Características clínicas y hallazgos en tomografía computarizada de tórax en pacientes con COVID-19

The pandemic generated by COVID-19 has generated an enormous medical and socioeconomic cost, which has led the scientific field and the different medical associations to make all their resources available to find a prompt solution to face this pathology. The objective of this review is to describe the most relevant clinical characteristics and chest computed tomography findings in patients with COVID-19;By identifying scientific articles in databases. Fifteen studies were included that met the inclusion criteria defined by the authors. The most relevant findings show us that SARS-CoV-2 has a rapid and generalized transmission, with the involvement of multiple systems, but with a predominance of the respiratory tract. Most patients have mild symptoms;the main manifestations are fever, cough, shortness of breath, muscle pain, headache, etc. Patients with more severe diseases and requiring admission to the ICU are older and have more comorbidity compared to the general population. The current recommendations of the American College of Radiology for the use of chest CT, we propose to reserve it for hospitalized patients when it is necessary to determine their treatment. In conclusion, due to the great variety of clinical manifestations and the involvement of multiple organs, there are no specific clinical characteristics that allow distinguishing COVID-19 from other respiratory infections of viral etiology. © 2021 Academia Nacional de Medicina. All rights reserved.