Predicting exercise capacity after lobectomy by single photon emission computed tomography and computed tomography.

OBJECTIVES: This study compared the prediction of postoperative exercise capacity by employing lung perfusion scintigraphy images obtained with single photon emission computed tomography together with computed tomography (SPECT/CT) versus the common method of counting subsegments (SC method).

METHODS: In 18 patients scheduled for lobectomy, predicted postoperative maximum oxygen uptake per kilogram body weight ([Formula: see text]) was calculated by the SPECT/CT and SC methods. Correlations were examined between the [Formula: see text] predicted by SPECT/CT or the SC method, and the actual [Formula: see text] measured at 2 weeks (mean 15.4 ± 1.5 days) and 1 month (mean 29.1 ± 0.75 days) after surgery to determine whether SPECT/CT was more accurate than SC for predicting postoperative exercise capacity.

RESULTS: There was a significant positive correlation between the [Formula: see text] predicted by SPECT/CT and the actual value at 2 weeks (r = 0.802, p < 0.0001) or 1 month (r = 0.770, p < 0.0001). There was also a significant positive correlation between the [Formula: see text] predicted by SC and the actual value at 2 weeks (r = 0.785, p < 0.0001) or 1 month (r = 0.784, p < 0.0001).

CONCLUSIONS: This study showed that both SPECT/CT and the SC method were useful for predicting postoperative [Formula: see text] in the clinical setting.