Chinese study identifies key aspect of COVID-19 death

Chinese scientists and doctors have found the major pathway to death or poor outlook for severe COVID-19 patients.

They published a paper in Circulation, a well-known medical journal, on May 15 saying that the incidence of deep venous thrombosis, or blood clotting, reaches as high as 85.4 percent in severe cases of COVID-19 and that it might be the main culprit in deaths.

The paper was jointly written by Chinese scientists and medical experts at Wuhan University's Zhongnan Hospital — Ren Bin, Yan Feifei, Deng Zhouming, Zhang Sheng, Xiao Lingfei, Wu Meng and Cai Lin.

Their study involved screening and clinical examination of 48 severe COVID-19 patients with lower extremity deep venous thrombosis at Zhongnan and Leishenshan hospitals.

Severe infection and inflammation may be important factors in the occurrence of deep venous thrombosis in severe COVID-19 patients, they said.

Meanwhile mechanical ventilation, long lying in beds and venous catheterization may pose high risk of thrombosis in such cases, they said.

The research is the first to reveal the high incidence of deep venous thrombosis of lower limbs in severe COVID-19 patients worldwide, providing a new direction for further studies related to causes of death and progression of the disease in COVID-19 patients.

The results will also provide guidance for doctors treating severe cases and possibly contribute to prevention and control of the spread of the pandemic.