Shocking images reveal how coronavirus ravaged the lungs of two Wuhan residents in their 60s on holiday in Italy - the country's first recorded victims of the disease. Researchers at the National Institute of Infectious Diseases in Rome studied the two individuals after they tested positive for COVID-19 on January 29, 2020. The two patients were a 67-year-old healthy man and a 65-year-old woman who was fit and healthy except for daily oral medication for high blood pressure. X-ray scans and CT images reveal how COVID-19 ravaged their lungs and respiratory system in a similar but distinct way to both SARS and MERS. Italy is now on total lockdown and in the 47 days since the first two patients were diagnosed the country has almost 25,000 cases and more than 1,000 deaths. The images were published with the permission of the daughter of the two patients. Both individuals struck down with the disease were in a critical but stable condition in intensive care when the study was written. Pictured, the first CT mage taken of the male patient who was otherwise in good health. The slightly discoloured region to the left is called ground-glass opacities — where air spaces in their lungs become filled with a substance, usually pus, blood or water Pictured, the same patient's set of lungs five days after his initial scans. It shows severe progression of pneumonia with increased extension of ground glass opacities and consolidation — thickening or swelling of soft tissue Europe is now the epicentre of the novel coronavirus outbreak with more than 57,000 cases and 2,345 deaths. The continent is moving deeper into lockdown today with 100million people retreating to their homes. Borders are also being sealed and bars and restaurants are shutting up to prevent large gatherings where the virus can spread. Writing in a scientific paper due to be published next month in the International Journal of Infectious Diseases, the Italian searchers describe the country's first patients. After experiencing respiratory issues and a fever the pair underwent laboratory tests which confirmed infection with the SARS-COV-2 virus. Both individuals went on to develop adult respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). It took just four days for the patients to suffer respiratory failure, and two days later both people were reliant on a ventilator to breathe. Early x-ray images revealed 'ground-glass opacities' — where air spaces in their lungs become filled with a substance, usually pus, blood or water. Ground-glass opacity is frequently associated with the thickening or swelling of soft tissue, known as consolidation. A phenomenon called crazy paving was also seen, which indicates thickening of the septum and intralobular septum, which can inhibit performance. Patients with COVID-19 have shown fluid or debris-filled sacs in the lungs, which may get progressively worse as the illness develops. The study also discovered the blood vessels taking blood from the heart to the lungs to become oxygenated became enlarged. This increased size, known as hypertrophy, reduces the space for air in-between, causing difficulty breathing and respiratory problems. This sign is likely to be related to the hyperemia — excess blood in the lung's vessels — caused by the viral infection. The researchers write: 'Lung patterns in both patients were characterised by hypertrophy of the pulmonary vessels, which are increased in size, particularly in areas with more pronounced interstitial impairment. 'This new radiological evidence suggests a different pattern of lung involvement compared to those observed in the other known severe coronavirus infections (SARS and MERS).' The researchers say much of their research agrees with previous findings, but the presence of lung infiltrates — an abnormal substance that accumulates gradually within cells or body tissues — could describe an early predictor of lung impairment. Source
