Correlation of olfactory dysfunction with lung involvement and severity of COVID-19.

BACKGROUND: Olfactory dysfunction (OD) is a significant symptom of COVID-19 and may be the earliest symptom, or it may sometimes be the only manifestation of the disease. AIMS: To investigate whether OD is correlated with chest computed tomography (CT) findings, blood test parameters, and disease severity in COVID-19 patients. METHODS: The files of COVID-19 patients were retrospectively reviewed, and the ones who had information about smelling status and CT were taken into consideration. A total of 180 patients were divided into two groups: the OD group consisted of 89 patients with self-reported OD, and the No-OD group consisted of 91 subjects who did not complain of OD. The two groups were compared for the amount of lung consolidation on CT, intensive care unit (ICU) admission, and blood test parameters (complete blood count, alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), creatine kinase (CK), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), C-reactive protein (CRP), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), ferritin, D-dimer, interleukin-6 (IL-6)). RESULTS: The amount of lung consolidation and ICU admission were significantly higher in the No-OD group (p < 0.001 for both). White blood cell (p = 0.06), monocyte (p = 0.26), and platelet (p = 0.13) counts and hemoglobin (p = 0.63), ALT (p = 0.89), and D-dimer (p = 0.45) levels of the two groups were similar. Lymphocyte count (p = 0.01), neutrophil count (p = 0.01), and AST (p = 0.03), CK (p = 0.01), LDH (p < 0.001), CRP (p < 0.001), ESR (p < 0.001), ferritin (p < 0.001), and IL-6 (p < 0.001) levels were significantly higher in the No-OD group. CONCLUSIONS: The patients presenting to the hospital with self-reported OD may have less lung involvement and a milder disease course compared to patients without OD on admission.

Predictive performance of CT for adverse outcomes among COVID-19 suspected patients: a two-center retrospective study.

The aim of the study was to compare the performance of various computed tomography (CT) reporting tools, including zonal CT visual score (ZCVS), the number of involved lobes, and Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) categorization in predicting adverse outcomes among patients hospitalized due to the lower respiratory symptoms during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. A total of 405 patients admitted with severe respiratory symptoms who underwent a chest CT were enrolled. The primary adverse outcome was intensive care unit (ICU) admission of patients. Predictive performances of reporting tools were compared using the area under the receiver operating characteristic curves (AUC ROC). Among the 405 patients, 39 (9.63%) required ICU support during their hospital stay. At least two or more observers reported a typical and indeterminate COVID-19 pneumonia CT pattern according to RSNA categorization in 70% (285/405) of patients. Among these, 63% (179/285) had a positive polymerase chain reaction (PCR test for the SARS-CoV-2 virus. The median number of lobes involved according to CT was higher in patients who required ICU support (median interquartile range [IQR], 5[3; 5] vs. 3[0; 5]). The median ZCVS score was higher among the patients that subsequently required ICU support (median [IQR], 4[0; 12] vs. 13[5.75; 24]). The bootstrap comparisons of AUC ROC showed significant differences between reporting tools, and the ZCVS was found to be superior (AUC ROC, 71-75%). The ZCVS score at the first admission showed a linear and significant association with adverse outcomes among patients with the lower respiratory tract symptoms during the COVID-19 pandemic.