Background The main challenge in managing COVID-19 pandemic is containment of the infection by early detection of the disease and wide dissemination of diagnostic tests with high sensitivity and specificity. Various imaging features were identified by chest CT with different patterns from early disease to diffuse disease with complications. However, CT cannot be performed for all patients. The arterial oxygen partial pressure/fraction of inspired oxygen (PaO 2 /FiO 2 ) ratio is evaluated as a rapid and widely available test for the preliminary assessment of disease severity. This study aimed to evaluate the clinical and chest CT imaging features of COVID-19 in Egyptian patients as well as assess the correlation between the chest CT total severity score and the PaO 2 /FiO 2 ratio to determine its value for preliminary assessment of disease severity. Results The most common symptoms were fever (83.2%), dry cough (77%), malaise (68.8%), prolonged headaches (48.5%), and dyspnea (37.6%). CT was positive in 79.2% of the patients. The CT features at presentation were ground-glass opacities only (40%), ground-glass opacities with consolidation (34.4%), and consolidation only (25.6%). Associated findings included crazy paving (17.5%), interlobular septal thickening (47.5%), air bronchogram (15%), bronchiectasis (12.8%), fibrous bands (8.1%), vascular enlargement within the lesion (45.6%), nodules (6.8%), pericardial thickening (5%), and pleural thickening (24.7%). The lesions were typically multilobar (50.5%), posterior (58.1%) with peripheral and central distribution (41.9%). Moderate negative correlation was observed between the CT total lung severity score and PaO 2 /FiO 2 ratio with r = − 0.42 and P < 0.001. Conclusion The most common pattern of COVID-19 pneumonia in multiple quarantine hospitals was peripheral and central ground-glass opacities with bilateral multilobe posterior involvement and fever was the most common symptom. PaO 2 /FiO 2 ratio has a moderate negative correlation with the CT total severity score and thus can be used in the preliminary assessment of disease severity.
【저자키워드】 COVID-19, Severity Score, Chest CT, PaO2/FiO2 ratio, 【초록키워드】 Pneumonia, quarantine, COVID-19 pandemic, severity, disease severity, hospital, diagnostic test, Infection, lung, oxygen, Symptom, headache, ground-glass opacity, Sensitivity and specificity, Fever, Dyspnea, Patient, complications, correlation, dissemination, distribution, disease, moderate, consolidation, patients, lesion, Vascular, interlobular septal thickening, dry cough, malaise, negative correlation, positive, nodule, feature, Result, performed, evaluate, the disease, evaluated, can be used, determine, Associated finding, PaO, 【제목키워드】 multicenter, correlation, feature, PaO, Upper Egypt,