Chest Computed Tomography Findings in Asymptomatic Patients with COVID-19

Chang, Min Cheol; Lee, Wonho; Hur, Jian; Park, Donghwi

BACKGROUND: Little is known about the damage to the respiratory system in asymptomatic patients with coronavirus disease (COVID-19). OBJECTIVE: Herein, we evaluate the findings of chest computed tomography (CT) and radiography in patients with COVID-19 who were asymptomatic. METHODS: We retrospectively investigated patients with a confirmed diagnosis of COVID-19 but who did not show any symptoms. Among the 139 patients with COVID-19 who were hospitalized in Yeungnam University Hopistal in Daegu, South Korea, 10 (7.2%) were asymptomatic. Their chest CT and radiographic findings were analyzed. RESULTS: In the results, all patients (100%) had ground-glass opacity (GGO) on chest CT. Further, the GGO lesions were predominantly distributed peripherally and posteriorly in all patients. In 9 (90%) patients, the GGO lesions were combined with reticular opacity. Air bronchogram due to bronchiolectasis surrounded by GGO was observed in 8 patients (80%). Additionally, the lung lesions were dominant on the right side in all patients. CONCLUSIONS: In conclusion, considering our results that the lung is affected in asymptomatic patients, it will be necessary to extend the indications of COVID-19 testing for effective management of COVID-19 during the pandemic.