@article {1433631,
	title = {Bronchoarterial ratio in never-smokers adults: Implications for bronchial dilation definition},
	journal = {Respirology},
	volume = {22},
	number = {1},
	year = {2017},
	month = {2017 01},
	pages = {108-113},
	abstract = {BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Bronchiectasis manifests as recurrent respiratory infections and reduced lung function. Airway dilation, which is measured as the ratio of the diameters of the bronchial lumen (B) and adjacent pulmonary artery (A), is a defining radiological feature of bronchiectasis. A challenge to equating the bronchoarterial (BA) ratio to disease severity is that the diameters of airway and vessel in health are not established. We sought to explore the variability of BA ratio in never-smokers without pulmonary disease and its associations with lung function.

METHODS: Objective measurements of the BA ratio on volumetric computed tomography (CT) scans and pulmonary function data were collected in 106 never-smokers. The BA ratio was measured in the right upper lobe apical bronchus (RB1) and the right lower lobe basal posterior bronchus. The association between the BA ratio and forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV ) was assessed using regression analysis.

RESULTS: The BA ratio was 0.79 {\textpm} 0.16 and was smaller in more peripheral RB1 bronchi (P 1, a typical threshold for bronchiectasis, in 10 (8.5\%) subjects. Subjects with a BA ratio >1 versus <=1 had smaller artery diameters (P 1 is driven by small arteries. Using artery diameter as reference to define bronchial dilation seems inappropriate.},
	keywords = {Aged, Bronchi, Bronchiectasis, Female, Forced Expiratory Volume, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Organ Size, Pulmonary Artery, Regression Analysis, Reproducibility of Results, Respiratory Function Tests, Severity of Illness Index, Tomography, X-Ray Computed},
	issn = {1440-1843},
	doi = {10.1111/resp.12875},
	author = {Diaz, Alejandro A and Young, Thomas P and Maselli, Diego J and Martinez, Carlos H and Maclean, Erick S and Yen, Andrew and Dass, Chandra and Simpson, Scott A and Lynch, David A and Kinney, Gregory L and Hokanson, John E and Washko, George R and San Jos{\'e} Est{\'e}par, Raul}
}