# MRI Phenotyping of Early BPD and Prediction of Outcomes

> **NIH NIH R01** · CINCINNATI CHILDRENS HOSP MED CTR · 2021 · $757,550

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia (BPD) is a chronic disease of prematurity that is increasing in prevalence, is
responsible for the majority of neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) admissions across the nation (more than
$13B/year in the US), and has high mortality and morbidity. Children with BPD have decreased pulmonary
function, increased incidence of pulmonary vascular disease, and lifelong respiratory illnesses including asthma
and COPD, with no clear link between initial diagnosis and outcomes. Currently, BPD is defined in terms of
supplementary oxygen requirement, but this simplistic definition fails to account for the multifactorial complexity
of the disease and its progression. Multiple groups have attempted to define BPD based on functional and
physiologic information, but these definitions fail to identify those premature infants who develop BPD or how
disease will progress. One of the only established outcomes predictors for BPD is pulmonary arterial
hypertension (PAH), but the diagnosis of PAH itself is ambiguous and often delayed, because echocardiography
can be inaccurate in these hyperinflated patients. The lack of a clinically prognostic definition of BPD severely
limits the ability to predict outcomes or evaluate interventions designed to improve short and long term outcomes.
To address this unmet need to assess cardio-respiratory pathology, our team pioneered the use of MRI in the
NICU to quantify cardiac, pulmonary and airway abnormalities in prematurely-born neonates. Our ultra-short-
echo (UTE) techniques yield 3D images at resolutions similar to CT, provide functional information unavailable
from CT, require no ionizing radiation or contrast injection, and can be performed on free-breathing neonates
without sedation. Further, this MRI provides structural information about the lung parenchyma and vasculature
and dynamic physiologic information from the heart and airways that has never before been available in
neonates. Based on strong preliminary data and our demonstrated ability to perform clinically relevant
cardiopulmonary MRI in neonates, we will define BPD phenotypes derived from structural and functional
abnormalities prevalent in patients. In doing so, we will determine for the first time how specific structure-function
abnormalities correspond to regional pathophysiology and patient outcomes in BPD.
 Our overall goal is to characterize the early sequelae of premature birth via MRI phenotyping, determine the
timecourse of disease via longitudinal MRI, predict respiratory outcomes at or near NICU discharge, and relate
early clinical care and image phenotyping to 1- and 2-year respiratory outcomes. This proposal draws upon
strong preliminary data and multidisciplinary clinical and research programs to establish the first image-derived
phenotypes of BPD, in the stage of life when the disease forms and changes rapidly. The impact of the research
is high and has strong potential for translation—affecting our under...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10133131
- **Project number:** 5R01HL146689-03
- **Recipient organization:** CINCINNATI CHILDRENS HOSP MED CTR
- **Principal Investigator:** JASON C WOODS
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $757,550
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-04-01 → 2023-03-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10133131

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10133131, MRI Phenotyping of Early BPD and Prediction of Outcomes (5R01HL146689-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10133131. Licensed CC0.

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