Quantitative computed tomography texture analysis: can it improve diagnostic accuracy to differentiate malignant lymph nodes?

Table 1 Patient characteristics

Characteristic	Value
Patients, n	80
Age (years)	69 (60–77)
Male sex	53 (66.3)
Smoking status
Never smoker	24 (30.0)
Ex-smoker	32 (40.0)
Current smoker	24 (30.0)
Smoking pack-year	40 (25–50)
Underlying condition
Previous malignancy
NSCLC	7 (8.8)
Extra-thoracic malignancy	11 (13.8)
Lymphoma	3 (3.8)
Interstitial lung disease	2 (2.5)
Previous history of pulmonary tuberculosis	4 (5.0)
COPD	18 (22.5)
Purpose of EBUS-TBNA
Lung cancer staging and/or diagnosis	65 (81.3)
Metastasis from extra-thoracic malignancy	10 (12.5)
Lymphoma	2 (2.5)
Sarcoidosis	3 (3.7)
Examined lymph node, total	149
Examined lymph node per patients	2 (1–3)
Nodal station^*
2R	14 (9.4)
2 L	1 (0.7)
4R	41 (27.5)
4 L	18 (12.1)
7	47 (31.5)
10R	9 (6.0)
10 L	9 (6.0)
11R	5 (3.4)
11 L	2 (1.3)
3P: paraesophageal	2 (1.4): 1 (0.7)
SUV_max on FDG PET/CT^†	5.0 (2.3–6.3)

Data presented as n (%) or median (interquartile range), unless otherwise indicated
^*2R, right upper paratracheal; 2 L, left upper paratracheal; 4R, right lower paratrachea; 4 L, left lower paratracheal; 7, subcarina; 10R, right hilar; 10 L, left hilar; 11R, right interlobar; 11 L, left interlobar; 3P, retrotracheal
^†18-Fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography (FDG PET/CT) results were available from 103 lymph nodes in 57 patients
COPD, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; EBUS-TBNA, endobronchial ultrasound-guided transbronchial needle aspiration; NSCLC, non-small cell lung cancer; SUV_max, maximal standardized uptake value

ISSN: 1470-7330