Abstract

CORREALTION OF CHEST COMPUTED TOMOGRAPHY RADIOLOGICAL FINDING AND CYCLE THRESHOLD OF RT-PCR IN COVID-19 PATIENTS

Dr. Sundus Mohammed Ahmed AlGhannam*, Dr. Ruqea Jassim Muhammed

ABSTRACT

Aim: Studies analyzing viral load in COVID-19 patients and any data that compare viral load with chest computerized tomography (CT) severity are limited. This study aimed to evaluate the severity of chest CT in reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR)-positive patients and factors associated with it. Methodology: SARS-CoV-2 RNA was extracted from nasopharyngeal swab samples by using Bio-speedy viral nucleic acid buffer. The RT-PCR tests were performed with primers and probes targeting the RdRp gene (Bioexen LTD,) and results were quantified as cycle threshold (Ct) values. Chest CT of SARSCoV-2 RNA-positive patients in a period from 5 March to 11 May 2020 were evaluated. The total severity score (TSS) of chest CT ranged 0–20 and was calculated by summing up the degree of acute lung inflammation lesion involvement of each of the five lung lobes. Results: show in tables. Conclusion: Viral load was not a critical factor for hospitalization and mortality. Outpatients had considerable amounts of virus in their nasopharynx, which made them contagious to their contacts. Viral load is important in detecting early stages of COVID-19, to minimize potential spread, whereas chest CT can help identify cases requiring extensive medical care. note. mixed studies.

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