Neuropathology and applied neurobiology
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Neuropathol. Appl. Neurobiol. · Feb 2021
Case ReportsNeuropathological Findings in Two Patients with Fatal COVID-19.
To describe the neuropathological findings in two cases of fatal Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) with neurological decline. ⋯ Our case series adds calcifying cerebral cortical infarction with associated megakaryocytes and brainstem encephalitis to the spectrum of neuropathological findings that may contribute to the neurological decompensation seen in some COVID-19 patients. Viral RNA was not detected in post-mortem brain tissue, suggesting that these pathologies may not be a direct consequence of viral neuroinvasion and may represent para-infectious phenomena, relating to the systemic hyperinflammatory and hypercoagulable syndromes that both patients suffered.