Diagn Interv Radiol
. 2023 Jan 16.
doi: 10.4274/dir.2022.221575. Online ahead of print.
Evaluation of abdominal computed tomography findings in patients with COVID-19: a multicenter study
Mehmet Ruhi Onur 1 , Yakup Özbay 1 , İlkay İdilman 1 , Ali Devrim Karaosmanoğlu 1 , Selma Uysal Ramadan 2 , Funda Barlık 3 , Sonay Aydın 4 , Hüseyin Odaman 3 , Canan Altay 3 , Işıl Başara Akın 3 , Oğuz Dicle 3 , Özgür Appak 5 , Başak Gülpınar 6 , Ayşe Erden 6 , Sezer Kula 6 , Ayşegül Gürsöy Çoruh 6 , Diğdem Kuru Öz 6 , Melahat Kul 6 , Çağlar Uzun 6 , Erdal Karavaş 4 , Akın Levent 4 , Hakan Artaş 7 , Hasan Eryeşil 7 , Onur Solmaz 7 , Türkkan Öztürk Kaygusuz 8 , Mustafa Faraşat 9 , Ahmet Burak Kale 9 , Fatih Düzgün 9 , Gökhan Pekindil 9 , F Demir Apaydın 10 , Meltem Nass Duce 10 , Yüksel Balcı 10 , Kaan Esen 10 , Ayşegül Sağır Kahraman 11 , Leyla Karaca 11 , Zeynep Maraş Özdemir 11 , Bayram Kahraman 12 , Mesude Tosun 13 , Mehmet Selim Nural 14 , İlkay Çamlıdağ 14 , Mustafa Arda Onar 14 , Kaan Ballı 15 , Ezgi Güler 15 , Mustafa Harman 15 , Nevra Zehra Elmas 15 , Cansu Öztürk 2 , Özlem Güngör 2 , Duygu Herek 16 , Ahmet Baki Yağcı 16 , Cengiz Erol 17 , Mehmet Şeker 17 , İrem İşlek 17 , Yusuf Can 17 , Serdar Aslan 18 , M Yasemin Karadeniz Bilgili 19 , Alper Göncüoğlu 20 , Hatice Keleş 21 , Pelin Zeynep Bekin Sarıkaya 20 , Barış Bakır 22 , Merve Gülbiz Dağoğlu Kartal 22 , Görkem Durak 22 , Gülşen Yücel Oğuzdoğan 23 , Fatih Alper 24 , Ahmet Yalçın 24 , Safiye Gürel 25 , Bircan Alan 25 , Elif Gündoğdu 26 , Nevin Aydın 26 , Ayşegül Cansu 27 , Ceyda Civan Kuş 28 , Elif Ofluoğlu Tuncer 29 , Ferhat Can Pişkin 30 , Hale Çolakoğlu Er 31 , Bumin Değirmenci 32 , Mustafa Nasuh Özmen 1 , Mecit Kantarcı 4 , Muşturay Karçaaltıncaba 1
Affiliations
- PMID: 36960669
- DOI: 10.4274/dir.2022.221575
Abstract
Purpose: To evaluate the frequency of abdominal computed tomography (CT) findings in patients with coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) and interrogate the relationship between abdominal CT findings and patient demographic features, clinical findings, and laboratory test results as well as the CT atherosclerosis score in the abdominal aorta.
Methods: This study was designed as a multicenter retrospective study. The abdominal CT findings of 1.181 patients with positive abdominal symptoms from 26 tertiary medical centers with a positive polymerase chain-reaction test for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 were reviewed. The frequency of ischemic and non-ischemic CT findings as well as the association between CT findings, clinical features, and abdominal aortic calcific atherosclerosis score (AA-CAS) were recorded.
Results: Ischemic and non-ischemic abdominal CT findings were detected in 240 (20.3%) and 328 (27.7%) patients, respectively. In 147 patients (12.4%), intra-abdominal malignancy was present. The most frequent ischemic abdominal CT findings were bowel wall thickening (n = 120; 10.2%) and perivascular infiltration (n = 40; 3.4%). As for non-ischemic findings, colitis (n = 91; 7.7%) and small bowel inflammation (n = 73; 6.2%) constituted the most frequent disease processes. The duration of hospital stay was found to be higher in patients with abdominal CT findings than in patients without any positive findings (13.8 ± 13 vs. 10.4 ± 12.8 days, P < 0.001). The frequency of abdominal CT findings was significantly higher in patients who did not survive the infection than in patients who were discharged after recovery (41.7% vs. 27.4%, P < 0.001). Increased AA-CAS was found to be associated with a higher risk of ischemic conditions in abdominal CT examinations.
Conclusion: Abdominal symptoms in patients with COVID-19 are usually associated with positive CT findings. The presence of ischemic findings on CT correlates with poor COVID-19 outcomes. A high AA-CAS is associated with abdominal ischemic findings in patients with COVID-19.
Keywords: COVID-19; abdomen; abdominal aorta; arteriosclerosis; computed tomography.