A Correlation between the Severity of Lung Lesions on Radiographs and Clinical Findings in Patients with Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome.
- Author:
Yung Liang WAN
1
;
Pei Kwei TSAY
;
Yun Chung CHEUNG
;
Ping Cherng CHIANG
;
Chun Hua WANG
;
Ying Huang TSAI
;
Han Ping KUO
;
Kuo Chien TSAO
;
Tzou Yien LIN
Author Information
- Publication Type:Original Article
- Keywords: Lung, diseases; Lung, radiography; Severe acute respiratory syndrome
- MeSH: Adolescent; Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Biological Markers/blood; Blood Gas Analysis/statistics & numerical data; Female; Humans; Intubation, Intratracheal/statistics & numerical data; Length of Stay; Lung/*radiography; Lymphocyte Count/statistics & numerical data; Male; Middle Aged; Observer Variation; Predictive Value of Tests; Prognosis; Retrospective Studies; Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome/blood/*diagnosis/mortality; Severity of Illness Index; Survival Analysis
- From:Korean Journal of Radiology 2007;8(6):466-474
- CountryRepublic of Korea
- Language:English
- Abstract: OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to quantify lesions on chest radiographs in patients with severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and analyze the severity of the lesions with clinical parameters. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Two experienced radiologists reviewed chest radiographs of 28 patients with SARS. Each lung was divided into upper, middle, and lower zones. A SARS-related lesion in each zone was scored using a four-point scale: zero to three. The mean and maximal radiographic scores were analyzed statistically to determine if the scorings were related to the laboratory data and clinical course. RESULTS: Forward stepwise multiple linear regression showed that the mean radiographic score correlated most significantly with the number of hospitalized days (p < 0.001). The second most significant factor was the absolute lymphocyte count (p < 0.001) and the third most significant factor was the number of days of intubation (p = 0.025). The maximal radiographic score correlated best with the percentage of lymphocytes in a leukocyte count (p < 0.001), while the second most significant factor was the number of hospitalized days (p < 0.001) and the third most significant factor was the absolute lymphocyte count (p = 0.013). The mean radiographic scores of the patients who died, with comorbidities and without a comorbidity were 11.1, 6.3 and 2.9, respectively (p = 0.032). The corresponding value for maximal radiographic scores were 17.7, 9.7 and 6.0, respectively (p = 0.033). CONCLUSION: The severity of abnormalities quantified on chest radiographs in patients with SARS correlates with the clinical parameters.
