A Pilot Study: The Effect of COVID-19 on Sonographic Optic Nerve Sheath Diameter Measured for Critical Patient Management

Objective: The aim of this study is to evaluate the effects of the Coronavirus disease 2019 on sonographic optic nerve sheath diameter measurement and thus avoid possible misleading results in clinical practice. Material and Method: Each volunteer was first evaluated using carotid system color Doppler ultrasonography. Patients with a history of PCR-confirmed Coronavirus disease 2019 infection were classified as group 1 and patients without a history of Coronavirus disease 2019 infection were classified as group 2, and sonographic optic nerve sheath diameter values of both groups were analyzed. Results: Of the 123 patients included in the study, 70 (56.9%) were female and 58 (43.1%) were male. 83 (67.5%) of the patients included in the study were in group 1 and 40 (32.5%) were in group 2. The mean sonographic optic nerve sheath diameter values for the groups were 3.53 mm and 3.46 mm, respectively. The sonographic optic nerve sheath diameter differences between the two eyes for the groups were determined to be 0.203±0.139 mm and 0.282±0.2 mm. Conclusion: Due to the variable effects of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2, the use of sonographic optic nerve sheath diameter measurement in current standards for critical patient management may lead to false-positive or false-negative results.