الفهرس | Only 14 pages are availabe for public view |
Abstract The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) spread rapidly leading to global pandemic in the winter and spring of 2020. COVID-19 disease is not just an acute infection but is a complex entity with post-infection complications and long effects especially involving the pulmonary system. The aim of this study was to assess post COVID-19 pulmonary complications using multidetector computed tomography after resolution of the acute infection and to correlate the findings with clinical manifestations. The current study included 30 patients, 19 males and 11 females, with their mean age of 58 years. Those patients presented with pulmonary manifestations after more than 3 months of previously diagnosed initial COVID-19 infection, based on clinical, laboratory and radiological findings. All patients were subjected to detailed history taking about their health status as regard current presenting symptoms, comorbidities, and the severity of previous COVID-19 infection. After giving breath holding instructions, all patients were scanned using different multidetector CT scanners installed at Tanta University Hospitals to detect the possible pulmonary damages of COVID-19 pneumonia by non-contrast chest CT studies (in 25 patients) and pulmonary angiography (in 5 clinically indicated patients). Further post processing automated and semi-automated volumetric measurements empowered by artificial intelligence techniques were used to calculate the total lung volume and volume of lung fibrosis with calculation of its percentage in relation to obtained total lung volume, and correlation between the percentage of this compromised lung volume (CL%) and the clinical picture of the patient (the need of oxygen support) was done. Semiautomated techniques included manual adjustment of traced lung borders. |