@article{Franchi_Okoye_Morelli_Guarino_Mazzarone_Coppini_Peta_Rogani_Fabbri_Polini_Monzani_2022, title={Utility of lung ultrasound in selecting older patients with hyperinflammatory phase in COVID-19 pneumonia. A monocentric, cross-sectional pilot study}, volume={71}, url={https://www.jgerontology-geriatrics.com/article/view/554}, DOI={10.36150/2499-6564-N554}, abstractNote={<p><strong>Background</strong>. Cytokine dysregulation plays a critical role in COVID-19, and its timely recognition is pivotal for a favourable outcome, typically in the oldest patient. Lung ultrasound (LUS) has been proven to be an easy-toperform, accurate tool for detecting COVID-19 pneumonia. The current study aimed to evaluate the relationship between inflammatory markers and pulmonary injury assessed by LUS in older patients with COVID-19. <br><strong>Methods</strong>. We consecutively evaluated older patients (age ≥ 65 years) hospitalized for COVID-19 pneumonia in our tertiary care hospital. All the patients underwent LUS, physical examination, and blood tests. LUS score for monitoring aeration, based on the number of B-lines for each scanned zone was assessed. Kendall’s Correlation was calculated to verify the relationship between LUS and inflammation markers. A 7.5 mg/dl Hs-CRP cut-off was set to define the “hyper-inflammation” state. Finally, a receiver operating curve (ROC) was evaluated to define a cytokine storm – LUS-defined cut-off. <br><strong>Results</strong>. Overall, 65 older patients [mean (SD), 82.0 (6.9) years] were included in the analysis. LUS score was related inversely to PaO2/FiO2 ratio at admission (tau -0.29, p &lt; 0.01) and nadir (tau -0.21, p &lt; 0.01), and positively to Hs-CRP (tau 0.35, p &lt; 0.001). An indexed LUS score higher than 0.8 was highly predictive of cytokine storm (AUROC 0.78, p &lt; 0.001; Sensitivity 86%, Specificity 68%).<br><strong>Conclusions</strong>. Lung involvement evaluated by LUS correlates directly with inflammatory markers and inversely with PaO2/ FiO2 ratio. LUS values qualified as an independent predictor of cytokine storm, and a score greater than 0.8 is the most predictive cut-off.</p&gt;}, number={2}, journal={JOURNAL OF GERONTOLOGY AND GERIATRICS}, author={Franchi, Riccardo and Okoye, Chukwuma and Morelli, Virginia and Guarino, Daniela and Mazzarone, Tessa and Coppini, Giulia and Peta, Umberto and Rogani, Sara and Fabbri, Alessandra and Polini, Antonio and Monzani, Fabio}, year={2022}, month={Dec.}, pages={61-67} }