Radiological manifestations of COVID-19 patients aged 50 years and above treated at Mbeya Zonal Referral Hospital – Tanzania

INTRODUCTION: COVID-19 as a pandemic disease has claimed many lives due to its high mortality rate causing social and economic impact to the societies. This has drawn a greater global attention on the health sector; therefore, its diagnosis is of great importance. Chest radiography has been used as a baseline investigation in many lower- and middle-income countries because of its availability and lower cost so we aim to compare the radiological findings and Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) results among patients aged 50 years and above who had chest radiography findings. METHODS: This is a retrospective study using chest X-ray data collected in April 2021. Adults aged 50 years and above with viral pneumonia suspects were included in this analysis. Patients’ demographics and chest X-ray findings were reported. Radiographic findings were correlated with PCR results. Descriptive statistics were reported. RESULTS: A total of 154 participants were included; 95(61%) were male and the median age was 60 years old. The most common finding on chest x-rays was peripheral ground glass opacification involving more to the middle and lower zone in 82(53.2%) patients. Of the patients with ground glass opacification 22 (26.8%) had confirmed PCR results of them 16 (72.7%) were male and 6 (27.3%) were female. CONCLUSION: Chest X-ray has limited sensitivity for COVID-19, however pattern detected on Chest X-ray can help to diagnose and guide treatment.