Histopathological observations in COVID-19: a systematic review

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Background: Coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) has caused a great global threat to public health. The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared COVID-19 disease as a pandemic, affecting the human respiratory and other body systems, which urgently demands for better understanding of COVID-19 histopathogenesis.

Objective: Data on pathological changes in different organs are still scarce, thus we aim to review and summarise the latest histopathological changes in different organs observed after autopsy of COVID-19 cases.

Methods: Over the period of 3 months, authors performed vast review of the articles. The search engines included were PubMed, Medline (EBSCO & Ovid), Google Scholar, Science Direct, Scopus and Bio-Medical. Search terms used were ‘Histopathology in COVID-19’, ‘COVID-19’, ‘Pathological changes in different organs in COVID-19’ or ‘SARS-CoV-2’. Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) 2009 guidelines were used for review writing.

Results: We identified various articles related to the histopathology of various organs in COVID-19 positive patients. Overall, 45 articles were identified as full articles to be included in our study. Histopathological findings observed are summarised according to the systems involved.

Conclusion: Although COVID-19 mainly affects respiratory and immune systems, but other systems like cardiovascular, urinary, gastrointestinal tract, reproductive system, nervous system and integumentary system are not spared, especially in elderly cases and those with comorbidity. This review would help clinicians and researchers to understand the tissue pathology, which can help in better planning of the management and avoiding future risks. This article is made freely available for use in accordance with BMJ’s website terms and conditions for the duration of the covid-19 pandemic or until otherwise determined by BMJ. You may use, download and print the article for any lawful, non-commercial purpose (including text and data mining) provided that all copyright notices and trademarks are retained.

Medical and surgical pathology (NLM ID: 101689989) deals with the macroscopic and microscopic examination of surgical specimens for effective diagnosis of disease. Surgical specimens are of two categories, biopsies, and surgical resections. Surgical pathology also includes subdivisions such as dermatopathology, cytopathology, hematopathology, neuropathology and pediatric pathology.

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Thank you, and Regards,
John Robert
Journal of Medical and Surgical Pathology
ISSN: 2472-4971 | NLM ID: 101245791