Correlation of Red Blood Cell Volume Distribution Width with Children Severe Pneumonia Using CT Semi-Quantitative Analysis

Objective: To investigate the correlation of red blood cell volume distribution width (RDW) with children severe pneumonia using CT semi-quantitative analysis. Methods: A retrospective analysis of clinical, laboratory and imaging data of children with severe pneumonia were performed. The patients were divided into improvement group and deterioration group according to the prognosis at the time of discharge. And patients were divided into high RDW group and low RDW group according to the mean value of RDW at admission. Results: Compared with improvement group, the age in the deterioration group was lower, and the RDW increased significantly (P < 0.05). The CT features and semi-quantitative analysis results of the patients were consistent with the prognosis of the disease. Pearson correlation analysis showed that there was a positive correlation between RDW and change of CT semi-quantitative scores. Logistic regression analysis showed that only the RDW was the risk factors for deterioration of children with severe pneumonia. Compared with lower RDW group, the age, CRP and PMN in the higher RDW group was lower. ROC curve analysis showed that the RDW level predicted a ROC AUC of 0.829, and the sensitivity of 76.67%, the specificity of 84.38% with the best diagnosis cut-off point of 50.65%. Conclusion: The level of RDW may be an independent risk factor for the poor prognosis of children with severe pneumonia. If necessary, it can be instead of CT scans to estimate the prognosis of children.