| Peer-Reviewed

Lung Clearance Index to Detect Early Pulmonary Changes in Children with Sickle Cell Disease

Received: 24 December 2021    Accepted: 23 March 2022    Published: 14 April 2022
Views:       Downloads:
Abstract

Objective: Pulmonary complications including acute chest syndrome, are leading causes of sickle cell disease (SCD) related morbidity and mortality. Prior studies have shown that patients with pulmonary complications have evidence of pulmonary involvement reflected in lung functions trends as early as childhood. Spirometry is the current standard for measuring lung function. Growing evidence suggests that lung clearance index (LCI) which is a commonly reported parameter of multiple breath washout (MBW) tests, is more sensitive than spirometry measurements in the early identification of pulmonary changes in pediatric patients. The aim of our study was to determine if this relationship between LCI and spirometry existed within the pediatric sickle cell population. Study Design: This is a cross-sectional, retrospective study to compare LCI to spirometry measurements in children with SCD. Charts were reviewed of clinic encounters at Phoenix Children’s Hospital from March 1, 2013 – June 30, 2017. Spirometry and MBW measurements were collected from 23 patients between the ages of 5 years – 22 years. The MBW utilized sulfur hexafluoride (SF6) as the tracer gas. Demographics and SCD variant (e.g. HbSS, HbSC, etc.) for each encounter were also collected. Results: Our results show that LCI correlates to FEV1% predicted (Spearman’s coefficient -0.44, p = 0.003) and FEF25-75% (Spearman’s coefficient -0.49, p <0.001) over time. Based on demographics, LCI is affected by weight (p = 0.046) but not age or height. When comparing LCI and FEV1% predicted, abnormal LCI results were noted to occur even in the presence of normal FEV1% predicted measurements. Conclusions: Our data support LCI correlating with spirometry measurements, but more studies are necessary to explore whether LCI can be used as a screening test to detect pulmonary changes in young children with SCD. Earlier monitoring of lung function will allow for preventative therapies and delayed progression of pulmonary dysfunction.

Published in American Journal of Pediatrics (Volume 8, Issue 2)
DOI 10.11648/j.ajp.20220802.12
Page(s) 56-62
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Spirometry, Pediatrics, Sickle Cell, Pulmonary Function Tests

