Full Text Available
Note: Clicking the button above will open the full text document at the original institutional repository in a new window.
A retrospective review of CTPA confirmed pulmonary emboli in COVID-19 patients admitted to Groote Schuur Hospital, Cape Town
Background: A high incidence of thromboembolic phenomena has been widely reported in patients with COVID-19 pneumonia. There is, however, a paucity of data detailing the incidence and characteristics of pulmonary emboli (PE) in COVID-19 patients in the South African setting. An improved understandin...
Saved in:
| Main Author: | |
|---|---|
| Other Authors: | |
| Format: | Thesis |
| Language: | English Eng |
| Published: |
Division of Radiology
2025
|
| Subjects: | |
| Tags: |
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1867613141043511296 |
|---|---|
| access_status_str | Open Access |
| author | Ahlers, Petri |
| author2 | Said-Hartley, Mariam |
| author_browse | Ahlers, Petri Said-Hartley, Mariam |
| author_facet | Said-Hartley, Mariam Ahlers, Petri |
| author_sort | Ahlers, Petri |
| collection | Thesis |
| description | Background: A high incidence of thromboembolic phenomena has been widely reported in patients with COVID-19 pneumonia. There is, however, a paucity of data detailing the incidence and characteristics of pulmonary emboli (PE) in COVID-19 patients in the South African setting. An improved understanding of the presentation and course of these patients is warranted, considering the serious and potentially fatal outcomes. Objectives: To describe the incidence and characteristics of PE confirmed by Computer Tomography Pulmonary Angiogram (CTPA) in patients with COVID-19 pneumonia admitted to a tertiary hospital in the Western Cape, South Africa. Methods: We performed a retrospective-, descriptive study of all adult patients with COVID-19 pneumonia confirmed by Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) undergoing CTPA for suspected PE while admitted to Groote Schuur Hospital. The study period was from 1 April 2020 to 30 September 2020. Results: Our study cohort consisted of 116 patients, 59% being female, of whom, 29% were pregnant or in the postpartum period. The median age for both genders combined was 49.5 years. The overall incidence of PE was 19 %, with 20 % in our subset of pregnant and postpartum patients. The majority (64%) of PE's were reported as being segmental in anatomical location. Conclusion: Our study cohort was noteworthy in including pregnant and postpartum patients. The overall incidence of PE was 19 % with no significant differences in demographics, comorbidities or D-dimer levels between patients with or without PE. The importance of a high clinical index of suspicion together with the role of CTPA in diagnosing PE in hospitalised COVID-19 patients is emphasised. |
| format | Thesis |
| id | oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/41502 |
| institution | University of Cape Town (South Africa) |
| language | English Eng |
| last_indexed | 2026-06-10T12:31:24.573Z |
| license_str | Not specified — see source repository |
| provenance_str_mv | Harvested via OAI-PMH from UCTD — University of Cape Town Open Access Repository |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| publishDateRange | 2025 |
| publishDateSort | 2025 |
| publisher | Division of Radiology |
| publisherStr | Division of Radiology |
| record_format | dspace |
| source_str | UCTD — University of Cape Town Open Access Repository |
| spelling | oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/41502 A retrospective review of CTPA confirmed pulmonary emboli in COVID-19 patients admitted to Groote Schuur Hospital, Cape Town Ahlers, Petri Said-Hartley, Mariam Radiology Background: A high incidence of thromboembolic phenomena has been widely reported in patients with COVID-19 pneumonia. There is, however, a paucity of data detailing the incidence and characteristics of pulmonary emboli (PE) in COVID-19 patients in the South African setting. An improved understanding of the presentation and course of these patients is warranted, considering the serious and potentially fatal outcomes. Objectives: To describe the incidence and characteristics of PE confirmed by Computer Tomography Pulmonary Angiogram (CTPA) in patients with COVID-19 pneumonia admitted to a tertiary hospital in the Western Cape, South Africa. Methods: We performed a retrospective-, descriptive study of all adult patients with COVID-19 pneumonia confirmed by Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) undergoing CTPA for suspected PE while admitted to Groote Schuur Hospital. The study period was from 1 April 2020 to 30 September 2020. Results: Our study cohort consisted of 116 patients, 59% being female, of whom, 29% were pregnant or in the postpartum period. The median age for both genders combined was 49.5 years. The overall incidence of PE was 19 %, with 20 % in our subset of pregnant and postpartum patients. The majority (64%) of PE's were reported as being segmental in anatomical location. Conclusion: Our study cohort was noteworthy in including pregnant and postpartum patients. The overall incidence of PE was 19 % with no significant differences in demographics, comorbidities or D-dimer levels between patients with or without PE. The importance of a high clinical index of suspicion together with the role of CTPA in diagnosing PE in hospitalised COVID-19 patients is emphasised. 2025-07-01T16:31:47Z 2025-07-01T16:31:47Z 2025 2025-07-01T09:35:35Z Thesis / Dissertation Masters MMed http://hdl.handle.net/11427/41502 en Eng application/pdf Division of Radiology Faculty of Health Sciences University of Cape Town |
| spellingShingle | Radiology Ahlers, Petri A retrospective review of CTPA confirmed pulmonary emboli in COVID-19 patients admitted to Groote Schuur Hospital, Cape Town |
| thesis_degree_str | Master's |
| title | A retrospective review of CTPA confirmed pulmonary emboli in COVID-19 patients admitted to Groote Schuur Hospital, Cape Town |
| title_full | A retrospective review of CTPA confirmed pulmonary emboli in COVID-19 patients admitted to Groote Schuur Hospital, Cape Town |
| title_fullStr | A retrospective review of CTPA confirmed pulmonary emboli in COVID-19 patients admitted to Groote Schuur Hospital, Cape Town |
| title_full_unstemmed | A retrospective review of CTPA confirmed pulmonary emboli in COVID-19 patients admitted to Groote Schuur Hospital, Cape Town |
| title_short | A retrospective review of CTPA confirmed pulmonary emboli in COVID-19 patients admitted to Groote Schuur Hospital, Cape Town |
| title_sort | retrospective review of ctpa confirmed pulmonary emboli in covid 19 patients admitted to groote schuur hospital cape town |
| topic | Radiology |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/11427/41502 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT ahlerspetri aretrospectivereviewofctpaconfirmedpulmonaryemboliincovid19patientsadmittedtogrooteschuurhospitalcapetown AT ahlerspetri retrospectivereviewofctpaconfirmedpulmonaryemboliincovid19patientsadmittedtogrooteschuurhospitalcapetown |