Computed Tomography: Empowering COVID-19 Diagnosis!

Just yesterday, the North American Radiological Society (RSNA) published an article

on the computed tomography findings of COVID-19 diagnosed patients from the “Diamond Princess” cruise ship.

Just yesterday, the North American Radiological Society (RSNA) published an article on the computed tomography findings of COVID-19 diagnosed patients from the “Diamond Princess” cruise ship.
Computed tomography (CT), also known as computed axial tomography (CAT) scan, was performed on 112 cases of patients infected with the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which tested positive for the real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) laboratory test.

• 82 of them (73%) were asymptomatic and 44 (54%) had abnormalities in the CT scan. In the 44 symptomatic patients, 80% had abnormalities in the CT scan.
• The patients ranged from 25 to 93 years of age, with a mean age of 62 years, with 53% of them being men and 47% women. The most frequent symptoms were cough (19%) as well as fever and fatigue. The CT findings were recorded according to the Fleischner Society’s glossary of terms.
• Abnormal opacities in the lung parenchyma were found in 68 (61%) of all patients, and abnormalities of the airways such as bronchiectasis or bronchial thickening were observed in 30 patients (27%). Consolidation was more frequent (63%) in symptomatic patients, while the ground-glass opacities (80%) were more frequent in asymptomatic patients.
• Regarding the distribution, abnormalities in asymptomatic patients were more frequent in the central region of the lungs, while in symptomatic patients, abnormalities occurred more in the periphery. Abnormalities were more frequent in symptomatic patients than in asymptomatic patients.

However, it is interesting that more than half of the patients without symptoms showed abnormalities on the computed tomography scan.

Study Findings:

The findings of this study were consistent with those previously reported in different studies, predominantly conducted in China. They are also similar to the findings reported in previous epidemics such as Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS-CoV) or Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS-CoV).

Indeed, Although there is no official pronouncement from international health authorities regarding the use of computed tomography of the chest as a first-line diagnostic test, considering that there is a percentage of symptomatic patients (20%) who do not show abnormalities in this study, it is believed that it can be of great relevance in the timely diagnosis of the disease, especially in a scenario where the availability of diagnostic tests for SARS-CoV-2 is limited. The use of computed tomography for COVID-19 diagnosis has been increasingly explored by medical professionals worldwide due to its high sensitivity in detecting the disease’s pulmonary manifestations.

Final Considerations

As a conclusion for the mentioned above, the article published by the North American Radiological Society sheds light on the computed tomography findings of COVID-19 diagnosed patients from the “Diamond Princess” cruise ship.

The study found that more than half of the patients without symptoms showed abnormalities on the computed tomography scan, and abnormalities were more frequent in symptomatic patients than in asymptomatic patients.

On the other hand, the findings of this study were consistent with those previously reported in different studies and are similar to the findings reported in previous epidemics.

Although there is no official pronouncement from international health authorities regarding the use of computed tomography of the chest as a first-line diagnostic test, it is believed that it can be of great relevance in the timely diagnosis of the disease, especially in a scenario where the availability of diagnostic tests for SARS-CoV-2 is limited.

Finally, the use of computed tomography for COVID-19 diagnosis has been increasingly explored by medical professionals worldwide due to its high sensitivity in detecting the disease’s pulmonary manifestations.

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