Evaluation of CT scan findings at children with covid 19 pneumonia and investigatigation of its relation with clinical and laboratory findings at Tabriz children's hospital from Farvardin 1399 up to Shahrivar 1400

Abstract

With the appearance of new strains of corona disease, especially the delta strain, the rate of infection of children has increased, also despite the fact that children suffer from mild disease in most cases (around 90%), infants are prone to severe disease. The aim of this study is to evaluation of CT scan findings at children with covid 19 pneumonia and investigatigation of its relation with clinical and laboratory findings at Tabriz children's hospital from April 2020 up to September 2021. Materials and Methods: This research was a descriptive-analytical cross-sectional study and its target population was all hospitalized patients with covid-19 in Tabriz Children's Hospital between April 2020 and September 2021. The sampling method was census. First, the basic history, demographic information and clinical symptoms were extracted from the patients' records according to the checklist prepared. Also, the duration of intubation of the patients, the level of oxygen saturation of the patients, the duration of hospitalization in the ICU, laboratory findings and the outcome of the disease were recorded. Also, the CT scan findings of the patients, including the presence of lung opacities and their type, their distribution and the involvement of the upper or lower regions, were extracted from the hospital PACS system, and the severity of lung involvement was calculated based on the number of lung segments involved from 5 to 100%. Finally, clinical symptoms, laboratory findings, outcomes during discharge of patients were compared with CT scan findings. Results: In this study, the most clinical findings in the studied patients were fever with 66 cases (86.8%), shortness of breath with 43 cases (56.6%) and cough with 30 cases (39.5%), respectively. According to CT scan findings, the most opacities in these patients were GG with 51 cases (67.1%) and alveolar with 49 cases (64.5%), respectively. Bronchiolitis in the form of air trapping with 13 cases (17.1%) and right lower lobe with 63 cases (82.9%) were the most common sites involved. Also, the most common method of distribution was peripheral with 63 cases (82.9%). The mean (standard deviation) of the involvement score in the studied patients was 2.75 (± 0.1). Among the demographic factors, clinical findings, treatment and outcome, the involvement score of lung CT scan findings was significantly higher in patients with shortness of breath (P-value<0.001) and those who died (P-value=0.030); Also, the involvement score of lung CT scan findings in these patients had a statistically significant relationship with SaO2 reduction (R=-0.621; P-value=0.007). On the other hand, among laboratory factors, the involvement score of lung CT scan findings in patients had a statistically significant relationship only with LDH variable (R=0.429; P-value=0.007).