Left atrio-vertebral ratio: A new computed-tomography measurement to identify left XXXX .

@entity1143 @entity1 @entity712 @entity4 @entity384 @entity299
BACKGROUND: Left cardiac chambers dilation, interstitial lung changes and @entity1143 are the characteristics of @entity4 on computed tomography (CT) of the chest but mensuration of the left atrial size is not routinely performed. Cardiac chambers normal dimensions are known to be proportional to the @entity1 's build and anthropomorphic data but adjustment of chambers dimensions to available elements seen on the axial CT images has never been evaluated before. OBJECTIVES: Our objective was to use data easily available on axial images to directly scale the left atrium. We chose to divide the left atrial diameter by the thoracic vertebral diameter, using the latter as a body-mass indicator. As a preliminary study, we aimed to evaluate the range of values of this left atrio-vertebral ratio (LAVR) by comparing @entity1 suffering from @entity4 with @entity1 free of @entity299 . We hypothesized that if the difference of values in these two populations of @entity1 was significant enough, this ratio would be relevant and could be used as a quick criterion in different clinical situations. METHOD: Two radiologists reviewed CT scans of 32 of @entity1 free of @entity299 and 40 @entity1 in @entity712 . The maximum diameter of the left atrium at the level of the right inferior pulmonary vein was divided by the vertebral transverse diameter to generate a left atrio-vertebral ratio. Receiver operating characteristic curves identified the threshold associated with @entity4 . MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: The mean LAVR was 1.85  0.27 in asymptomatic @entity1 and 2.48  0.35 in @entity1 with @entity4 . A LAVR of 2.1 yielded 85% sensitivity and 88% specificity for the diagnosis of @entity4 . CONCLUSIONS: LAVR is a simple new measure directly scaling the left atrial diameter to the anthropomorphic characteristics of the @entity1 . In our series, a ratio above 2.1 is strongly associated with @entity4 indirectly suggesting left @entity384 . The results were significantly different between the two populations of @entity1 (no heart condition versus @entity4 ) suggesting a high potential for clinical application.
