Korean Journal of Radiology

The Korean Society of Radiology (대한영상의학회)
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Early CT Findings of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Asymptomatic Children: A Single-Center Experience

  • Lan Lan (Department of Radiology, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University) ;
  • Dan Xu (Department of Radiology, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University) ;
  • Chen Xia (Beijing Infervision Technology Co.) ;
  • Shaokang Wang (Beijing Infervision Technology Co.) ;
  • Minhua Yu (Department of Radiology, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University) ;
  • Haibo Xu (Department of Radiology, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University)
  • Received : 2020.03.05
  • Accepted : 2020.03.24
  • Published : 2020.07.01
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Abstract

Objective: The current study reported a case series to illustrate the early computed tomography (CT) findings of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in pediatric patients. Materials and Methods: All pediatric patients who were diagnosed with COVID-19 and who underwent CT scan in Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University from January 20, 2020 to February 28, 2020 were included in the current study. Data on clinical and CT features were collected and analyzed. Results: Four children were included in the current study. All of them were asymptomatic throughout the disease course (ranging from 7 days to 15 days), and none of them showed abnormalities in blood cell counts. Familial cluster was the main transmission pattern. Thin-section CT revealed abnormalities in three patients, and one patient did not present with any abnormal CT findings. Unilateral lung involvement was observed in two patients, and one patient showed bilateral lung involvement. In total, five small lesions were identified, including ground-glass opacity (n = 4) and consolidation (n = 1). All lesions had ill-defined margins with peripheral distribution and predilection of lower lobe. Conclusion: Small patches of ground-glass opacity with subpleural distribution and unilateral lung involvement were common findings on CT scans of pediatric patients in the early stage of the disease.

Keywords

Acknowledgement

This study was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grants No.81771819), National key research and development plan of China (Grants No. 2017YFC0108803).

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