Chest CT imaging findings and mortality of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in two groups of patients with positive and negative initial RT-PCR results

Document Type : Original Paper

Authors

1 Department of Medical Physics, School of Medicine, Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences, Kermanshah, Iran

2 Department of Radiology, Faculty of Medicine, Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences, Kermanshah, Iran

3 Department of Medical Physics, Faculty of Medicine, Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences, Kermanshah, Iran

4 Department of Biostatistics, Kermanshah University of Medical Science, Kermanshah, Iran

Abstract

Purpose: This study aims to describe chest CT imaging findings and report mortality in two groups of patients with positive and negative initial RT-PCR results regarding the Delta variant.

Material and Methods: In this retrospective study a total of 156 suspected and confirmed patients with COVID-19 who underwent chest CT examinations with both positive and negative initial RT-PCR, were randomly selected. The patients were classified into two groups: 56 patients and 100 patients with negative and positive initial RT-PCR results, respectively.

Results: 156 patients with COVID-19 pneumonia had typical imaging features such as; ground-glass opacities (GGO) (140 [89.7%]), consolidation (33 [21.2%]), vascular enlargement in the lesion (41 [26.3%]). Lesions present on CT images were more likely to have a peripheral distribution (79 [50.6%]), peripheral and central distribution (61 [39.1%]) and architectural distortion (14 [9%]. The other CT features included crazy-paving pattern (25 [16%]), pleural effusion (15 [9.6%]). Only two patients had traction bronchiectasis and tree-in-bud (2 [1.3%]). Otherwise mortality rate in total was (19 [12.2%]). Also, Patients in the group of positive initial RT-PCR had more features such as crazy-paving pattern, peripheral distribution, and GGO compared to the patients in negative initial RT-PCR group.

Conclusions: The most prevalent CT feature was peripheral GGO (140 [89.7%]) in the lungs of patients with COVID-19. The positive initial RT-PCR group had a higher GGO, peripheral distribution, and crazy-paving pattern, in their CT scans than patients in the group with negative initial RT-PCR results. Mortality in groups with initial negative and positive RT-PCR was approximately similar (10.7% and 13%, respectively). It was shown that most of the patients with negative RT-PCR should be considered as a suspect of COVID-19.

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Iranian Journal of Medical Physics

Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript
Available Online from 07 August 2022

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History

  • Receive Date: 31 May 2022
  • Revise Date: 06 August 2022
  • Accept Date: 07 August 2022
  • First Publish Date: 07 August 2022

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