TY - JOUR T1 - Present and future utility of computed tomography scanning in the assessment and management of COPD JF - European Respiratory Journal JO - Eur Respir J SP - 216 LP - 228 DO - 10.1183/13993003.00041-2016 VL - 48 IS - 1 AU - Kristoffer Ostridge AU - Tom M.A. Wilkinson Y1 - 2016/07/01 UR - http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/48/1/216.abstract N2 - Computed tomography (CT) is the modality of choice for imaging the thorax and lung structure. In chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), it used to recognise the key morphological features of emphysema, bronchial wall thickening and gas trapping. Despite this, its place in the investigation and management of COPD is yet to be determined, and it is not routinely recommended. However, lung CT already has important clinical applications where it can be used to diagnose concomitant pathology and determine which patients with severe emphysema are appropriate for lung volume reduction procedures. Furthermore, novel quantitative analysis techniques permit objective measurements of pulmonary and extrapulmonary manifestations of the disease. These techniques can give important insights into COPD, and help explore the heterogeneity and underlying mechanisms of the condition. In time, it is hoped that these techniques can be used in clinical trials to help develop disease-specific therapy and, ultimately, as a clinical tool in identifying patients who would benefit most from new and existing treatments. This review discusses the current clinical applications for CT imaging in COPD and quantification techniques, and its potential future role in stratifying disease for optimal outcome.CT imaging has an important and rapidly developing role to play in the assessment of COPD http://ow.ly/ZREg3 ER -