Abstract
Background: A large proportion of patients exhibit persistently reduced pulmonary diffusion capacity after COVID-19. It is unknown whether this is due to a post-COVID restrictive lung disease and/or pulmonary vascular disease.
Methods: A total of 67 patients diagnosed with COVID-19 from March - December 2020 were included across three severity groups: 12 not admitted to hospital (Group I), 40 admitted to hospital without intensive care unit (ICU) admission (Group II), and 15 admitted to hospital with ICU admission (Group III). At first follow-up, 5 months post SARS-CoV-2 positive testing / 4 months after discharge, lung function testing including haemoglobin-corrected diffusion capacity to carbon monoxide (DLco), high-resolution CT chest scan (HRCT) and ventilation-perfusion (VQ) single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT)/CT were conducted.
Results: DLco was reduced in 42% of the patients; the prevalence and extent depended on clinical severity group and was typically observed as part of a restrictive pattern with reduced total lung capacity. Reduced DLco was associated with the extent of ground-glass opacification and pulmonary fibrosis on HRCT, but not with mismatched perfusion defects on VQ SPECT/CT.
Conclusion: The severity-dependent decline in DLco observed early after COVID-19 appears to be caused by fibrosis-like restrictive lung disease and not pulmonary vascular disease.
Footnotes
Cite this article as Eur Respir J 2022; 60: Suppl. 66, 404.
This article was presented at the 2022 ERS International Congress, in session “-”.
This is an ERS International Congress abstract. No full-text version is available. Further material to accompany this abstract may be available at www.ers-education.org (ERS member access only).
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