Causes of Death in COVID-19: A Minireview
Shravani Dhale
Datta Meghe Medical College, Nagpur, India.
Swarupa Chakole
Department of Community Medicine, Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College, Datta Meghe Institute of Medical Sciences Sawangi (Meghe), Wardha, India.
Neha Bhatt *
Department of Pathology, Datta Meghe Medical College, Shalinitai Meghe Hospital and Research Centre, Nagpur, India.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
Background: More than two million people have died worldwide as a result of the new corona strain virus SARS-CoV-2 and the associated COVID-19 syndrome. Older patients with pre-existing health problems are more likely to die from their illness. We found that septic shock and multiple failures were the most common causes of death, mainly due to inflammation of the lungs, although there was no definitive study on the causes of death and the role of pre-existing conditions. In a few cases, respiratory failure caused by excessive alveolar injury was the cause of immediate death. Comorbidities such as asthma, heart disease, and obesity were present in most cases.
Conclusion: Our findings indicate that COVID-19 was related to death in the majority of decedents, rather than being a direct product of pre-existing health conditions and comorbidities. As a result, we conclude that COVID-19 killed most patients, with pre-existing health issues playing only a minor role in the death mechanism.
Keywords: COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, infection, respiratory failure, pulmonary infection