Abstract
Background
This study evaluated the feasibility of dual-energy CT (DECT) for assessing the correlation between hydroxyproline (HYP) levels in lung tissue of patients with nonspecific interstitial pneumonia (NSIP) and lung volume and pulmonary function.
Methods
We retrospectively analyzed 99 NSIP patients (51 cellular, 48 fibrotic) and 40 controls. All underwent DECT imaging. Lung HYP‑equivalent density (HYP‑ED) and volume were quantified using spectral post-processing. Pulmonary function parameters, including FVC% Pred and DLCO% Pred, were collected. Intergroup differences, correlations, and diagnostic performance were assessed.
Results
Lung volume was higher in controls (3797.40 ± 1155.68 cc) than in cellular (2796.88 ± 334.03 cc) and fibrotic NSIP (2156.76 ± 423.40 cc;
P
3
) than in cellular (264.31 ± 24.99 mg/cm
3
) and fibrotic NSIP (327.12 ± 36.26 mg/cm
3
;
P
P
P
P
Conclusions
DECT enables noninvasive quantification of lung HYP-ED in NSIP. HYP‑ED correlates with disease severity and may serve as a promising imaging biomarker for fibrosis assessment and monitoring.