Abstract
Aim.
To study computed tomography (CT) parameters in patients with bronchial asthma (BA) who have recovered from COVID-19-associated pneumonia.
Materials and methods.
In patients with mild persistent BA (n = 68, group 1) and moderate BA (n = 58, group 2), spirometry and body plethysmography parameters, as well as lung CT data in inspiratory and expiratory phases of breathing, were analyzed.
Results.
Spirometry analysis in groups 1 and 2 showed that the forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV
1
) was 90.7 ± 1.5 and 72.4 ± 2.0% of predicted, respectively (p = 0.0001); the mean forced expiratory flow at 25–75% of forced vital capacity (FEF
25-75
) was 65.3 ± 2.6 and 40.3 ± 1.8% of predicted, respectively (p = 0.0001). CT examination revealed significant differences in postexpiratory air content of both lungs (EAC2) – 69 (25; 381) and 637 (219; 1157) ml, respectively (p 1
-IDB
1exp
) was 0.31 ± 0.08 and 0.56 ± 0.09 mm (p = 0.043); the difference in IDB
10
-IDB
10exp
was 0.87 ± 0.11 and 0.37 ± 0.08 mm, respectively (p = 0.001). Correlation analysis in both groups demonstrated a strong association of postexpiratory air content of both lungs (EAC2) with FEV
1
/FVC ratio (r = 0.41; p = 0.006 and r = -0.38; p = 0.023) and patient age (r = 0.46; p = 0.002 and r = 0.39; p = 0.018), respectively. In group 2 patients, the internal diameter of the B
1
bronchus during expiration directly correlated with expiratory airway resistance Raw ex (Rs = 0.53; p = 0.005); furthermore, an association was observed between bronchial wall density (BWD
10
) and FEF
25-75
(r = -0.44; p = 0.0003) and the airway response to a bronchodilator ΔFEV
1bd
(Rs = 0.43; p = 0.002).
Conclusion.
In patients with BA who have recovered from COVID-19-associated pneumonia, functional and morphological changes of the respiratory system were identified, the severity of which increases in cases of moderate disease course and is accompanied by worsening lung function and alterations in the bronchial tree. Comprehensive functional and radiological monitoring of this patient category is necessary for timely detection and correction of post-pneumonic disorders.