Hyper-concentrated and more viscous mucus presents in the lungs of patients suffering from
cystic fibrosis (CF) provoke mucus stasis providing an optimal environment for bacterial growth.
The sputum of CF patients has been subjected to rheological and low-field NMR investigation,
providing information on i) the state of viscoelasticity (G0, h
0 ) and mucus hydration (T2avg), ii)
possible correlations also with parameter of patients clinical status given by spirometry(FEV1) iii)
the structure of the polymeric network in mucus. The absence of correlation among magnetic and
mechanical-rheological relaxation notes that these phenomena are linked to different aspects of
sputum. However, correlations exist among FEV1, T2av and rheological properties G0, h
0. Moreover,
T2avg correlates with the mucociliary clearability index (MCI) and cough clearability index (CCI), two
indices derived from the rheological characterization. The clinical condition of the patient can,
therefore, be summarized by T2avg alone. Finally, information from the two characterizations make
it possible to estimate the mesh size distribution of the polymeric network pervading sputum. This
knowledge is very useful to better understand drugs penetration in mucus
