Abstract:
Objective: It was aimed to compare the diagnostic rates of radiological diagnostic methods such as chest x-rays and chest computerized tomography (CCT) and swab(throat and nose) reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction test in preoperative screening for detection of COVID-19 infection.
Material and Methods: 107 preoperative patients asymptomatic for COVID-19 were retrospectively evaluated. Demographic data were evaluated along with RT-PCR test results, chest x-rays and CCTs defined according to Radiological Society of North America expert consensus on COVID-19.
Results: Chest x-rays were performed in 55 (51.4%) cases, and CCT in 52 (48.6%). None of the chest x-rays displayed findings of COVID-19 infection. In 2 (3.8%) chest CTs typical findings of COVID-19 infection were observed. Four (3.7%) cases were RT-PCR positive. The diagnostic rate of radiological methods (chest x-rays and chest CT) for COVID-19 was 1.8%, while that of RT-PCR was 3.7%. Chest CT had a sensitivity of 50%, a specificity of 98%, and and accuracy of 96% when compared to RT-PCR for the diagnosis of COVID-19 infection during the preoperative screening of asymptomatic patients.
Conclusion: Radiological diagnostic methods such as chest X-ray and CCT should not be mandatorily/routinely suggested because of their low sensitivity in the diagnosis of COVID-19 infection in preoperative screening for asymptomatic cases. More studies with larger patient populations will be more illuminating on this issue.
Key words: COVID-19, preoperative screening, RT-PCR test, chest computerized tomography
COVID-19, preoperatif değerlendirme, RT-PCR testi, bilgisayarlı tomografi
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