Causes of death of forensic autopsy cases tested positive for COVID-19 in Tokyo Metropolis, Japan

Suzuki, Hideto; Muramatsu, Hisanori; Hayashi, Kino

doi:10.1016/j.legalmed.2023.102222

Cited by 4 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 30 publications

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“…We then multiplied the age-standardized COVID-19 death rate by the population projection for Zambia in 2021, adjusting for difference in age structure between Lusaka Province and Zambia, to estimate the annual number of COVID-19 deaths and compared this number to officially reported deaths in the country [21]. For this analysis, we assumed SARS-CoV-2 transmission was uniform in Zambia [1], that COVID-19 contributed to the cause of death for 80% of those testing positive [22][23][24]. and that 10% of deaths were not registered in the Lusaka mortuary registrations data [11].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

COVID-19 mortality sentinel surveillance at a tertiary referral hospital in Lusaka, Zambia, 2020–2021

Hines,

Kapombe,

Mucheleng’anga

et al. 2024

PLOS Glob Public Health

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Deaths from COVID-19 likely exceeded official statistics in Zambia because of limited testing and incomplete death registration. We describe a sentinel COVID-19 mortality surveillance system in Lusaka, Zambia. We analyzed surveillance data on deceased persons of all ages undergoing verbal autopsy (VA) and COVID-19 testing at the University Teaching Hospital (UTH) mortuary in Lusaka, Zambia, from April 2020 through August 2021. VA was done by surveillance officers for community deaths and in-patient deaths that occurred <48 hours after admission. A standardized questionnaire about the circumstances proximal to death was used, with a probable cause of death assigned by a validated computer algorithm. Nasopharyngeal specimens from deceased persons were tested for COVID-19 using polymerase chain reaction and rapid diagnostic tests. We analyzed the cause of death by COVID-19 test results. Of 12,919 deceased persons at UTH mortuary during the study period, 5,555 (43.0%) had a VA and COVID-19 test postmortem, of which 79.7% were community deaths. Overall, 278 (5.0%) deceased persons tested COVID-19 positive; 7.1% during waves versus 1.4% during nonwave periods. Most (72.3%) deceased persons testing COVID-19 positive reportedly had fever, cough, and/or dyspnea and most (73.5%) reportedly had an antemortem COVID-19 test. Common causes of death for those testing COVID-19 positive included acute cardiac disease (18.3%), respiratory tract infections (16.5%), other types of cardiac diseases (12.9%), and stroke (7.2%). A notable portion of deceased persons at a sentinel site in Lusaka tested COVID-19 positive during waves, supporting the notion that deaths from COVID-19 might have been undercounted in Zambia. Many had displayed classic COVID-19 symptoms and been tested before death yet nevertheless died in the community, potentially indicating strained medical services during waves. The high proportion of cardiovascular diseases deaths might reflect the hypercoagulable state during severe COVID-19. Early supportive treatment and availability of antivirals might lessen future mortality.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

COVID-19 mortality sentinel surveillance at a tertiary referral hospital in Lusaka, Zambia, 2020–2021

Hines,

Kapombe,

Mucheleng’anga

et al. 2024

PLOS Glob Public Health

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Olanzapine

2023

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Identification of Histopathological Biomarkers in Fatal Cases of Coronavirus Disease: A Study on Lung Tissue

Gheban-Roșca,

Gheban,

Pop

et al. 2023

Diagnostics

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We aimed to evaluate the primary lung postmortem macro- and microscopic biomarkers and factors associated with diffuse alveolar damage in patients with fatal coronavirus (COVID-19). We retrospectively analyzed lung tissue collected from autopsies performed in Cluj-Napoca, Romania, between April 2020 and April 2021 on patients with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). We examined 79 patients with confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection, ages 34 to 96 years, split into two groups using the cut-off value of 70 years. Arterial hypertension (38%) and type 2 diabetes mellitus (19%) were the most common comorbidities with similar distribution between groups (p-values > 0.14). Macroscopically, bloody exudate was more frequently observed among patients < 70 years (33/36 vs. 29/43, p-value = 0.0091). Diffuse alveolar damage (53.1%) was similarly observed among the evaluated groups (p-value = 0.1354). Histopathological biomarkers of alveolar edema in 83.5% of patients, interstitial pneumonia in 74.7%, and microthrombi in 39.2% of cases were most frequently observed. Half of the evaluated lungs had an Ashcroft score of up to 2 and an alveolar air capacity of up to 12.5%. Bronchopneumonia (11/43 vs. 3/36, p-value = 0.0456) and interstitial edema (9/43 vs. 2/36, p-value = 0.0493) were significantly more frequent in older patients. Age (median: 67.5 vs. 77 years, p-value = 0.023) and infection with the beta variant of the virus (p-value = 0.0071) proved to be significant factors associated with diffuse alveolar damage.

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Causes of death of forensic autopsy cases tested positive for COVID-19 in Tokyo Metropolis, Japan

Cited by 4 publications

References 30 publications

COVID-19 mortality sentinel surveillance at a tertiary referral hospital in Lusaka, Zambia, 2020–2021

COVID-19 mortality sentinel surveillance at a tertiary referral hospital in Lusaka, Zambia, 2020–2021

Olanzapine

Identification of Histopathological Biomarkers in Fatal Cases of Coronavirus Disease: A Study on Lung Tissue

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