ROLE OF CT PULMONARY ANGIOGRAPHY IN EVALUATION OF PULMONARY THROMBOEMBOLISM IN COVID-19 POSITIVE PATIENTS

Abstract

Introduction- COVID-19 disease has been strongly associated with a pro thrombotic state and vascular endothelial damage resulting into wide range of thromboembolic phenomena including deep venous thrombosis involving extremeties, pulmonary artery thrombo-embolism and eventually pulmonary infarctions. Computed tomography pulmonary angiography (CTPA) was used at our hospital for assessment of patients with risk of pulmonary embolism. It plays a vital role in its establishing its diagnosis, defining its extent, stage and thereby guiding towards further management. Materials and Methods- A Retrospective study was performed in Sri Aurobindo Medical College and Post graduate Institute, Indore, Madhya Pradesh, India and was approved by the ethical committee. It was performed on 250 COVID-19 patients with clinically suspected pulmonary thromboembolism who underwent CTPA between the months of December 2021 and May 2021. The scans were analysed by skilled radiologists, having good experience in the field of CT reporting. Results- Our study demonstrated that approx. 14% of the patients had pulmonary thromboembolism and these cases were observed in patients with moderate to severe lung involvement. ConclusionIn this study, we have thoroughly tried to assess the presence of pulmonary thromboembolism using CTPA and establish its relationship with severity of lung involvement on HRCT