[Practical aspects of COVID-19 autopsies]. / Praktische Aspekte von COVID-19-Obduktionen.
Pathologe
; 42(2): 197-207, 2021 Mar.
Article
em De
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-33625535
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
The COVID-19 pandemic represents a so far unknown challenge for the medical community. Autopsies are important for studying this disease, but their safety was challenged at the beginning of the pandemic.OBJECTIVES:
To determine whether COVID-19 autopsies can be performed under existing legal conditions and which safety standards are required. MATERIALS ANDMETHODS:
The autopsy procedure undertaken in five institutions in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland is detailed with respect to legal and safety standards.RESULTS:
In all institutions the autopsies were performed in technically feasible rooms. The personal equipment consisted of functional clothing including a disposable gown and apron, a surgical cap, eye protection, FFP3 masks, and two pairs of gloves. In four institutions, complete autopsies were performed; in one institution the ultrasound-guided biopsy within the postmortal imaging and biopsy program. The latter does not allow the appreciation of gross organ pathology; however, it is able to retrieve standardized biopsies for diagnostic and research purposes. Several scientific articles in highly ranked journals resulted from these autopsies and allowed deep insights into organ damage and conclusions to better understand the pathomechanisms. Viral RNA was frequently detectable in the COVID-19 deceased, but the issue of infectivity remains unresolved and it is questionable if Ct values are greater than 30.CONCLUSIONS:
With appropriate safeguards, autopsies of people who have died from COVID-19 can be performed safely and are highly relevant to medical research.Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Pandemias
/
COVID-19
Tipo de estudo:
Guideline
Limite:
Humans
País/Região como assunto:
Europa
Idioma:
De
Revista:
Pathologe
Ano de publicação:
2021
Tipo de documento:
Article