Pregnancy and umbilical cord pathology: structural and functional parameters of the umbilical cord.

Scientific research in the field of physiology and pathology of the umbilical cord is quite limited and imperfect. The purpose of the study was to evaluate the histological architecture of the pathological umbilical cord and investigate the relationship between the main parameters and placental postnatal macromorphometric characteristics, which serve as a reflection of placental dysfunction. Four groups of patients were included, each undergoing a postnatal histological and topographic examination of the umbilical cord: Wharton's jelly edema (10 samples), velamentous cord insertion (10 samples), single umbilical artery (10 samples), and physiological pregnancy (10 samples). Compared to the control group, all newborn groups exhibited changes in umbilical vessel morphology, characterized by an increased Wagenworth index and a decreased Kernohan index. The functional indices of the umbilical vessels were found to be most severely affected in cases of Wharton's jelly edema. In cases of single umbilical artery, the changes in vascular functional parameters indicated their compensatory remodeling with the highest Wagenworth and Kernohan indices of the umbilical vein. Deviation from the normal average placental weight was observed in cases of Wharton's jelly volume pathology or velamentous cord insertion. However, in the case of a single umbilical artery, there were no significant deviations in the macromorphometry of the placenta.

Morphological prediction of lethal outcomes in the evaluation of lung tissue structural changes in patients on respiratory support with СOVID-19: Ukrainian experience.

The impact of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) on lung tissue in patients on respiratory support is of significant scientific interest in predicting mortality. This study aimed to analyze post-mortem histological changes in the lung tissue of COVID-19 patients on respiratory support using vital radiology semiotics. A total of 41 autopsies were performed on patients who died of SARS-CoV-2 and had confirmed COVID-19 by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and radiological evidence of lung tissue consolidation and ground glass opacity. The results showed that the duration of COVID-19 in patients on respiratory support was significantly associated with the development of all stages of diffuse alveolar damage, acute fibrous organizing pneumonia, pulmonary capillary congestion, fibrin thrombi, perivascular inflammation, alveolar hemorrhage, proliferating interstitial fibroblasts, and pulmonary embolism. The prediction model for lethal outcomes based on the duration of total respiratory support had a sensitivity of 68.3% and a specificity of 87.5%. In conclusion, for COVID-19 patients on long-term respiratory support with radiological signs of ground glass opacity and lung consolidation, post-mortem morphological features included various stages of diffuse alveolar lung damage, pulmonary capillary congestion, fibrin clots, and perivascular inflammation.