Table 2.
Morphometric characteristics in pulmonary muscular arteries by study group
| COPD (N = 12) | NOS (N = 8) | NS (N = 12) | p-value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| N° of arteries measured by patient | 10 ± 4 | 12 ± 6 | 8 ± 6 | 0.203 |
| Artery diameter, μm | 306 ± 65 | 349.33 ± 57.7 | 333.51 ± 18.8 | 0.186 |
| Lumen area, % total area | 27.7 ± 7.1 | 35.1 ± 8.2 | 36.2 ± 9.8 | 0.046 |
| Intimal area, % total area | 37.3 ± 7 | 29.4 ± 7.1 | 26.6 ± 11.5 | 0.018 |
| Muscular area, % total area | 35 ± 4.2 | 35.5 ± 5.9 | 37.2 ± 11.2 | 0.782 |
| Index of narrowinga | 0.299 ± 0.032 | 0.301 ± 0.024 | 0.307 ± 0.269 | 0.831 |
COPD Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, NOS Non-obstructed smokers, NS Never smokers
Data are presented as median ± standard deviation. P-values are for the overall comparison by ANOVA
aIndex of narrowing was estimated as the ration between the measured total area and the area extrapolated from the theoretical distended diameter: (theoretical diameter = length of the external elastic lamina/pi (π))