title: High-resolution CT findings of respiratory syncytial virus pneumonia after bone marrow transplantation.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this study was to describe the high-resolution CT findings of respiratory syncytial virus pneumonia in 20 patients who had undergone allogeneic bone marrow transplantation.
  
  
  METHODS
  The study included 20 consecutive patients who developed respiratory syncytial virus pneumonia after bone marrow transplantation and who had high-resolution CT of the chest performed within 24 hr after the onset of symptoms. The CT scans were reviewed by two chest radiologists who assessed the pattern and distribution of findings.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Bone marrow transplantation was performed on 12 male and eight female patients ranging from 3 to 48 years old (mean age, 25 years) for treatment of various forms of leukemia (n = 12), severe aplastic anemia (n = 6), Fanconi's syndrome (n = 1), and paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria (n = 1). Sixteen patients (80%) had abnormal CT findings. The predominant patterns of abnormality on high-resolution CT scans were small centrilobular nodules (10/20, 50%), air-space consolidation (7/20, 35%), ground-glass opacities (6/20, 30%), and bronchial wall thickening (6/20, 30%). The abnormalities were distributed in the central and peripheral areas of the lungs in nine cases, only in the periphery in five cases, and only in the central regions in two cases. The abnormalities were bilateral and asymmetric in distribution in 13 patients, bilateral and symmetric in two patients, and unilateral in one patient.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The most common high-resolution CT findings in patients with respiratory syncytial virus pneumonia after bone marrow transplantation consist of small centrilobular nodules and multifocal areas of consolidation and ground-glass opacities in a bilateral asymmetric distribution.
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, University of Paraná, Paraná, Brazil.
authors.forename: Emerson L
authors.initials: EL
authors.lastname: Gasparetto
authors.forename: Dante L
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Escuissato
authors.forename: Edson
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Marchiori
authors.forename: Sérgio
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ono
authors.forename: Rodney L
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Frare e Silva
authors.forename: Nestor L
authors.initials: NL
authors.lastname: Müller
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D016026:Bone Marrow Transplantation / Q000009:adverse effects*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011024:Pneumonia, Viral / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000209:etiology; D018357:Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infections / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000209:etiology; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed / Q000379:methods*