[Correlation between comorbidities and thoracic CT manifestations of COVID-19 pneumonia].

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Pulmonary manifestation of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is described using standardized computed tomography (CT) morphologic criteria. In this study, we investigated possible associations between thoracic CT manifestations in COVID-19 pneumonia and typical comorbidities, as well as clinical course.

METHODS: We analyzed clinical data and pulmonary imaging of 61 patients with positive PCR test. Pulmonary changes were categorized and reviewed for associations with pre-existing comorbidities and clinical course.

RESULTS: Compared to patients with atypical infiltrate patterns (2/19, 10.5%), 25 patients with typical infiltrate patterns (25/42, 59.5%) were significantly more likely to receive intensive care (p<0.001). In addition, patients with typical infiltrate patterns were more likely to receive non-invasive ventilation (12/42, 28.6%, p=0.040) and high-flow therapy (8/42, 19%, p=0.041) compared to patients with atypical infiltrate patterns. Mortality was also higher in patients with typical infiltrate patterns, with 15 patients (15/42, 35.7%) dying during follow-up compared to only 1 patient with atypical infiltrate pattern (1/19, 10.5%, p=0.012). No significant association between specific comorbidities and the resulting infiltrate pattern could be demonstrated.

CONCLUSIONS: Patients with a typical COVID-19 infiltrate pattern are more likely to receive intensive care and show higher mortality rates. Further analysis with larger patient collectives is needed to identify specific risk factors for typical COVID-19 pneumonia.