Since times immemorial, diseases have preyed on humankind like no other. From incurable diseases to epidemic outbreaks, humans have always suffered life losses due to unknown germs. The Spanish Flu outbreak was one of the recent most devastating epidemics until now.
However, the COVID19 pandemic has surpassed the previous epidemic devastations over the last two years. Had it not been for the vaccination drives, the world would have still been under the deadly virus’s grip. According to several sources of data, millions of people participated in the vaccination drives wholeheartedly. However, some did not take the jabs as well.
Consequently, the impact of COVID-19 on vaccinated and unvaccinated people varied. As reported by the top medical authorities, COVID-19 impacts the respiratory tracts including the chest gravely. Especially for COVID pneumonia, the risks for unvaccinated people remain higher than the vaccinated ones. Vaccines do not immune a person completely against a particular disease.
However, it makes the immune system more active and stronger to fight the disease more effectively. Therefore, the vaccinated and the unvaccinated people both can contract COVID-19. But, the risks associated with COVID infections remain lower for vaccinated people.
Here is a study that explains the impact of vaccination on COVID pneumonia. The study found that true positive cases of COVID-inflicted pneumonia are considerably lower for vaccinated people than the unvaccinated ones as confirmed by the results of chest CT scans.
The Study
A new study regarding the impact of COVID caused pneumonia got recently published in Radiology magazine. The study focused on the results of chest CT scans of thousands of people. All of these people were COVID-infected patients.
Of them, some were vaccinated and some were not vaccinated. The group of researchers used this mixed group of vaccinated and unvaccinated people as their sample for primary data. The experts conducting the study took the help of the guidelines laid down in the RSNA consensus.
According to the experts, the vaccinated people had almost 41% positives amongst them as confirmed by their CT scans for COVID. On the other hand, the same ratio for the unvaccinated people was as high as 73%.
The Objective
The RSNA classification system for COVID-19 was available even when there were no regular vaccination drives and long before the rapid tests were conducted. Even though vaccination and COVID rapid tests are quite regular things today, radiologists still rely on RSNA guidelines for diagnosis.
Especially when the COVID test results fail to explain a patient’s health conditions appropriately, RSNA guidelines help come to conclusions.
The sole motto of the researchers engaged in this study was to deploy RSNA guidelines to check if vaccination has a role to play in deciding the number of positive cases in COVID pneumonia diagnosis through CT scans.
The Sample
The researchers used a sample of 652 results of chest CT scans of COVID patients for their study. Of this sample set, 169 patients were vaccinated and 438 were unvaccinated. All of these patients underwent a PCR test for confirming their COVID-positive status.
Once confirmed, the researchers took their chest CT scan reports within 7 days of the diagnosis. While the results clearly identified a higher risk for unvaccinated people to contracting COVID pneumonia, the experts also found that the unvaccinated people were more vulnerable to Delta and Alpha infections.
Therefore, the researchers continued to use RSNA guidelines to be sure of the positivity rates and risk factors associated with COVID patients.
The Results
Brent P. Little works with the radiology Department at Florida’s Mayo Clinic. Brent and the co-authors mentioned in their paper that RSNA guidelines have always provided a strategic and standardized outline for interpreting the results of CT scan findings related to COVID pneumonia cases.
Therefore, many intuitions have been using these guidelines for easier and more accurate CT result interpretations. The team further explained that the number of vaccinated people is increasing every day.
According to the experts, the RSNA guidelines help provide important information for the diagnosis and disposition of patients with COVID symptoms. With RSNA guidelines, according to Brent and the team, evaluating COVID suspected patients become effortless ad flawless.
Therefore, vaccination indeed can be an effective way of eradicating or decreasing the COVID -19 menace. As the majority of the population gets vaccinated, fighting the odds like COVID pneumonia will become easier.
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