The chest X-ray image features of patients with severe SRAS: a preliminary study.
OBJECTIVE
To study the chest X-ray image features of patients with severe SARS.


METHODS
Chest X-ray image features in 36 patients with severe SARS were retrospectively analyzed. The image characteristics were compared with those of 224 patients with common SARS.


RESULTS
The important chest X-ray imaging features of 36 patients with severe SARS included small patch of infiltration (n = 27, 75.0%), large patch of infiltration (n = 22, 61.1%), large area of lung consolidation (n = 10, 27.3%), interstitial lung lesion (n = 26, 72.2%), ground-glass shadow (n = 28, 77.8%), irregular linear opacity (n = 15, 41.7%), diffuse lung lesion (n = 12, 33.3%), with single lung involved (n = 9, 25.0%), and both lungs involved (n = 32, 88.9%). The rates of large patch of infiltration, large area of lung consolidation, ground-glass shadow, diffuse lung lesion and involvement of both lungs in patients with severe SARS were significantly higher than those in patients with common type of SARS (all P < 0.01). Out of the 11 severe SARS patients who died, nine had large area of ground-glass shadow with air bronchogram in both lungs before death.


CONCLUSIONS
Large patch of infiltration, large area of consolidation, ground-glass shadow, diffuse lung lesion and involvement of both lungs were the main X-ray image characteristics of patients with severe SARS. Large area of ground-glass shadow with air bronchogram in both lungs indicated a bad prognosis.
Liu
Jinxin
J
Guangzhou No. 8 People's Hospital, Guangzhou 510060, China.
Tang
Xiaoping
X
Jiang
Songfeng
S
Chen
Bihua
B
Zhang
Lieguang
L
Huang
Deyang
D
Huang
Wuzhi
W
Shi
Hongling
H
Yin
Chibiao
C
Chen
Jincheng
J
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D013902:Radiography, Thoracic; D045169:Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*