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Lung CT Segmentation to Identify Consolidations and Ground Glass Areas for Quantitative Assesment of SARS-CoV Pneumonia
Published on: December 19, 2020
Correlations of CT scan with high-sensitivity C-reactive protein and D-dimer in patients with coronavirus disease
Jin Zhu1, Cheng Chen2, Rongshu Shi3
1Jin Zhu, Department of Intervention, Affiliated Hospital of Zunyi Medical University, Zunyi 563003, P.R. China.
Insights
Chest CT scans in COVID-19 patients show characteristic findings correlated with C-reactive protein (CRP) and D-dimer levels. Elevated CRP and D-dimer in severe cases indicate poor prognosis and potential for predictive value.
Area of Science:
- Medical Imaging
- Infectious Diseases
- Biomarkers
Background:
- Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) presents with diverse clinical manifestations.
- Assessing disease severity and patient prognosis is crucial for effective management.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the correlation between chest computed tomography (CT) scan findings and levels of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and D-dimer in COVID-19 patients.
- To evaluate the potential predictive role of these markers in clinical treatment and prognosis.
Main Methods:
- Patients with COVID-19 were categorized into mild/ordinary (Group-1) and critical/severe (Group-2) based on established protocols.
- Chest CT scans, hs-CRP, and D-dimer levels were analyzed and compared between groups.
- Statistical analyses, including t-tests, nonparametric tests, and binary logistic regression, were employed.
Main Results:
- Chest CT scans revealed characteristic abnormalities in COVID-19 patients, particularly ground-glass shadows and consolidations in severe cases.
- Group-2 (critical/severe) exhibited significantly higher hs-CRP and D-dimer levels compared to Group-1 (mild/ordinary).
- Chest CT findings demonstrated a significant positive correlation with hs-CRP and D-dimer levels (P<0.05).
Conclusions:
- Chest CT scan findings in COVID-19 are characteristic and correlate with hs-CRP and D-dimer levels.
- Elevated D-dimer and CRP levels are associated with severe and critical illness and are closely linked to patient prognosis.
- These biomarkers may serve as valuable indicators for clinical treatment and prognosis evaluation in COVID-19 management.
Objectives:
To study the correlations of CT scan with high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and D-dimer in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-2019).
Methods:
From January to March 2020, COVID-19 patients were divided into two groups according to the Diagnosis and Treatment Protocol for Novel Coronavirus Pneumonia (trial version 7), with mild and ordinary cases as Group-1 and critical and severe cases as Group-2. The chest CT scan results, hs-CRP, D-dimmer levels of the two groups from admission to discharge were compared by the χ2 test or Fisher's exact test. The quantitative data were represented as mean ± standard deviation ( x ± s). Intergroup comparisons were performed by the independent samples t test, and the ineligible data were subjected to the nonparametric rank sum test. Binary logistic regression model was used for multivariate correlation analysis, using independent variables that were significant in univariate analysis. The correlations between the above indices were analyzed.
Results:
In Group-1, there were two cases of normal chest CT scan results, one case of fibrosis, and 25 cases of abnormalities during the first diagnosis, mainly manifested as single or scattered ground-glass shadows. After treatment, the CT scan results became normal. The chest CT scan of Group-2 showed abnormalities, including 21 cases of multiple ground-glass shadows, and six cases of multiple consolidations accompanied by ground-glass shadows, who were critically ill and died. In addition, there were 16 cases of multiple ground glass shadows with partial consolidation, and the CRP and D-dimer levels of Group-2 were significantly higher than those of Group-1. Chest CT scan results were significantly positively correlated with CRP and D-dimer levels (P<0.05).
Conclusion:
The chest CT scan results of COVID-19 patients are characteristic, being correlated with CRP and D-dimer levels. D-dimer and CRP levels significantly increase in most severe and critical patients, which are closely related to their prognosis. The indices may play predictive roles in clinical treatment and prognosis evaluation.
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