Hypoxic Pulmonary Vasoconstriction Does Not Explain All Regional Perfusion Redistribution in Asthma

Rationale: Regional hypoventilation in bronchoconstricted patients with asthma is spatially associated with reduced perfusion, which is proposed to result from hypoxic pulmonary vasoconstriction (HPV).Objectives: To determine the role of HPV in the regional perfusion redistribution in bronchoconstricted patients with asthma.Methods: Eight patients with asthma completed positron emission tomographic/computed tomographic lung imaging at baseline and after bronchoconstriction, breathing either room air or 80% oxygen (80% O2) on separate days. Relative perfusion, specific ventilation (sV), and gas fraction (Fgas) in the 25% of the lung with the lowest specific ventilation (sVlow) and the remaining lung (sVhigh) were quantified and compared.Measurements and Main Results: In the sVlow region, bronchoconstriction caused a significant decrease in sV under both room air and 80% O2 conditions (baseline vs. bronchoconstriction, mean ± SD, 1.02 ± 0.20 vs. 0.35 ± 0.19 and 1.03 ± 0.20 vs. 0.32 ± 0.16, respectively; P <...