COVID-19 presents several unique features. The diagnosis is confirmed using polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Patients who contract pneumonia are often scanned with X-ray and computed tomography (CT). These images show specific a pattern that is not easily spotted by the human eye [Ng, 2020]. Therefore using image processing together with image acquisition is of utmost importance.
The rate of transmission for COVID-19 depends on the ability to reliably identify infected patients with a low rate of false negatives. In addition, a low rate of false positives is also required to avoid further increasing the burden on the healthcare system by unnecessarily exposing patients to quarantine if it is not required. Along with proper infection control, it is evident that timely detection of the disease would enable the implementation of all the supportive care required by patients affected by COVID-19.
Below are 4 ways in which Medical Imaging is currently helping fight against the pandemic: