Abstract
Since December 2019, a new form of coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, has spread from China to the whole word, raising concerns regarding Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) endangering public health and life. Over 1.5 million deaths related with COVID-19 have been recorded worldwide, with wide variations among countries affected by the pandemic and continuously growing numbers. The aim of this paper was to provide an overview of the literature cases of deaths involving COVID-19 and to evaluate the application of the COVID-19 Significance Score (CSS) in the classification of SARS CoV-2-related fatalities, comparing it with the Hamburg rating scale. The results obtained allowed us to highlight that CSS used after a complete accurate post-mortem examination, coupled to the retrieval of in vivo data, post-mortem radiology, histology and toxicology, as well as to additional required analyses (e.g., electronic microscopy) is a useful and concise tool in the assessment of the cause of death and the role played by this virus. A shared use of this scale might hopefully lower the inhomogeneities in forensic evaluation of SARS CoV-2-related fatalities.
Highlights
In December 2019, starting from the urban area of Wuhan, a new form of coronavirus, SARS CoV-2, began to spread firstly to a national level, and rapidly to the whole world
The results obtained allowed us to highlight that COVID-19 Significance Score (CSS) used after a complete accurate post-mortem examination, coupled to the retrieval of in vivo data, post-mortem radiology, histology and toxicology, as well as to additional required analyses is a useful and concise tool in the assessment of the cause of death and the role played by this virus
A systematic review of the available literature was performed, seeking information regarding post-mortem examinations performed on the deceased who had tested positive for SARS Cov-2, with the infection confirmed in vivo and/or after death
Summary
In December 2019, starting from the urban area of Wuhan, a new form of coronavirus, SARS CoV-2, began to spread firstly to a national level, and rapidly to the whole world. Its diffusion was so fast that on March 11, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) a pandemic [1]. At the time of the present article (December 2020), the cases of COVID-19 registered in the world have reached 68,679,195, with 47,583,441 patients completely recovered. Active cases amount to 19,530,028, 0.5% of which are in severe or critical conditions. Most affected countries include the United States, India and Brazil. Deaths related to COVID-19 amount to 1,565,726, with wide variations among countries affected by the pandemic and continuously growing numbers [2]
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