Radiological two-year follow-up of COVID-19 patients treated in University Hospital of Split during the first wave of the pandemic

Cilj istraživanja: Cilj ovog istraživanja je analizirati i usporediti radiološke snimke COVID-19 (engl. coronavirus disease 2019) pacijenata, koji su hospitalizirani tijekom prvog vala pandemije (2020. godina) u Kliničko bolničkom centru Split (KBC Split), sa njihovim kontrolnim snimkama u sklopu obrade post-COVID sindroma. Ispitanici i postupci: U ovo retrospektivno istraživanje uključeni su COVID-19 pacijenti koji su hospitalizirani u KBC-u Split tijekom prvog vala pandemije. Analizirali smo njihove sociodemografske, kliničke, laboratorijske i radiološke karakteristike. Usporedili smo fibrozne i ne-fibrozne promjene na post-COVID RTG nalazima. Rezultati: Od ukupno 124 COVID-19 hospitaliziranih pacijenata, 75 je bilo ženskog (61,3%), a 48 muškog spola (38,7%). Prosječna dob oboljelih iznosila je 70,8 ± 17,21 godina. Prosječno trajanje hospitalizacije iznosilo je 21,44 ± 13,56 dana. Najčešća COVID-19 promjena na plućima zabilježena na RTG-u bila je upalna infiltracija (76,2%). Prosječno vrijeme od otpusta do ponovnog snimanja RTG-a torakalnih organa iznosilo je 6,60 ± 6,16 mjeseci. U periodu od dvije godine od preboljenja COVID-19 zabilježili smo da je 68 pacijenata (54,8%) ponovilo RTG snimanje torakalnih organa. Patološki nalaz kontrolnog RTG-a torakalnih organa opisan je u 54,4% slučajeva. Najčešći patološki nalaz opisan na kontrolnom RTG-u nakon preboljenja COVID-19 bile su fibroadhezivne promjene pluća (40,5%). S obzirom na to, ispitanike smo podijelili na one s fibroznim i one s ne-fibroznim RTG nalazom. Osobe starije životne dobi imale su veći rizik od razvoja fibroadhezivnih promjena pluća (P=0,027). Trajanje hospitalizacije u skupini bez fibroznih promjena iznosilo je 20,57 ± 9,66 dana, a kod onih sa fibroznim promjenama 34,13 ± 19,32 dana. Dokazali smo statistički značajnu razliku između dviju skupina s obzirom na duljinu trajanja hospitalizacije (P0,05). Zaključak: U našem istraživanju fibroadhezivne promjene na plućima u sklopu post-COVID sindroma pojavljuju se češće u osoba starije životne koji su imali teški oblik COVID-19 i dulje trajanje hospitalizacije, te su žene bile hospitalizirane u značajno većem postotku od muškaraca.Research aims: This research aims to analyze and compare the radiological images of COVID-19 patients hospitalized during the first wave of the pandemic (2020. year) in University Hospital of Split with their control images as part of the treatment of the post-COVID syndrome. Subjects and methods: This retrospective study included COVID-19 patients hospitalized in the University Hospital of Split during the first wave of the pandemic. We analyzed their sociodemographic, clinical, laboratory and radiological characteristics. In addition, we compared fibrotic and non-fibrous changes in post-COVID X-ray findings. Results: Out of a total of 124 hospitalized COVID-19 patients, 75 were female (61.3%), and 48 were male (38.7%). The average age of the patients was 70.8 ± 17.21 years. The average duration of hospitalization was 21.44 ± 13.56 days. The most common COVID-19 lung change recorded on X-ray was inflammatory infiltration (76.2%). The average time from discharge to re-imaging of the thoracic organs was 6.60 ± 6.16 months. Two years after recovering from COVID-19, we noted that 68 patients (54.8%) had repeated X-ray imaging of the thoracic organs. The pathological finding of the control X-ray of the thoracic organs was described in 54.4% of cases. The most common pathological result described on the follow-up X-ray after recovering from COVID-19 was fibroadhesive lung changes (40.5%). Considering this, we divided the subjects into those with fibrotic and those with non-fibrous X-ray findings. Older people had a higher risk of developing fibroadhesive lung changes (P=0.027). The duration of hospitalization in the group without fibrotic changes was 20.57 ± 9.66 days, and in those with fibrotic changes, 34.13 ± 19.32 days. We demonstrated a statistically significant difference between the two groups concerning the length of hospitalization (P0.05). Conclusion: Our results indicate that fibroadhesive changes in the lungs as part of the post-COVID syndrome appear more often in older adults with a severe form of COVID-19 and a longer duration of hospitalization, and females tend to be hospitalized more than males