{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2025,11,5]],"date-time":"2025-11-05T08:17:57Z","timestamp":1762330677159,"version":"build-2065373602"},"reference-count":22,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"20","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,21]],"date-time":"2025-10-21T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1761004800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Diagnostics"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Background\/Objectives: Acute spinal cord injury (ASCI) often leads to pulmonary complications, yet reliable, non-invasive assessment tools are limited. This study aimed to evaluate the utility of lung ultrasound (LUS) in assessing lung injury following ASCI in a rat model. Methods: Fifty-four female Sprague Dawley rats were randomized into sham (n = 27) or ASCI (n = 27) groups. LUS was performed at 12 h, 48 h, and 1 week post-injury, with lung injury quantified using a modified B-line score (BLS). Pulmonary function was assessed non-invasively, and histopathological evaluation and wet-to-dry (W\/D) weight ratios were conducted post-mortem. Correlations between BLS and functional and pathological parameters were analyzed. Results: Histological analysis revealed progressive pulmonary hemorrhage, edema, and inflammatory infiltration peaking at 48 h post-injury, with residual hemorrhage and fibroplasia at 1 week. LUS findings evolved from narrow-based B-lines at 12 h to confluent B-lines with pleural abnormalities by 1 week. ASCI rats showed significant reductions in respiratory frequency, peak inspiratory and expiratory flow, and EF50 at all time points (p &lt; 0.05). Tidal volume and minute volume decreased initially, with partial recovery at 1 week. BLS negatively correlated with all pulmonary function parameters and positively with the histological score and W\/D ratio (p &lt; 0.001). Conclusions: LUS reliably detects and tracks lung injury after ASCI, correlating well with physiological and pathological indicators. These findings support its potential as a non-invasive monitoring tool. Future refinement of ultrasound scoring may improve clinical applicability in ASCI-related pulmonary assessment.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/diagnostics15202648","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,21]],"date-time":"2025-10-21T14:24:02Z","timestamp":1761056642000},"page":"2648","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Lung Ultrasound Assessment of Lung Injury Following Acute Spinal Cord Injury in Rats"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"15","author":[{"given":"Na","family":"Ni","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pediatrics, Women and Children\u2019s Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Department of Pediatrics, Chongqing Health Center for Women and Children, Chongqing 400000, China"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0009-3069-2873","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Ruiliang","family":"Chu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Ultrasound Children\u2019s Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, National Clinical Research Center for Child Health and Disorders, Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Child Development and Disorders, Chongqing Engineering Research Center of Stem Cell Therapy, Chongqing 400000, China"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Kai","family":"Gu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Ultrasound Children\u2019s Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, National Clinical Research Center for Child Health and Disorders, Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Child Development and Disorders, Chongqing Engineering Research Center of Stem Cell Therapy, Chongqing 400000, China"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Yi","family":"Zhong","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Ultrasound Children\u2019s Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, National Clinical Research Center for Child Health and Disorders, Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Child Development and Disorders, Chongqing Engineering Research Center of Stem Cell Therapy, Chongqing 400000, China"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,21]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","first-page":"100057","article-title":"Spinal fractures and\/or spinal cord injuries are associated with orthopedic and internal organ injuries in proximity to the spinal injury","volume":"6","author":"Anandasivam","year":"2021","journal-title":"N. 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