Role of High-Resolution CT Chest in Early Detection and Prognostication of COVID-19 Pneumonia: Insights from the Bangladeshi Population

Abstract

Background: High-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) has emerged as a vital imaging modality in the management of COVID-19, offering rapid and detailed visualization of pulmonary involvement. While RT-PCR remains the diagnostic gold standard, HRCT is particularly valuable in early detection, assessment of disease severity, and guiding clinical decisions, especially in resource-limited settings. This study explores the role of HRCT in the early diagnosis and prognostication of COVID-19 pneumonia. Methods: This cross-sectional observational study was conducted at a tertiary care hospital in Bangladesh between January and December 2021, involving 100 adult patients with confirmed COVID-19 infection based on RT-PCR testing. Data were analyzed using SPSS 26.0. Result: In this study of 100 COVID-19 patients, HRCT chest revealed ground-glass opacities in 92% and bilateral, peripheral involvement in most cases. CT severity scores correlated strongly with clinical outcomes—higher scores were associated with lower oxygen saturation, elevated inflammatory markers, longer hospital stays, increased need for ICU care and ventilation, and higher mortality. Conclusion: High-resolution CT (HRCT) chest imaging plays a pivotal role in the early detection and prognostication of COVID-19 pneumonia, particularly in the Bangladeshi population. Our study demonstrated that HRCT not only detects characteristic lung abnormalities such as ground-glass opacities and consolidation in the early stages of infection but also provides a reliable severity score that correlates significantly with clinical outcomes, including oxygen saturation, inflammatory markers, ICU admission, and mortality.