Potential predictive value of CT radiomics features for treatment response in patients with COVID-19

This study aims to explore the predictive value of CT radiomics and clinical characteristics for treatment response in COVID-19 patients.

Data were collected from clinical/auxiliary examinations and follow-ups of COVID-19 patients. Whole lung radiomics feature extraction was performed at baseline chest CT. Radiomics, clinical, and combined features (nomogram) were evaluated for predicting treatment response.

Among 36 COVID-19 patients, mild, common, severe, and critical disease symptoms were found in 1, 21, 13, and 1 of them, respectively. Twenty-five (1 mild, 18 common, and 6 severe) patients showed a good response to treatment and 11 poor/fair responses. The clinical classification (p = 0.025) and serum creatinine (p = 0.010) on admission and small area emphasis (p = 0.036) from radiomics analysis significantly differed between the two groups. Predictive models were constructed based on the radiomics, clinical features, and nomogram showing an area under the curve of 0.651, 0.836, and 0.869, respectively. The nomogram achieved good calibration.

This new, non-invasive, and low-cost prediction model that combines the radiomics and clinical features is useful for identifying COVID-19 patients who may not respond well to treatment.