perinatology.com The Lung area to Head circumference Ratio (LHR),
The Observed/expected lung-to-head ratio (o/e LHR), and
The Quantitative Lung Index (QLI)
The calculator below may be used to estimate the
LHR , the o/e LHR, and the QLI
(1 cm ^2 = 100 mm^2)
Calculations
Longest Diameter Method
Tracing Method
Observed LHR=
Observed LHR=
Expected LHR
Expected LHR
O/E LHR
=
%
O/E LHR
=
%
QLI=
QLI=
The
Observed Lung area to Head circumference Ratio (LHR) =Lung area
/ Head circumference Where :
The lung area of the lung contralateral to the CDH =
Length 1 X Length 2
OR the lung area is obtained by
tracing of the limits of the lung.
If the LHR is 1 or less, the prognosis is poor. The prognosis is
poorer still if
the liver is in the thorax. Such patients may be candidates
for prenatal intervention.
If the LHR is between 1.0 to 1.4 , extracorporeal membranous
oxygenation (ECMO) is often needed.
If the LHR is greater than 1.4, the prognosis is better
o/e LHR = (Observed LHR/ Expected LHR ) X 100
Alfaraj MA, et al found 100% survival in patients with isolated CDH
when the O/E LHR on ultrasound was greater than 45%.
Whereas, there are few survivors when the O/E LHR less than 25%
Quantitative lung index (QLI) = lung area/(HC/10)^2
The 50th percentile for the QLI is constant at ~ 1 for the geststional
age between 16 - 32 weeks. A small lung ( 1st percentile) is defined
as a QLI 0.6.
The Lung area to Head circumference Ratio (LHR),
The lung-to-head circumference ratio (LHR) is a sonographic measure
that has been proposed to identify fetuses with congenital diaphragmatic
hernia (CDH) that have a poor
prognosis.
The lung area contralateral to the CDH was originally obtained by taking
the product of the longest two perpendicular linear measurements of the
lung measured at the level of the 4-chamber view of the heart on
a transverse scan of the fetal thorax. The product is divided by the
HC.
Lung area = Length 1 X
Length 2
The Lung area to Head circumference Ratio (LHR) =
Lung area
/ Head circumference
In a cross-sectional study of 650 normal singleton pregnancies
Peralta and coworkers found manual tracing of the lung
to be a more reproducible way of measuring the lung area .
Using the tracing method the lung area contralateral to the CDH
is be obtained by
tracing of the limits of the lung.
The Lung area to Head circumference Ratio (LHR) =
Lung area
/ Head circumference
Observed/expected
lung-to-head ratio (o/e LHR)
Peralta CF, et al also found that the left and right LHR increased
exponentially with gestation . Because the LHR is not gestational age
independent as previously assumed Jani J, et al proposed the introduction of a new measurement, the observed to
expected (o/e) LHR, to correct for gestational age.
The observed LHR may be expressed as a percentage of the expected
mean for gestational age as the Observed/expected
lung-to-head ratio O/E LHR.
o/e LHR = (Observed LHR/ Expected LHR ) X 100
Where the Expected LHR using Longest Diameter Method is
Expected Right LHR in left CDH
=– 3.4802 + (0.3995 X GA) - (0.0048 X GA ^2 )
Expected Left LHR in right CDH
=- 2.5957 + (0.3043 X GA) - ( 0.0042 X GA ^2)
GA = gestational age in
weeks
Where the Expected LHR using the Tracing Method is
Expected Right LHR in left CDH
-2.3271 + (0.27 × GA)−(0.0032 × GA^2)
Expected Left LHR in right CDH
-1.4994 + (0.1778 × GA)−(0.0021 × GA2)
GA = gestational age in
weeks
The Quantitative Lung Index (QLI)
Quintero RA
and colleagues showed mathematically that neither the LHR nor the observed/expected LHR
are gestational age independent. They derived a new parameter to
describe right lung growth expressed as the quantitative lung index
(QLI) = lung area/(HC/10)^2. The 50th percentile of the QLI is constant at approximately 1.0 for the gestational age between 16-32 weeks.
They defined a small lung (<1st percentile) as a QLI <0.6. Further studies
are needed to assess the merits of this new parameter .
REFERENCES:
1. Lipshutz GS, Albanese CT, Feldstein VA, Jennings RW, Housley HT, Beech R, Farrell JA, Harrison MR. Prospective analysis of lung-to-head ratio predicts survival for patients with prenatally diagnosed congenital diaphragmatic hernia. J
Pediatr Surg 1997 Nov;32(11):1634-6 PMID: 9396544 2. Alfaraj MA, et al.
Congenital diaphragmatic hernia: lung-to-head ratio and lung volume for
prediction of outcome.Am J Obstet Gynecol. 2011 Jul;205(1):43.e1-8. PMID
21529758
3. Quintero RA, et al The quantitative lung index (QLI): a gestational
age-independent sonographic predictor of fetal lung growth.
Am J Obstet Gynecol. 2011 Dec;205(6):544.e1-8. Epub 2011 Jul 22.PMID:
21944224
4.
Metkus AP, et al. Sonographic predictors of survival in fetal
diaphragmatic hernia. J Pediatr Surg. 1996 Jan;31(1):148-51; PMID: 8632269
5.
Peralta CF,et al. Assessment of lung area in normal fetuses at 12-32
weeks. Ultrasound Obstet Gynecol. 2005 Dec;26(7):718-24.PMID: 16308896
6.
Jani J, et al Observed to expected lung area to head circumference ratio in
the prediction of survival in fetuses with isolated diaphragmatic hernia.
Antenatal-CDH-Registry Group. Ultrasound Obstet Gynecol. 2007
Jul;30(1):67-71.PMID: 17587219
7. Peralta CF, et al. Left and right lung volumes in fetuses with diaphragmatic
hernia.
Ultrasound Obstet Gynecol. 2006 May;27(5):551-4.PMID: 16586479Jani JC, et al.,
Lung-to-head ratio: a need to unify the technique.Ultrasound Obstet Gynecol.
2012 Jan;39(1):2-6. doi: 10.1002/uog.11065. PMID: 22213615
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