Mycobacterium avium Complex Disease: Prognostic Implication of High-Resolution CT findings

¹ Second Division, Dept of Internal Medicine, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, Shizuoka, Japan
² Dept of Respiratory Medicine, National Hospital Organization Tenryu Hospital, Shizuoka, Japan
³ Dept of Respiratory Medicine, Seirei Mikatahara general hospital, Shizuoka, Japan

^* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: nakayuta{at}hama-med.ac.jp.

	Abstract

To evaluate the prognostic implications of computed tomography (CT) findings in assessing responses to treatment in Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC) pulmonary disease without underlying lung disease, we correlated high-resolution CT (HRCT) findings based on the results of sputum conversion after anti-MAC therapy. Fifty-nine patients underwent HRCT before treatment and the therapeutic efficacy was evaluated by the results of sputum conversion. Atelectasis, cavities, and pleural thickening at HRCT findings were significantly more frequent (p=0.03, 0.02, and <0.0001, respectively) and extensive (p=0.02, 0.02, and 0.0002, respectively) among patients in the sputum non-converted group than those in the converted group. Furthermore, bronchiectasis was also significantly more extensive among patients in the non-converted group (p=0.006), even though there was no significant difference in frequency between these two groups. These results suggest that HRCT findings are good predictors of response to treatment in MAC pulmonary disease.

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