Evidence map›Paper›PMID 33484085›Full record

ArticleThe clinical respiratory journal2021

Should CT be used for the diagnosis of RT-PCR-negative suspected COVID-19 patients?

Günay Rona, Meral Arifoğlu, Nuray Voyvoda, Ayşe Batırel

Open access · bronzeAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in The clinical respiratory journal, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
1.0field-weighted citation impact, top 26% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed, 7 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Article
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Günay RonaDepartment of Radiology, University of Health Sciences, Kartal Doktor Lütfi Kırdar Training and Research Hospital, İstanbul, Turkey.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0304-029X
Meral ArifoğluDepartment of Radiology, University of Health Sciences, Kartal Doktor Lütfi Kırdar Training and Research Hospital, İstanbul, Turkey.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4489-8364
Nuray VoyvodaDepartment of Radiology, University of Health Sciences, Kartal Doktor Lütfi Kırdar Training and Research Hospital, İstanbul, Turkey.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5433-1663
Ayşe BatırelDepartment of Infectious Diseases, University of Health Sciences, Kartal Doktor Lütfi Kırdar Training and Research Hospital, İstanbul, Turkey.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6005-636X
Dr Lütfi Kırdar Kartal Eğitim ve Araştırma Hastanesi · TR

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

introductionThe diagnosis of patients with Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) suspicion but negative reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test is challenging.

objectiveWe aimed to investigate the diagnostic value of chest computed tomography (CT) in RT-PCR-negative patients with suspected COVID-19. MATERIALS AND

methodsThe study included patients who were admitted to our hospital with the suspicion of COVID-19 between 1 April 2020 and 30 April 2020 and tested negative after RT-PCR test, and underwent CT for further diagnosis. Initial CT findings were classified as typical, indeterminate, and atypical for COVID-19, and negative for pneumonia. Incidental findings on CT were noted.

resultsOf the 338 patients with a mean age of 57 years (min 18 years-max 96 years), 168 (49.70%) were male and 170 (50.29%) were female. The most common symptoms were cough (58.87%), fever (40.82%), and dyspnea (39.34%). The CT findings were typical for COVID-19 in 109 (32.24%) patients, indeterminate in 47 (13.90%) patients, and atypical in 77 (22.78%) patients. The CT findings of 105 (31.06%) patients were negative for pneumonia. Incidental lung nodules suspicious of malignancy were identified in seven patients. Seventy-seven patients (22.78%) had extrapulmonary incidental findings

conclusionThe diagnostic value of CT in RT-PCR-negative patients with suspected COVID-19 is not very high. Based on clinical, laboratory, and chest x-ray findings, it may be more appropriate to refer patients to CT after the first triage, when necessary.

Indexed as

AdolescentAdultAgedAged, 80 and overCOVID-19FemaleHumansLungMaleMiddle AgedPandemicsRetrospective StudiesReverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain ReactionRNA, ViralSARS-CoV-2Tomography, X-Ray ComputedRNA, Viralchestcomputed tomographycoronavirusCOVID-19negative RT-PCRpneumoniaviral

Identifiers

PMID33484085
PMCPMC8014557
OpenAlexW3121892932

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.