[Pneumonia in immunosuppressed patients]
O Solyanik1, T Gaass1, K Hellbach1
1Institut für klinische Radiologie, Klinikum der Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Campus Großhadern, Marchioninistraße 15, 81377, München, Deutschland.
Clinical/Methodical Issue:
Pulmonary infections are a common complication in immunosuppressed patients with a frequently fatal prognosis despite modern prophylactic therapy. An early and correct diagnosis is important for initiation of the appropriate therapy.
Standard Radiological Methods:
Chest radiography is the preferred initial imaging examination but is not accurate enough for the detection of pulmonary infections in immunosuppressed patients.
Methodical Innovations:
Pneumonia is caused by a broad spectrum of pathogens in immunocompromised patients. In addition to imaging, the clinical history and epidemiology also play an important role in the diagnostics.
Performance:
Using epidemiological and anamnestic information, computed tomography (CT) shows a significantly better sensitivity and specificity particularly for the diagnosis of atypical forms of pneumonia. Due to the exact imaging of the different infiltration patterns CT provides an increased sensitivity with respect to the etiological classification of pulmonary infections.
Practical Recommendations:
This article reviews in particular the radiological findings of commonly occurring pulmonary infections in immunosuppressed patients.
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