Boston Children's Hospital and Harvard Medical School physicians added that the virus is "far more" than just a respiratory illness in this population.

A separate study published Wednesday found dose reduction methods in chest tomosynthesis dramatically impacted image clarity, highlighting the difficulties with cutting patients' exposure.

High-contact athletes were three times more likely to have a blood brain barrier leak, with some who did not complain of severe symptoms also showing brain abnormalities on imaging.

They did find that patients with prior neurological conditions and those over age 60 were at an increased risk for developing new onset complications—including central nervous system infection, seizures and consciousness disorders.

Among more than 6,500 older adults, those with smaller pathways relative to lung size had the poorest lung function and were eight times more likely to develop the disease, researchers reported in JAMA.

Some hospitals have even shied away from ordering brain MRIs for suspected stroke patients with the novel virus either because they are too sick to physically move into a machine or for fear of contamination.  

Radiology findings are vital aids in the fight against COVID-19, and imaging is all but essential for elderly patients.

The guidance, which permits temporary modification of standard protocols, is aimed at mitigating circumstances that could lead to avoidable COVID-19 exposure for patients, providers and others working with or around imaging equipment and related systems.