ArticlePloS one2021
Viral mapping in COVID-19 deceased in the Augsburg autopsy series of the first wave: A multiorgan and multimethodological approach.
Article in PloS one, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 14 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
14 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- SARS-Cov-2 infection and neuropathological findings: a report of 18 cases and review of the literature.Acta neuropathologica communications · 2023Pooled it
- RAGE has potential pathogenetic and prognostic value in nonintubated hospitalized patients with COVID-19.JCI insight · 2022Trial
- [Minimally invasive autopsies-Methods and limitations].Pathologie (Heidelberg, Germany) · 2026Review
- Review
- Quantitative multiorgan proteomics of fatal COVID-19 uncovers tissue-specific effects beyond inflammation.EMBO molecular medicine · 2023Article
- Neuropathological features of SARS-CoV-2 delta and omicron variants.Journal of neuropathology and experimental neurology · 2023Article
- SARS-CoV-2 infection induces persistent adipose tissue damage in aged golden Syrian hamsters.Cell death & disease · 2023Article
- Beyond energy balance regulation: The underestimated role of adipose tissues in host defense against pathogens.Frontiers in immunology · 2023Review
- SARS-CoV-2 and neurodegenerative diseases: what we know and what we don't.Journal of neural transmission (Vienna, Austria : 1996) · 2022Review
- High viral loads: what drives fatal cases of COVID-19 in vaccinees? - an autopsy study.Modern pathology : an official journal of the United States and Canadian Academy of Pathology, Inc · 2022Article
- Article
- Visceral fat inflammation and fat embolism are associated with lung's lipidic hyaline membranes in subjects with COVID-19.International journal of obesity (2005) · 2022Article
- First report from the German COVID-19 autopsy registry.The Lancet regional health. Europe · 2022Article
- Impaired Dendritic Cell Homing in COVID-19.Frontiers in medicine · 2021Article
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Authors and funding
19 authors.
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No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundCOVID-19 is only partly understood, and the level of evidence available in terms of pathophysiology, epidemiology, therapy, and long-term outcome remains limited. During the early phase of the pandemic, it was necessary to effectively investigate all aspects of this new disease. Autopsy can be a valuable procedure to investigate the internal organs with special techniques to obtain information on the disease, especially the distribution and type of organ involvement.
methodsDuring the first wave of COVID-19 in Germany, autopsies of 19 deceased patients were performed. Besides gross examination, the organs were analyzed with standard histology and polymerase-chain-reaction for SARS-CoV-2. Polymerase chain reaction positive localizations were further analyzed with immunohistochemistry and RNA-in situ hybridization for SARS-CoV-2.
resultsEighteen of 19 patients were found to have died due to COVID-19. Clinically relevant histological changes were only observed in the lungs. Diffuse alveolar damage in considerably different degrees was noted in 18 cases. Other organs, including the central nervous system, did not show specific micromorphological alterations. In terms of SARS-CoV-2 detection, the focus remains on the upper airways and lungs. This is true for both the number of positive samples and the viral load. A highly significant inverse correlation between the stage of diffuse alveolar damage and viral load was found on a case and a sample basis. Mediastinal lymph nodes and fat were also affected by the virus at high frequencies. By contrast, other organs rarely exhibited a viral infection. Moderate to strong correlations between the methods for detecting SARS-CoV-2 were observed for the lungs and for other organs.
conclusionsThe lung is the most affected organ in gross examination, histology and polymerase chain reaction. SARS-CoV-2 detection in other organs did not reveal relevant or specific histological changes. Moreover, we did not find CNS involvement.
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