Sideris GA, Nikolakea M, Karanikola AE, Konstantinopoulou S, Giannis D, Modahl L. Imaging in the COVID-19 era: Lessons learned during a pandemic. World J Radiol 2021; 13(6): 192-222 [PMID: 34249239 DOI: 10.4329/wjr.v13.i6.192]
Corresponding Author of This Article
Georgios Antonios Sideris, MD, Doctor, Department of Radiology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Baystate Medical Center, 759 Chestnut Street, Springfield, MA 01199, United States. siderismd@gmail.com
Research Domain of This Article
Radiology, Nuclear Medicine & Medical Imaging
Article-Type of This Article
Review
Open-Access Policy of This Article
This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (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/
Georgios Antonios Sideris, Lucy Modahl, Department of Radiology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Baystate Medical Center, Springfield, MA 01199, United States
Georgios Antonios Sideris, Melina Nikolakea, Aikaterini-Eleftheria Karanikola, Radiology Working Group, Society of Junior Doctors, Athens 11527, Greece
Sofia Konstantinopoulou, Division of Pulmonary Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Sheikh Khalifa Medical City, Abu Dhabi W13-01, United Arab Emirates
Dimitrios Giannis, Institute of Health Innovations and Outcomes Research, The Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research, Northwell Health, Manhasset, NY 11030, United States
Author contributions: Sideris GA conceived the topic and designed the structure of the manuscript; Sideris GA, Nikolakea M, Karanikola AE, Konstantinopoulou S and Giannis D wrote the manuscript; Modahl L critically revised the manuscript; Sideris GA and Modahl L selected the images; Sideris GA, Nikolakea M, Karanikola AE, Konstantinopoulou S, Giannis D and Modahl L provided final approval.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.
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: Georgios Antonios Sideris, MD, Doctor, Department of Radiology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Baystate Medical Center, 759 Chestnut Street, Springfield, MA 01199, United States. siderismd@gmail.com
Received: February 8, 2021 Peer-review started: February 8, 2021 First decision: March 17, 2021 Revised: April 2, 2021 Accepted: June 15, 2021 Article in press: June 15, 2021 Published online: June 28, 2021
Abstract
The first year of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has been a year of unprecedented changes, scientific breakthroughs, and controversies. The radiology community has not been spared from the challenges imposed on global healthcare systems. Radiology has played a crucial part in tackling this pandemic, either by demonstrating the manifestations of the virus and guiding patient management, or by safely handling the patients and mitigating transmission within the hospital. Major modifications involving all aspects of daily radiology practice have occurred as a result of the pandemic, including workflow alterations, volume reductions, and strict infection control strategies. Despite the ongoing challenges, considerable knowledge has been gained that will guide future innovations. The aim of this review is to provide the latest evidence on the role of imaging in the diagnosis of the multifaceted manifestations of COVID-19, and to discuss the implications of the pandemic on radiology departments globally, including infection control strategies and delays in cancer screening. Lastly, the promising contribution of artificial intelligence in the COVID-19 pandemic is explored.
Core Tip: The coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic has had dramatic implications for radiology practices worldwide. In this review, the evidence-based role of various imaging modalities in the diagnosis and management of the multisystemic manifestations of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection is summarized. In addition, the infection control strategies, the impact of delayed cancer screening and the future role of artificial intelligence are explored.