References
[1] Rees D, Williams T, Gladwin M (2010) Sickle-cell disease. Lancet 276: 2018-2031.
[2] Knight-Madden JM, Barton-Gooden A, Weaver SR, Reid M, Greenough A (2013) Mortality, asthma, smoking and acute chest syndrome in young adults with sickle cell disease. Lung 191: 95-100.
[3] Kassim AA, Payne AB, Rodeghier M, Macklin EA, Strunk RC, DeBaun MR (2015) Low forced expiratory volume is associated with earlier death in sickle cell anemia. Blood 126 (13): 1544-1550.
[4] Knight-Madden JM, Forrester TS, Lewis NA, Greenough A (2005) Asthma in children with sickle cell disease and its association with acute chest syndrome. Thorax 60: 206-210.
[5] Sylvester KP, Patey RA, Broughton S, Rafferty GF, Rees D, Thein SL, Greenough A (2007) Temporal relationship of asthma to acute chest syndrome in sickle cell disease. Pediatr Pulmonol 42: 103-106.
[6] Maclean J, Atenafu E, Kirby-Allen M, MacLusky I, Stephens D, Grasemann H, Subbarao P (2008) Longitudinal decline in lung volume in a population of children with sickle cell disease. Am J Respir Crit Care Med 178: 1055-1059.
[7] Williams S, Nussbaum E, Yoonessi L, Morphew T, Randhawa I (2014) Progression and prognostic indicators of bronchial disease in children with sickle cell disease. Lung 192: 385-393.
[8] Arteta M, Campbell A, Nouraie M, Rana S, Onyekwere OC, Ensing G, Sable C, Dham N, Darbari D, Luchtman-Jones L, et al (2014) Abnormal pulmonary function and associated risk factors in children and adolescents with sickle cell anemia. J Pediatr Hematol Oncol 36: 185-189.
[9] Field JJ, Glassberg J, Gilmore A, Howard J, Patankar S, Yan Y, Davies SC, DeBaun MR, Strunk RC (2008) Longitudinal analysis of pulmonary function in adults with sickle cell disease. Am J Hematol 83 (7): 574-576.
[10] Klings ES, Wyszynski DF, Nolan VG, Steinberg MH (2006) Abnormal pulmonary function in adults with sickle cell anemia. Am J Respir Crit Care Med 173: 1264-1269.
[11] Aurora P, Stanojevic S, Wade A, Oliver C, Kozlowska W, Lum S, Bush A, Price J, Carr S, Shankar A, et al (2011) Lung clearance index at 4 years predicts subsequent lung function in children with cystic fibrosis. Am J Respir Crit Care Med 183 (6): 752-758.
[12] Subbarao P, Milla C, Aurora P, Davies JC, Davis SD, Hall GL, Heltshe S, Latzin P, Lindblad A, Pittman JE, et al (2015) Multiple-Breath Washout as a Lung Function Test in Cystic Fibrosis. A Cystic Fibrosis Foundation Workshop Report. Ann Am Thorac Soc 12 (6): 932-939.
[13] Horsley A (2009) Lung clearance index in the assessment of airways disease. Respir Med 103: 793-799.
[14] Owens CM, Aurora P, Stanojevic S, et al (2011) Lung clearance index and HRCT are complementary markers of lung abnormalities in young children with CF. Thorax 66 (6): 481-488.
[15] Vermeulen F, Proesmans M, Boon M, Havermans T, De Boeck K (2014) Lung clearance index predicts pulmonary exacerbations in young patients with cystic fibrosis. Thorax 69 (1): 39-45.
[16] Bakker EM, van der Meijden JC, Nieuwhof EM, Hop WCJ, Tiddens HAWM (2012) Determining presence of lung disease in young children with cystic fibrosis: lung clearance index, oxygen saturation and cough frequency. J Cyst Fibros 11: 223-230.
[17] Lombardi E, Gambazza S, Pradal U, Braggion C (2019) Lung Clearance Index in Subjects with Cystic Fibrosis in Itay. Ital J Pediatr May 2: 45-56.
[18] Fuchs S, Schwerk N, Pittschieler K, Ahrens F, Baden W, Bals R, Fahndrich S, Gleiber W, Griese M, Hulskamp G, Kohnlein T, Reckling L, Rietschel E, Staab D, Gappa M (2016) Lung clearance index for monitoring early lung disease in alpha-1-antitrypsin deficiency. Respir Med 116: 93-99.
[19] Lum S, Stocks J, Stanojevic S, Wade A, Robinson P, Gustafsson P, Brown M, Aurora P, Subbarao P, Hoo A, et al (2013) Age and height dependence of lung clearance index and functional residual capacity. Eur Respir J 41 (6): 1371-1377.
[20] Quanjer PH, Stanojevic S, Cole TJ, Baur X, Hall GL, Culver BH, Enright PL, Hankinson JL, Mary SM, et al (2012) Multi-Ethnic Reference Values for Spirometry for the 3-95 Year Age Range: The Global Lung Function 2012 Equations. Eur Respir J 40 (6): 1324-1343.
[21] Stanojevic S, Wade A, Stocks J, Hankinson J, Coates AL, Pan H, Rosenthal M, Corey M, Lebecque P, Cole TJ (2008) Respiratory Ranges for Spirometry Across All Ages – A New Approach. Am J Respir Crit Care Med 177: 253-260.
[22] Fuchs S, Eder J, Ellemunter H, Gappa M (2009) Lung Clearance Index: Normal Values, Repeatability and Reproducibility in Healthy Children and Adolescents. Pediatr Pulmonol 44: 1180-1185.
[23] An Official American Thoracic Society/European Respiratory Society Statement: Pulmonary Function Testing in Preschool Children (2007) Am J Respir Crit Care Med Vol 175; pp 1304-1345.
[24] Aurora P, Bush A, Gustafsson P, Oliver C, Wallis C, Price J, Stroonbant J, Carr S, Stocks J (2005) Multiple-breath washout as a marker of lung disease in preschool children with cystic fibrosis. Am J Respir Crit Care Med 171: 249–256.
[25] Machogu EM, Khurana M, Kaericher J, Clem C, Slaven JE, Hatch JE, Davis SD, Peterson-Carmichael S (2021) Lung Clearance Index in Children with Sickle Cell Disease. Pediatr Pulmonol 56: 1165-1172.
[26] Lopes AJ, Marinho CL, Alves UD, Goncalves CE, Silva PO, Botelho EC, Bedirian R, Soares AR, Maioli MC (2017) Relationship between Ventilation Heterogeneity and Exercise Intolerance in Adults with Sickle Cell Anemia. Braz J Med Biol Res 50 (8): 1414 – 1431.
Cite This Article
  • APA Style

    Sophia Williams, Monica Chaung, Paul Kang. (2022). Lung Clearance Index to Detect Early Pulmonary Changes in Children with Sickle Cell Disease. American Journal of Pediatrics, 8(2), 56-62. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajp.20220802.12

    Copy | Download

    ACS Style

    Sophia Williams; Monica Chaung; Paul Kang. Lung Clearance Index to Detect Early Pulmonary Changes in Children with Sickle Cell Disease. Am. J. Pediatr. 2022, 8(2), 56-62. doi: 10.11648/j.ajp.20220802.12

    Copy | Download

    AMA Style

    Sophia Williams, Monica Chaung, Paul Kang. Lung Clearance Index to Detect Early Pulmonary Changes in Children with Sickle Cell Disease. Am J Pediatr. 2022;8(2):56-62. doi: 10.11648/j.ajp.20220802.12

