Cough, fever and shortness of breathing are the typical symptoms of COVID-19. The physician usually prescribes getting blood tests, including RT-PCR and the antigen tests for diagnosing the deadly coronavirus. Doctors might recommend going for a CT scan if you are having COVID-19.

How Coronavirus Affects The Respiratory Tract?

Coronavirus moves towards the respiratory tract and affects the nose, mouth, and throat and finally enters the lungs. The spiky surface of the virus attaches to the healthy cell receptors and takes command of the cells of the lungs. Consequently, it causes inflammation which irks easy breathing.

CT Scans and the Signs of COVID-19

The computed tomography scan reports give a broad view of the affected parts of the patient's lungs. You may visit the Radiology Centre at Harding in Morristown, New Jersey, to get your CT scans done.

CT scans provided by them accurately capture the images of bronchi, alveoli and other areas of the respiratory tract. Now let's see how COVID-19 looks on a CT scan.

• Ground Glass Opacities

Just like the name, ground-glass opacities appear as a ground glass spread in the lungs. The grey areas do not look transparent; instead it is opaque.

Besides, they are bilateral and multi-focal, which indicates the appearance of multiple grey spots in the inner or outer surface of the lungs. They are common in computed tomography scans of patients of COVID-19.

• Crazy paving

Crazy paving occurs in a linear pattern over the background of the ground glass opacity and makes an irregular appearance. It is the presence of fluid in the alveolar edema which causes these crazy paving patterns.

The appearance of crazy paving in CT scans often gives the sign of progressive or worse COVID-19 conditions.

• Vascular Dilation

The CT scans can show the blood vessels dilation or vascular dilation. The vascular dilation is generally visible in the ground glass opacity areas.

It plays a crucial role in hypoxemia in COVID-19 patients.

• Consolidation​

Consolidation forms when the fluid fills the airways present in the lungs. It is multifocal and appears in different areas in the lungs. It also indicates the progression of COVID-19.

• Reticular Pattern

Reticular patterns that appear like a net are a compilation of tiny linear opacities. They generate when the interstitial structures thicken. Consequently, it hinders the filling of air in the air sacs and causes difficulty breathing.

Moreover, this net-like pattern can vary from thin, moderate to coarse. Reticular patterns increase mainly in the prolonged COVID-19 cases.

• Traction Bronchiectasis

Traction bronchiectasis can cause dilation and inflammation in the bronchial tissue. It thickens the bronchi, which makes it challenging to inhale and cough out sputum and phlegm.

Bottom Line

CT scans offer the perfect imaging of the lungs. The doctors can determine the condition of the patient by analyzing the computed tomography scan and provide better treatment to their patients who have COVID-19.

The affected areas of the lungs appear in white or grey spots on the CT scan. These spots can be of different shapes and scattered throughout the lungs. The doctors examine the CT scan images and then develop treatment plans for the betterment of the patients.