar between both smoker and non-smoker groups in their study, suggesting SES might not fully explain the differences observed. They admitted their study's cross-sectional design limits its ability to address this hypothesis. Thomson’s team also thanked Ross and Sebbage for identifying the error, correcting the figures in their report.<br /><br />Both parties agreed there were no conflicts of interest. The research by Thomson and colleagues was funded by the Translational Medicine Research Collaboration, a consortium involving several Scottish universities, NHS Health Boards, and Pfizer.

Keywords

asthma

smoking

airway lumen

socioeconomic status

lung function

CT scans

body surface area

transcription error

cross-sectional study

Translational Medicine Research Collaboration