Study finds African-American coronavirus victims' lungs clogged with blood clots

According to a study, researchers have found on May 27  that autopsies of 10 African-American coronavirus victims reveal that their lungs were filled with blood clots. The international media reports claim that all 10 patients show symptoms like high blood pressure, obesity, and diabetes that is likely to worsen the infection. A team of researchers at LSU Health New Orleans School of Medicine reportedly said that certain genetic factors could sometimes play a huge role. 

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Findings in the journal

The study was published in the Journal Lancet Respiratory Medicine which analyses that blacks are suffering the most from COVID-19 in US and other countries. The journal's website read that, "Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) spread rapidly across the USA, causing extensive morbidity and mortality, particularly in the African American community. Autopsy can considerably contribute to our understanding of many disease processes and could provide crucial information to guide management of patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). We report on the relevant cardiopulmonary findings in, to our knowledge, the first autopsy series of ten African American decedents, with the cause of death attributed to COVID-19." 

The journal's website further added, "autopsies were performed on ten African American decedents aged 44–78 years with cause of death attributed to COVID-19, reflective of the dominant demographic of deaths following COVID-19 diagnosis in New Orleans. Autopsies were done with the consent of the decedents' next of kin. Pulmonary and cardiac features were examined, with relevant immunostains to characterize the inflammatory response, and RNA labelling and electron microscopy on representative."

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The important findings include that there is a presence of thrombosis and microangiopathy in the small vessels and capillaries of the lungs, with associated haemorrhage, that significantly contributed to the death. It was also found that there was a presence of diffuse alveolar damage, including hyaline membranes in the patients who had not been ventilated. 

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