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Review
. 2020 Jul:79:143-153.
doi: 10.1016/j.ijsu.2020.05.018. Epub 2020 May 15.

Diagnosis and treatment of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19): Laboratory, PCR, and chest CT imaging findings

Affiliations
Review

Diagnosis and treatment of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19): Laboratory, PCR, and chest CT imaging findings

Ebrahim Abbasi-Oshaghi et al. Int J Surg. 2020 Jul.

Abstract

Since December 2019, more than 3 million cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and about 200,000 deaths have been reported worldwide. The outbreak of this novel disease has become a global health emergency and continues to rapidly spread around the world. Based on the clinical data, approved cases are divided into four classes including mild, moderate, severe, and critical. About 5% of cases were considered critically ill and 14% were considered to have the severe classification of the disease. In China, the fatality rate of this infection was about 4%. This review focuses on currently available information on the etiology, clinical symptoms, diagnosis, and mechanism of action of COVID-19. Furthermore, we present an overview of diagnostic approaches and treatment of this disease according to available findings. This review paper will help the physician to diagnose and successfully treat COVID-19.

Keywords: COVID-19 vaccine; Chloroquine; Coronavirus; Coronavirus infection; Respiratory tract infections; Viral pneumonia.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of competing interest The author declared no interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
A three-dimensional (3D) structure of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19).
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Schematic diagram of the novel coronavirus structure (COVID-19). The spike protein on the membrane of the virus is necessary for entry into the cell. The spike protein can bind to the receptor, Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) on the surface of human cells.
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Chest X-rays and computerized tomography (CT) images of COVID-19 patients. Four stages in COVID-19 patients; 1: early stage (0–4 days), 2: progressive stage (5–8 days), 3: peak stage (10–13 days), and 4: absorption stage (more detail in the text).
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Occupational risk pyramid for COVID-19 infection based on the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) report.
Fig. 5
Fig. 5
Sequence for putting on (A) and removing of (B) personal protective equipment (PPE) (designed according to Chen et al. [35] paper).

Comment in

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