Severity of bronchiectasis at CT correlates with measures of airflow obstruction [40]. Although well-established guidelines on imaging follow-up of bronchiectasis are lacking, in practice, patients with diseases associated with bronchiectasis may be assessed with CT to help guide therapy and to provide prognostic information. Patients with NTMB may be followed with chest CT to assess response to therapy or worsening of disease. A study of 210 patients with NTMB found that higher CT severity scores (a combined assessment of nodules, bronchiectasis, cavities, and consolidation) were associated with higher organism sputum counts and worse prognosis [49]; higher sputum organism count was also associated with CT findings of small nodules, consolidation, bronchiectasis, and pleural thickening in another study of 50 patients with NTMB [50]. In a study of 488 patients with NTMB, patients with predominantly fibrocavitary disease were more likely to experience clinical deterioration than those with primarily noncavitary manifestations [51]. In a study of 40 patients with NTMB lung disease not undergoing antimycobacterial treatment, 39 (98%) showed worsening on chest CT findings over the course of Tracheobronchial Disease several years [52], although another study of 475 patients with NTMB pulmonary disease showed improvement in CT scores with antibiotic treatment [53]. In a study of 67 patients with NTMB, more extensive total lung involvement and higher cavitary volume were independently associated with worse pulmonary function [54]. CT may be useful for follow-up of patients with bronchiectasis who may be at risk of developing NTMB.
Tracheobronchial Disease. Severity of bronchiectasis at CT correlates with measures of airflow obstruction [40]. Although well-established guidelines on imaging follow-up of bronchiectasis are lacking, in practice, patients with diseases associated with bronchiectasis may be assessed with CT to help guide therapy and to provide prognostic information. Patients with NTMB may be followed with chest CT to assess response to therapy or worsening of disease. A study of 210 patients with NTMB found that higher CT severity scores (a combined assessment of nodules, bronchiectasis, cavities, and consolidation) were associated with higher organism sputum counts and worse prognosis [49]; higher sputum organism count was also associated with CT findings of small nodules, consolidation, bronchiectasis, and pleural thickening in another study of 50 patients with NTMB [50]. In a study of 488 patients with NTMB, patients with predominantly fibrocavitary disease were more likely to experience clinical deterioration than those with primarily noncavitary manifestations [51]. In a study of 40 patients with NTMB lung disease not undergoing antimycobacterial treatment, 39 (98%) showed worsening on chest CT findings over the course of Tracheobronchial Disease several years [52], although another study of 475 patients with NTMB pulmonary disease showed improvement in CT scores with antibiotic treatment [53]. In a study of 67 patients with NTMB, more extensive total lung involvement and higher cavitary volume were independently associated with worse pulmonary function [54]. CT may be useful for follow-up of patients with bronchiectasis who may be at risk of developing NTMB.