Abstract
Introduction Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is a highly contagious disease, and its first outbreak was reported in Wuhan, China. A coronavirus disease (COVID-19) causes severe respiratory distress (ARDS). Due to the primary involvement of the respiratory system, chest CT is strongly recommended in suspected COVID-19 cases, for both initial evaluation and follow-up. Objective The aim of this review was to systematically analyze the existing literature on CT imaging features of patients with COVID-19 pneumonia. Methods A systematic search was conducted on PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, Open Access Journals (OAJ), and Google Scholar databases until April 15, 2020. All articles with a report of CT findings in COVID-19 patients published in English from the onset of COVID-19 outbreak to April 20, 2020, were included in the study. Result From a total of 5041 COVID-19-infected patients, about 98% (4940/5041) had abnormalities in chest CT, while about 2% have normal chest CT findings. Among COVID-19 patients with abnormal chest CT findings, 80% (3952/4940) had bilateral lung involvement. Ground-glass opacity (GGO) and mixed GGO with consolidation were observed in 2482 (65%) and 768 (18%) patients, respectively. Consolidations were detected in 1259 (22%) patients with COVID-19 pneumonia. CT images also showed interlobular septal thickening in about 691 (27%) patients. Conclusion Frequent involvement of bilateral lung infections, ground-glass opacities, consolidation, crazy paving pattern, air bronchogram signs, and intralobular septal thickening were common CT imaging features of patients with COVID-19 pneumonia.
Highlights
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is a highly contagious disease, and its first outbreak was reported in Wuhan, China
A systematic search was conducted on PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, Open Access Journals (OAJ), and Google Scholar databases until April 15, 2020
All articles with a report of computed tomography (CT) findings in COVID-19 patients published in English from the onset of COVID-19 outbreak to April 20, 2020, were included in the study
Summary
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARSCoV-2) is a highly contagious disease, and its first outbreak was reported in Wuhan, China [1]. Recent studies addressed the importance of chest CT examination in COVID-19 patients with falsenegative RT-PCR results [8] and reported the CT sensitivity as 98% [9]. Chest CT images could manifest different imaging features or patterns in COVID-19 patients with different time course and disease severity [13, 14]. Due to an alarming spread of COVID-19 outbreak throughout the world, a comprehensive understanding of the importance of evaluating chest CT imaging findings is essential for effective patient management and treatment. Erefore, this study systematically reviewed CT imaging features of patients with COVID-19 pneumonia Individual literature published is required to be summarized. us, a comprehensive systematic review has to be performed. erefore, this study systematically reviewed CT imaging features of patients with COVID-19 pneumonia
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