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World J Radiol. Jul 28, 2021; 13(7): 227-232
Published online Jul 28, 2021. doi: 10.4329/wjr.v13.i7.227
Abdominal imaging in COVID-19
Daniel Vasile Balaban, Oana Madalina Baston, Mariana Jinga
Daniel Vasile Balaban, Mariana Jinga, Department of Internal Medicine and Gastroenterology, Carol Davila University of Medicine and Pharmacy; Dr. Carol Davila Central Military Emergency University Hospital, Bucharest 020021, Romania
Oana Madalina Baston, Department of Radiology, Medical Imaging and Interventional Radiology, Carol Davila University of Medicine and Pharmacy; Dr. Carol Davila Central Military Emergency University Hospital, Bucharest 020021, Romania
Author contributions: Balaban DV, Baston OM and Jinga M performed the literature search and drafted the manuscript; Jinga M critically reviewed the manuscript; all authors have read and approved the final manuscript.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors declare no conflicts of interest.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Daniel Vasile Balaban, MD, PhD, Senior Lecturer, Department of Internal Medicine and Gastroenterology, Carol Davila University of Medicine and Pharmacy; Dr. Carol Davila Central Military Emergency University Hospital, 37 Dionisie Lupu, Bucharest 020021, Romania. vbalaban@yahoo.com
Received: February 7, 2021
Peer-review started: February 7, 2021
First decision: May 6, 2021
Revised: May 6, 2021
Accepted: June 23, 2021
Article in press: June 23, 2021
Published online: July 28, 2021
Processing time: 170 Days and 5 Hours
Abstract

Initially thought of as a respiratory infection, coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) is now recognized as a complex disease with a wide clinical spectrum, including digestive involvement. While several studies have evaluated chest imaging findings in COVID-19, few papers have looked at the abdominal imaging features of these patients. Liver, biliary, pancreas and bowel involvement have been reported in COVID-19 infected patients. In this review, we aim to summarize currently available data related to abdominal imaging techniques in COVID-19, in accordance with relevant clinical and laboratory workup of these patients. Underlying mechanisms, indications and imaging findings related to COVID-19 are discussed based on published data. Also, practice points for clinicians are highlighted in order to adequately recognize digestive-related injuries of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection. While there’s been a steady accumulation of data with respect to abdominal imaging findings in COVID-19, currently available recommendations are based on limited research. There is a wide spectrum of abdominal imaging findings in COVID-19, which includes hepato-biliary, pancreatic and luminal pathology.

Keywords: COVID-19; Gastrointestinal; Digestive; Features; Imaging; Ultrasound; Computed tomography

Core Tip: Initially being thought of as a respiratory infection, coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) is now widely recognized as a complex disease with systemic features. Gastrointestinal manifestations have been reported with high prevalence in severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infected patients, including gut, pancreas, liver and biliary dysfunction. In this review we summarize and analyze currently available evidence on abdominal imaging techniques, indications and findings in COVID-19, in accordance with relevant clinical and laboratory workup of these patients.