Purpose

The SARS-CoV-2 genome has been detected in a variety of human samples including blood, urine, semen, and faeces. However, evidence of virus presence in tissues other than lung are limited.

Methods

We investigated whether SARS-CoV-2 could be detected in 50 autoptic specimens of endocrine organs from 29 patients who died of COVID-19.

Results

The virus was detected in 25 specimens including ten abdominal subcutaneous adipose tissue samples (62%), six testes (67%), and nine thyroid (36%) samples. The analysis of multiple endocrine organ samples obtained from the same patients showed that, in virus-positive cases, the viral genome was consistently detected in all but two matched specimens.

Conclusion

Our findings show that the virus spread into endocrine organs is a common event in severe cases. Further studies should assess the rate of the phenomenon in clinically mild cases. The potential long-term effects of COVID-19 on endocrine functions should be taken into consideration.

中文翻译：

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COVID-19 尸检病例：内分泌组织中病毒的检测

目的

SARS-CoV-2 基因组已在各种人类样本中检测到，包括血液、尿液、精液和粪便。然而，在肺以外的组织中存在病毒的证据是有限的。

方法

我们调查了是否可以在来自 29 名死于 COVID-19 的患者的 50 份内分泌器官尸检标本中检测到 SARS-CoV-2。

结果

在 25 个样本中检测到病毒，其中包括 10 个腹部皮下脂肪组织样本（62%）、6 个睾丸（67%）和 9 个甲状腺（36%）样本。对从同一患者获得的多个内分泌器官样本的分析表明，在病毒阳性病例中，除了两个匹配的样本外，所有样本都始终检测到病毒基因组。

结论

我们的研究结果表明，病毒传播到内分泌器官是严重病例中的常见事件。进一步的研究应评估临床轻度病例中这种现象的发生率。应考虑 COVID-19 对内分泌功能的潜在长期影响。