ArticlePathology, research and practice2021
COVID-19 autopsies: Procedure, technical aspects and cause of fatal course. Experiences from a single-center.
Article in Pathology, research and practice, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 18 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
18 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 29 citations in OpenAlex.
- One year of anatomy teaching and learning in the outbreak: Has the Covid-19 pandemic marked the end of a century-old practice? A systematic review.Anatomical sciences education · 2022Pooled it
- Safe autopsy procedures for COVID-19: Experience of one research center.Journal of neuropathology and experimental neurology · 2025Article
- Invasive Pulmonary Aspergillosis in Patients with and without SARS-CoV-2 Infection.Journal of fungi (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
- A novel hACE2 knock-in mouse model recapitulates pulmonary and intestinal SARS-CoV-2 infection.Frontiers in microbiology · 2023Article
- Post-mortem findings in Spanish patients with COVID-19; a special focus on superinfections.Frontiers in medicine · 2023Article
- Pulmonary thromboembolic events in COVID-19-A systematic literature review.Pulmonary circulation · 2022Review
- Invasive Respiratory Fungal Infections in COVID-19 Critically Ill Patients.Journal of fungi (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Review
- Contamination of personal protective equipment during COVID-19 autopsies.Virchows Archiv : an international journal of pathology · 2022Article
- Neuropathological Aspects of SARS-CoV-2 Infection: Significance for Both Alzheimer's and Parkinson's Disease.Frontiers in neuroscience · 2022Review
- Long-Term Persisting SARS-CoV-2 RNA and Pathological Findings: Lessons Learnt From a Series of 35 COVID-19 Autopsies.Frontiers in medicine · 2022Article
- Pathological Findings Associated With SARS-CoV-2 on Postmortem Core Biopsies: Correlation With Clinical Presentation and Disease Course.Frontiers in medicine · 2022Article
- Taskforce report on the diagnosis and clinical management of COVID-19 associated pulmonary aspergillosis.Intensive care medicine · 2021Article
- Epidemiology of Systemic Mycoses in the COVID-19 Pandemic.Journal of fungi (Basel, Switzerland) · 2021Review
- Intestinal Host Response to SARS-CoV-2 Infection and COVID-19 Outcomes in Patients With Gastrointestinal Symptoms.Gastroenterology · 2021Article
- [Practical aspects of COVID-19 autopsies].Der Pathologe · 2021Review
- The pulmonary pathology of COVID-19.Virchows Archiv : an international journal of pathology · 2021Review
- Emerging and Established Histological Techniques for the Analysis of Thrombosis in COVID-19 Lungs.Frontiers in cardiovascular medicine · 2021Review
- COVID-19 Pulmonary Pathology, Ventilator-Induced Lung Injury (VILI), or Sepsis-Induced Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS)? Healthcare Considerations Arising From an Autopsy Case and Miny-Review.Clinical pathology (Thousand Oaks, Ventura County, Calif.)Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
8 authors at 4 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Autopsies on COVID-19 have provided deep insights into a novel disease with unpredictable and potentially fatal outcome. A standardized autopsy procedure preferably with an in-situ technique and systematic tissue processing is important. Strict safety measures include personal protective equipment with a standardized protocol for dressing and undressing, usage of FFP-3 masks and minimization of aerosol production. The use of an airborne infection isolation (AIIR) room is preferred. Viral RNA analysis using swabs from throat, both lungs and other organs provides information on cross-organ viral dynamics. To correctly determine the full extent of pathological organ changes an adequate processing procedure is of the utmost importance. Systematic dissection and processing of the lungs revealed pulmonary infarction caused by thrombosis and thromboembolism and bacterial bronchopneumonia as the most frequent cause of death. Fungal pneumonia (aspergillus) was found in one case. The quality of the tissue was sufficient for histopathological and immunohistochemistry analyses in all cases. Viral RNA from throat or lung swabs was detectable post mortem in 89 % of the cases and could also be detected from paraffin-embedded tissue by real-time PCR. Complete COVID-19 autopsies including extensive histopathological studies and viral RNA analysis require approximately three times more human and technical resources and time compared to standard non-COVID autopsies. Autopsies on COVID-19 are feasible, present a manageable risk, while following a strict protocol, and provide novel insights into disease pathogenesis and the clinician with important feedback.
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