    Copy | Download

  • @article{10.11648/j.ajp.20220802.12,
      author = {Sophia Williams and Monica Chaung and Paul Kang},
      title = {Lung Clearance Index to Detect Early Pulmonary Changes in Children with Sickle Cell Disease},
      journal = {American Journal of Pediatrics},
      volume = {8},
      number = {2},
      pages = {56-62},
      doi = {10.11648/j.ajp.20220802.12},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajp.20220802.12},
      eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ajp.20220802.12},
      abstract = {Objective: Pulmonary complications including acute chest syndrome, are leading causes of sickle cell disease (SCD) related morbidity and mortality. Prior studies have shown that patients with pulmonary complications have evidence of pulmonary involvement reflected in lung functions trends as early as childhood. Spirometry is the current standard for measuring lung function. Growing evidence suggests that lung clearance index (LCI) which is a commonly reported parameter of multiple breath washout (MBW) tests, is more sensitive than spirometry measurements in the early identification of pulmonary changes in pediatric patients. The aim of our study was to determine if this relationship between LCI and spirometry existed within the pediatric sickle cell population. Study Design: This is a cross-sectional, retrospective study to compare LCI to spirometry measurements in children with SCD. Charts were reviewed of clinic encounters at Phoenix Children’s Hospital from March 1, 2013 – June 30, 2017. Spirometry and MBW measurements were collected from 23 patients between the ages of 5 years – 22 years. The MBW utilized sulfur hexafluoride (SF6) as the tracer gas. Demographics and SCD variant (e.g. HbSS, HbSC, etc.) for each encounter were also collected. Results: Our results show that LCI correlates to FEV1% predicted (Spearman’s coefficient -0.44, p = 0.003) and FEF25-75% (Spearman’s coefficient -0.49, p 1% predicted, abnormal LCI results were noted to occur even in the presence of normal FEV1% predicted measurements. Conclusions: Our data support LCI correlating with spirometry measurements, but more studies are necessary to explore whether LCI can be used as a screening test to detect pulmonary changes in young children with SCD. Earlier monitoring of lung function will allow for preventative therapies and delayed progression of pulmonary dysfunction.},
     year = {2022}
    }
    

    Copy | Download

  • TY  - JOUR
    T1  - Lung Clearance Index to Detect Early Pulmonary Changes in Children with Sickle Cell Disease
    AU  - Sophia Williams
    AU  - Monica Chaung
    AU  - Paul Kang
    Y1  - 2022/04/14
    PY  - 2022
    N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajp.20220802.12
    DO  - 10.11648/j.ajp.20220802.12
    T2  - American Journal of Pediatrics
    JF  - American Journal of Pediatrics
    JO  - American Journal of Pediatrics
    SP  - 56
    EP  - 62
    PB  - Science Publishing Group
    SN  - 2472-0909
    UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajp.20220802.12
    AB  - Objective: Pulmonary complications including acute chest syndrome, are leading causes of sickle cell disease (SCD) related morbidity and mortality. Prior studies have shown that patients with pulmonary complications have evidence of pulmonary involvement reflected in lung functions trends as early as childhood. Spirometry is the current standard for measuring lung function. Growing evidence suggests that lung clearance index (LCI) which is a commonly reported parameter of multiple breath washout (MBW) tests, is more sensitive than spirometry measurements in the early identification of pulmonary changes in pediatric patients. The aim of our study was to determine if this relationship between LCI and spirometry existed within the pediatric sickle cell population. Study Design: This is a cross-sectional, retrospective study to compare LCI to spirometry measurements in children with SCD. Charts were reviewed of clinic encounters at Phoenix Children’s Hospital from March 1, 2013 – June 30, 2017. Spirometry and MBW measurements were collected from 23 patients between the ages of 5 years – 22 years. The MBW utilized sulfur hexafluoride (SF6) as the tracer gas. Demographics and SCD variant (e.g. HbSS, HbSC, etc.) for each encounter were also collected. Results: Our results show that LCI correlates to FEV1% predicted (Spearman’s coefficient -0.44, p = 0.003) and FEF25-75% (Spearman’s coefficient -0.49, p 1% predicted, abnormal LCI results were noted to occur even in the presence of normal FEV1% predicted measurements. Conclusions: Our data support LCI correlating with spirometry measurements, but more studies are necessary to explore whether LCI can be used as a screening test to detect pulmonary changes in young children with SCD. Earlier monitoring of lung function will allow for preventative therapies and delayed progression of pulmonary dysfunction.
    VL  - 8
    IS  - 2
    ER  - 

    Copy | Download

Author Information
  • Department of Pediatrics, Division of Pulmonary, Phoenix Children’s Hospital, Phoenix, USA

  • Academic Department, University of Arizona College of Medicine, Phoenix, USA

  • Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of Arizona College of Medicine, Phoenix, USA

  • Sections