Subject(s)
COVID-19/pathology , SARS-CoV-2 , Thyroiditis, Autoimmune/pathology , Antibodies, Monoclonal, Humanized/immunology , Antibodies, Monoclonal, Humanized/pharmacology , Female , Genome, Viral/genetics , Humans , Italy , Middle Aged , Peru , SARS-CoV-2/drug effects , SARS-CoV-2/genetics , SARS-CoV-2/isolation & purification , Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome/pathology , Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome/virology , World Health OrganizationABSTRACT
ABSTRACT: As of August 23, 2020, the 2019 novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has infected more than 23,518,340 people and caused more than 810,492 deaths worldwide including 4,717 deaths in China. We present a case of a 53-year-old woman who was admitted to the hospital because of dry coughs and high fever on January 26, 2020, in Wuhan, China. She was not tested for SARS-CoV-2 RNA until on hospital day 11 (illness day 21) because of a significant shortage of test kits at the local hospital. Then, her test was positive for COVID-19 on hospital day 20. Despite intensive medical treatments, she developed respiratory failure with secondary bacterial infection and expired on hospital day 23 (3 days after she was tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 RNA). A systemic autopsy examination, including immunohistochemistry and ultrastructural studies, demonstrates that SARS-CoV-2 can infect multiple organs with profound adverse effect on the immune system, and the lung pathology is characterized by diffuse alveolar damage. Extrapulmonary SARS-CoV-2 RNA was detected in several organs postmortem. The detailed pathological features are described. In addition, this report highlights the value of forensic autopsy in studying SARS-CoV-2 infection and the importance of clinicopathological correlation in better understanding the pathogenesis of COVID-19.