Endothelialitis plays a central role in the pathophysiology of severe COVID-19 and its cardiovascular complications.

Endothelialitis plays a central role in the pathophysiology of severe COVID-19 and its cardiovascular complications. Acta Cardiol. 2020 Nov 19;:1-16 Authors: Vrints CJM, Krychtiuk KA, Van Craenenbroeck EM, Segers VF, Price S, Heidbuchel H Abstract This clinical review paper discusses the pathophysiology of the pulmonary and cardiovascular manifestations of a SARS-CoV-2 infection and the ensuing implications on acute cardiovascular care in patients presenting with a severe COVID-19 syndrome admitted to an intensive acute cardiac care unit. The high prevalence of old age, obesity, diabetes, hypertension, heart failure, and ischaemic heart disease in patients who develop a severe to critical COVID-19 syndrome suggests shared pathophysiological mechanisms. Pre-existing endothelial dysfunction and an impaired innate immune response promote the development by the viral infection of an acute endothelialitis in the pulmonary microcirculation complicated by abnormal vasoconstrictor responses, luminal plugging by inflammatory cells, and intravascular thrombosis. This endothelialitis extends into the systemic circulation what may lead to acute myocardial injury, myocarditis, and thromboembolic complications both in the arterial and venous circulation. Ever since the first case reports from the city of Wuhan in China in December of 2019, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2...
Source: Acta Cardiologica - Category: Cardiology Tags: Acta Cardiol Source Type: research