2020
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-80061-2
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A meta-analysis of accuracy and sensitivity of chest CT and RT-PCR in COVID-19 diagnosis

Abstract: Nowadays there is an ongoing acute respiratory outbreak caused by the novel highly contagious coronavirus (COVID-19). The diagnostic protocol is based on quantitative reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and chests CT scan, with uncertain accuracy. This meta-analysis study determines the diagnostic value of an initial chest CT scan in patients with COVID-19 infection in comparison with RT-PCR. Three main databases; PubMed (MEDLINE), Scopus, and EMBASE were systematically searched for all pu… Show more

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Cited by 105 publications
(85 citation statements)
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“…Concerning the diagnostic performance of CT scan, a recent meta-analysis reported sensitivity and specificity of 87% and 46%, respectively. Despite a good diagnostic sensitivity, this meta-analysis recommended to use RT-PCR besides CT scan to reach the most accurate result [ 7 ].…”
Section: Discussionmentioning
confidence: 99%
See 1 more Smart Citation
“…Concerning the diagnostic performance of CT scan, a recent meta-analysis reported sensitivity and specificity of 87% and 46%, respectively. Despite a good diagnostic sensitivity, this meta-analysis recommended to use RT-PCR besides CT scan to reach the most accurate result [ 7 ].…”
Section: Discussionmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…Chest computed tomography (CT) scan is an important method for the diagnosis of COVID-19 pneumonia [ 5 ]. Being more time-saving and having a comparable sensitivity versus RT-PCR assay make CT scan a powerful tool for rapid screening of the suspected cases [ 6 , 7 ].…”
Section: Introductionmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…On the other hand, good values for specificity (range: 75.6%e87.4%) and NPV (range: 74.2%e 78.6%) were obtained, in line with evidence reported in two recently published meta-analyses determining the diagnostic value of an initial chest CT scan in patients with COVID-19 infection in comparison with RT-PCR. 18,19 Nonetheless, nearly 25% of patients were incorrectly triaged as COVID-19 (þ). The latter could represent a major concern, for which reason additional clinical and laboratory tests should be considered in order to exclude other aetiologies, monitoring these patients through a dedicated care pathway, while preventing them from coming into close contact with confirmed COVID-19 cases as far as possible before a final diagnosis is made.…”
Section: Discussionmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…Reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test [ 4 ] and chest computed tomography (CT) are the two important tools for confirming COVID-19 patients. The RT-PCR can be used for diagnosis, but occasionally repeated RT-RCR need to be tested to gain more accurate result [ 5 , 6 ]. Besides, RT-PCR test is time-consuming, which takes 4–6 h to obtain the results.…”
Section: Introductionmentioning
confidence: 99%