The CT Scan Lung Severity Score and Vaccination Status in COVID-19 patients in India: Perspective of an Independent Radiology Practice

Abstract

Background Patients with COVID-19 often undergo a high-resolution CT scan to determine the extent of lung involvement. The aim of this study was to determine lung involvement in confirmed/suspected COVID-19 patients (encountered at an independent radiology practice) and its correlation to vaccination status amidst the second COVID-19 wave in India. Methods We retrospectively queried our data from April 2021 to identify adult patients (>17 years) who had confirmed (positive RT-PCR or antigen test) or suspected COVID-19 (classic symptoms but negative RT-PCR) and received a high-resolution CT scan to determine the extent of lung involvement using the CT severity (CT-SS) score. The patients were classified into three groups based on their vaccination status to determine their correlation with the CT-SS score: fully vaccinated, partially vaccinated, and unvaccinated. Basic descriptive statistics, univariate tests, and multivariate linear regression analyses were performed. Results We identified 229 patients (median age, 45 years; 60% male), of whom 205 (89%) had confirmed COVID-19 (positive RT-PCR) and 24 had suspected disease (negative RT-PCT but classic symptoms). Of 229 patients, 29 (13%) had complete vaccination, 38 (17%) had partial vaccination, and 162 (70%) had no vaccination. The CT score of the completely vaccinated patients was significantly lower than that of the partially or unvaccinated patients (median 0 v. 3.5 v. 10, respectively p<.01). Conclusion Here, we present real-world findings from an independent radiology practice (a unique and common practice model) in India amid the second COVID-19 wave, showing significantly lower CT severity scores in fully or partially vaccinated patients compared to unvaccinated patients. Complete vaccination of patients may be critical in preventing severe lung disease.