Evidence map›Paper›PMID 32730555›Full record

ArticleJAMA cardiology2020

Association of Cardiac Infection With SARS-CoV-2 in Confirmed COVID-19 Autopsy Cases.

Diana Lindner, Antonia Fitzek, Hanna Bräuninger, Ganna Aleshcheva, Caroline Edler, Kira Meissner, Katharina Scherschel, Paulus Kirchhof, Felicitas Escher, Heinz-Peter Schultheiss and 3 more

Registry-linked trialOpen access · bronzeAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in JAMA cardiology, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT04794062 (Myocardial Injury and Quality of Life in Patients Recovered From the Pneumonia Associated With the Novel Coronavirus Infectious Disease COVID-19), which is not on this map. Cited by 518 papers, 9 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
518citing papers in PubMed, 9 pooled it
18.4field-weighted citation impact, top 1% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

NCT04794062 completednot on this map

Myocardial Injury and Quality of Life in Patients Recovered From the Pneumonia Associated With the Novel Coronavirus Infectious Disease COVID-19

TypeobservationalSponsorVoronezh Regional Clinical Consultative and Diagnostic CenterRan2020 to 2021Enrolled119ConditionsCOVID-19, Myocardial Injury, Myocarditis Post Infection
3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

518 citing papers in PubMed, 9 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 852 citations in OpenAlex.

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  9. COVID-19-Associated cardiac pathology at the postmortem evaluation: a collaborative systematic review.Clinical microbiology and infection : the official publication of the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases · 2022
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  19. Five-year cardiovascular outcomes following COVID-19-associated carditis.Clinical research in cardiology : official journal of the German Cardiac Society · 2026
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  20. Review

458 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

13 authors at 4 institutions in 1 country.

Diana LindnerDepartment of Cardiology, University Heart and Vascular Centre, Hamburg, Germany.
Antonia FitzekDepartment of Legal Medicine, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.
Hanna BräuningerDepartment of Cardiology, University Heart and Vascular Centre, Hamburg, Germany.
Ganna AleshchevaInstitute for Cardiac Diagnostics and Therapy, Berlin, Germany.
Caroline EdlerDepartment of Legal Medicine, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.
Kira MeissnerDepartment of Legal Medicine, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.
Katharina ScherschelDepartment of Cardiology, University Heart and Vascular Centre, Hamburg, Germany.
Paulus KirchhofDepartment of Cardiology, University Heart and Vascular Centre, Hamburg, Germany.
Felicitas EscherInstitute for Cardiac Diagnostics and Therapy, Berlin, Germany.
Heinz-Peter SchultheissInstitute for Cardiac Diagnostics and Therapy, Berlin, Germany.
Stefan BlankenbergDepartment of Cardiology, University Heart and Vascular Centre, Hamburg, Germany.
Klaus PüschelDepartment of Legal Medicine, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.
Dirk WestermannDepartment of Cardiology, University Heart and Vascular Centre, Hamburg, Germany.
German Centre for Cardiovascular Research · DECS Diagnostics · DEUniversität Hamburg · DEUniversity Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf · DE

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Importance: Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) can be documented in various tissues, but the frequency of cardiac involvement as well as possible consequences are unknown. Objective: To evaluate the presence of SARS-CoV-2 in the myocardial tissue from autopsy cases and to document a possible cardiac response to that infection. Design, Setting, and Participants: This cohort study used data from consecutive autopsy cases from Germany between April 8 and April 18, 2020. All patients had tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 in pharyngeal swab tests. Exposures: Patients who died of coronavirus disease 2019. Main Outcomes and Measures: Incidence of SARS-CoV-2 positivity in cardiac tissue as well as CD3+, CD45+, and CD68+ cells in the myocardium and gene expression of tumor necrosis growth factor α, interferon γ, chemokine ligand 5, as well as interleukin-6, -8, and -18. Results: Cardiac tissue from 39 consecutive autopsy cases were included. The median (interquartile range) age of patients was 85 (78-89) years, and 23 (59.0%) were women. SARS-CoV-2 could be documented in 24 of 39 patients (61.5%). Viral load above 1000 copies per μg RNA could be documented in 16 of 39 patients (41.0%). A cytokine response panel consisting of 6 proinflammatory genes was increased in those 16 patients compared with 15 patients without any SARS-CoV-2 in the heart. Comparison of 15 patients without cardiac infection with 16 patients with more than 1000 copies revealed no inflammatory cell infiltrates or differences in leukocyte numbers per high power field. Conclusions and Relevance: In this analysis of autopsy cases, viral presence within the myocardium could be documented. While a response to this infection could be reported in cases with higher virus load vs no virus infection, this was not associated with an influx of inflammatory cells. Future investigations should focus on evaluating the long-term consequences of this cardiac involvement.

Indexed as

AgedAged, 80 and overAutopsyCardiovascular InfectionsChemokinesCohort StudiesCOVID-19FemaleGermanyHumansIncidenceInterferon-gammaInterleukin-18Interleukin-6Interleukin-8MaleChemokinesInterferon-gammainterferon gamma (1-39)Interleukin-18Interleukin-6Interleukin-8Peptide FragmentsTumor Necrosis Factor-alpha

Identifiers

PMID32730555
PMCPMC7385672
OpenAlexW3045195423

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.