The Influence of Early Adoption of Non-enhanced Computed Tomography on Management of Patients with Pyogenic Liver Abscess

Pyogenic liver abscess (PLA) is an infectious disease and causes high in-hospital mortality. It has no specific symptoms and is difficult to be diagnosed early in the emergency department. Therefore, early diagnosis is an urgent need for clinicians. Ultrasound has been widely used to detect lesions of PLA. However, the sensitivity of ultrasound is affected by the size and location of lesions and clinician’s experience. We conducted a retrospective study to assess the effects of early adoption of non-enhanced computed tomography (CT) scanning (i.e., receiving CT scanning within 48 hours after admission) on treatment and disease status of patients with PLA. This study enrolled 76 hospitalized patients with PLA in department of digestive disease, who received CT examination during 2014 to 2021. Of the enrolled patients, 56 received an early CT scan and 20 received a late CT scan. Results showed that the length of hospitalization in the early CT group was significantly shorter than the late CT group (15.0 days vs. 20.5 days; p = 0.035). Besides, the median time to initiating drainage after admission was also significantly shorter in the early CT group than the late CT group (1.0 days vs. 4.5 days; p < 0.001). The early CT group was also associated with significantly lower prescription rates of antibiotics. Our findings revealed that to conduct early CT scanning within 48 hours of admission may assist in early diagnosis of PLA and be beneficial to disease recovery.