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Objectives: To investigate whether sarcopenia had an effect on in-hospital mortality independent from other demographic characteristics in patients with Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), and to determine a reliable cut-off value for sarcopenia if there is such a relationship. Methods: A total of 302 patients with COVID-19 were included in the study. Sarcopenia was assessed by indexed skeletal muscle mass at T12 vertebrae level (T12-SMI) on initial chest computed tomography (CT). A receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was performed to detect a cut-off value of T12-SMI for mortality prediction. Then, sarcopenia was diagnosed by this value. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was used to detect independent variables for mortality. Results: Patients were separated into groups; 26 (8.6%) patients in the mortality group and 276 (91.4%) patients in the no-mortality group. In ROC analysis, cut-off values of 34.06 cm²/m² (sensitivity: 70%, specificity: 77%) in males and 29.36 cm²/m² (sensitivity: 67%, specificity: 69%) in females for T12-SMI were computed for mortality prediction. There were 110 (36.4%) patients with sarcopenia. Sarcopenia was more frequent in the mortality group than the no-mortality group (73.1% vs 33%, p < 0.001). In multivariate analysis age, previous cardiovascular and respiratory disease, and sarcopenia were independently associated with mortality in COVID-19 patients. Conclusions: A cut-off value of 34.06 cm²/m² in males and 29.36 cm²/m² in females for T12-SMI can be used to diagnose sarcopenia in patients with COVID-19. Sarcopenia is clearly associated with mortality in these patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVE: To compare the value of chest computed tomography at 1-mm and 5-mm slice thickness in terms of computed tomography severity score and computed tomography evaluation time in the diagnosis of COVID-19. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Sixty-five patients were included in the study group who are reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction-positive for COVID-19 and had chest computed tomography. The 1 mm and 5 mm reconstructed images were evaluated in 2 different sessions with 4-week intervals by 2 certificated general radiologists. The presence of COVID-19-related findings, COVID-19 final category, and evaluation time were recorded. Thin and thick slices were compared for these variables and inter-reader reliability calculated with the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) for Windows. RESULTS: There was no significant difference between the COVID-19-related findings on thorax computed tomography between 1-mm and 5-mm slices except crazy paving appearance, microvascular enlargement, and septal thickening. The frequency of the final categories of computed tomography results was consistent between the thick and thin slices. The computed tomography assessment time was significantly lower in 5 mm slices. The inter-reader reproducibility analysis results demonstrated good and excellent reproducibility of measurements between readers for both slice thicknesses. CONCLUSION: It was found that 5-mm reconstruction thickness of chest computed tomography can be employed for the initial detection of COVID-19-related findings and the final diagnostic category-related COVID-19 rather than 1-mm slices with a faster availability of results which can be beneficial on pandemic hospitals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARSCoV-2). COVID-19 has high mortality rates. It has become a severe pandemic worldwide. Real-time PCR testing is still the gold standard test method for the definitive diagnosis of COVID-19 despite the possibility of false negatives. Radiological imaging methods, especially computed tomography (CT), are important assistant methods in the diagnosis and management of the disease. This review presents the role of CT in COVID-19 pneumonia, its diagnostic accuracy, thorax CT findings of the disease and differential diagnosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background/aim: This study aimed to evaluate the diagnostic efficacy of vertebral Hounsfield unit (HU) values on routine contrastenhanced abdominal computed tomography (CT) scans for the assessment of osteoporosis using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) T-scores as a reference standard. Materials and methods: A total of 111 consecutive patients who underwent contrast-enhanced abdominal CT examination for any indication and DXA within a 6-month period were retrospectively analyzed. The CT attenuation values of trabecular bone in HUs were measured in axial and sagittal planes from lumbar vertebrae 1-4 (L1-L4). The correlation between the DXA T-scores and HU values measured on the CT scans was evaluated by Pearson's correlation test. Areas under the curves (AUCs) were calculated by receiver operating characteristic analysis for diagnostic proficiency, and threshold values were determined. Paired t-test and Bland-Altman plot test were used to evaluate the correlation between axial and sagittal HU values. Results: There was a strong correlation between the DXA T-scores and HU values of all the lumbar vertebrae (P < 0.001). The highest correlation was for the L3 vertebra; L3 was thus chosen for additional analyses. The mean axial and sagittal L3 attenuations were 133.7 HU and 131.9 HU, respectively. The axial measurements were not significantly different from the sagittal measurements, with a mean difference of 1.8 HU (P > 0.05). The L3 axial CT attenuation threshold for 90% sensitivity was 170 HU and that for 90% specificity was 102 HU for distinguishing osteoporosis from osteopenia and normal bone mineral density (BMD). To distinguish the low BMD group from the normal group, the L3 axial CT attenuation threshold for approximately 90% sensitivity was 102 HU and for 90% specificity was 165 HU. Conclusion: The HUs derived from routine contrast-enhanced abdominal CT scans can be used for the evaluation of osteoporosis, without additional radiation exposure and cost. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]