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01-12-2020 | Sarcoidosis | Educational Review

COVID-19 pneumonia: the great radiological mimicker

Authors: Selin Ardali Duzgun, Gamze Durhan, Figen Basaran Demirkazik, Meltem Gulsun Akpinar, Orhan Macit Ariyurek

Published in: Insights into Imaging | Issue 1/2020

Abstract

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has rapidly spread worldwide since December 2019. Although the reference diagnostic test is a real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), chest-computed tomography (CT) has been frequently used in diagnosis because of the low sensitivity rates of RT-PCR. CT findings of COVID-19 are well described in the literature and include predominantly peripheral, bilateral ground-glass opacities (GGOs), combination of GGOs with consolidations, and/or septal thickening creating a “crazy-paving” pattern. Longitudinal changes of typical CT findings and less reported findings (air bronchograms, CT halo sign, and reverse halo sign) may mimic a wide range of lung pathologies radiologically. Moreover, accompanying and underlying lung abnormalities may interfere with the CT findings of COVID-19 pneumonia. The diseases that COVID-19 pneumonia may mimic can be broadly classified as infectious or non-infectious diseases (pulmonary edema, hemorrhage, neoplasms, organizing pneumonia, pulmonary alveolar proteinosis, sarcoidosis, pulmonary infarction, interstitial lung diseases, and aspiration pneumonia). We summarize the imaging findings of COVID-19 and the aforementioned lung pathologies that COVID-19 pneumonia may mimic. We also discuss the features that may aid in the differential diagnosis, as the disease continues to spread and will be one of our main differential diagnoses some time more.

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Title: COVID-19 pneumonia: the great radiological mimicker
Authors: Selin Ardali Duzgun
Gamze Durhan
Figen Basaran Demirkazik
Meltem Gulsun Akpinar
Orhan Macit Ariyurek
Publication date: 01-12-2020
Publisher: Springer Berlin Heidelberg
Keywords: Sarcoidosis
Computed Tomography
Aspiration Pneumonia
Pulmonary Edema
Computed Tomography
Pleural Effusion
Sarcoidosis
Pneumonia
COVID-19
Published in: Insights into Imaging / Issue 1/2020
Electronic ISSN: 1869-4101
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s13244-020-00933-z

At a glance: The STEP trials

Springer Medicine

COVID-19 pneumonia: the great radiological mimicker

Abstract

At a glance: The STEP trials

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Abstract

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