Since December 2019, a new respiratory disease known as SARS-CoV-2, developed in China and rapidly spread to other countries. It was declared a pandemic by March 2020, and the name for the new coronavirus disease was changed to COVID-19. In patients with clinical features and epidemiological criteria of COVID-19, the diagnosis is established through reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test swabs. The RT-PCR however has its limitations including long test processing times, particularly when sent to an external centre, and sampling issues with reduced...

A comprehensive literature search was conducted using PubMed, Cochrane and Google Scholar using a series of keywords: COVID-19, Diagnostic Imaging, Computed Tomography, Chest CT, XRay, CXR and Radiology were used to identify articles evaluating the diagnostic accuracy of thoracic imaging in the diagnosis of COVID-19. The literature review included studies between January 2020-2021.

With a growing number of COVID-19 cases worldwide, a comprehensive understanding of the diagnostic imaging hallmarks, atypical features and chest imaging findings is necessary for effective patient management and treatment. CT features consistent with COVID-19 pneumonia include bilateral ground glass opacity (GGO) and consolidation, which remain consistent with previous findings in early phases of the COVID-19 pandemic. An analysis of the CT findings was conducted by comparing CT findings based on the positive or negative RT-PCR results. A wide variety of CT findings in COVID-19...

Since the onset of the pandemic, the role of chest imaging has evolved considerably and most importantly, a standardised reporting classification system has been introduced which has improved the sensitivity of CT chest imaging. However, imaging is not recommended as the sole means to diagnose COVID-19 and definitive test for SARS-CoV-2 remains the RT-PCR. Despite this, CT chest may be useful in patients with moderate to severe respiratory symptoms and to determine the pre-test probability of the COVID-19 infection. Finally, in acute settings CT imaging...

Bellini, D., Panvini, N., Rengo, M., Vicini, S., Lichtner, M., Tieghi, T., Ippoliti, D., Giulio, F., Orlando, E., Iozzino, M., Ciolfi, M. G., Montechiarello, S., d'Ambrosio, U., d'Adamo, E., Gambaretto, C., Panno, S., Caldon, V., Ambrogi, C., & Carbone, I. (2021). Diagnostic accuracy and interobserver variability of CO-RADS in patients with suspected coronavirus disease-2019: a multireader validation study. European radiology, 31(4), 1932–1940. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00330-020-07273-y Falaschi, Z., Danna, P., Arioli, R., Pasché, A., Zagaria, D., Percivale, I., Tricca, S., Barini, M., Aquilini, F., Andreoni, S., & Carriero,...