Myocardial extracellular volume assessment at CT in hospitalized COVID-19 patients with regards to pulmonary embolism

PURPOSE: To evaluate myocardial status through the assessment of extracellular volume (ECV) calculated at computed tomography (CT) in patients hospitalized for novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), with regards to the presence of pulmonary embolism (PE) as a risk factor for cardiac dysfunction. METHOD: Hospitalized patients with COVID-19 who underwent contrast-enhanced CT at our institution were retrospectively included in this study and grouped with regards to the presence of PE. Unenhanced and portal venous phase scans were used to calculate ECV by placing regions of interest in the myocardial septum and left ventricular blood pool. ECV values were compared between patients with and without PE, and correlations between ECV values and clinical or technical variables were subsequently appraised. RESULTS: Ninety-four patients were included, 63/94 of whom males (67%), with a median age of 70 (IQR 56–76 years); 28/94 (30%) patients presented with PE. Patients with PE had a higher myocardial ECV than those without (33.5%, IQR 29.4–37.5% versus 29.8%, IQR 25.1–34.0%; p = 0.010). There were no correlations between ECV and patients’ age (p = 0.870) or sex (p = 0.122), unenhanced scan voltage (p = 0.822), portal phase scan voltage (p = 0.631), overall radiation dose (p = 0.569), portal phase scan timing (p = 0.460), and contrast agent dose (p = 0.563). CONCLUSIONS: CT-derived ECV could help identify COVID-19 patients at higher risk of cardiac dysfunction, especially when related to PE, to potentially plan a dedicated, patient-tailored clinical approach.