MedPath

Pathological Findings of Fatal COVID-19

Completed
Conditions
Respiratory Distress Syndrome
Covid19
SARS-CoV-2
Pathology
Intensive Care Units
Interventions
Other: 2 post-mortem transcutaneous lung biopsies (1 anterior ; 1 posterior) using anatomical landmarks
Registration Number
NCT04675281
Lead Sponsor
Nantes University Hospital
Brief Summary

The Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is a new coronavirus discovered in December 2019 in Wuhan, China and currently responsible of a worldwide outbreak and the death of more than 55,000 patients in France. The more severe form of COVID-19 disease induces a pneumonia with profound hypoxemia which may require invasive mechanical ventilation. It is estimated that 5% of COVID-19 patients are admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) for management. Hospital mortality in patients who develop severe acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) ranges between 40% and 60%. The investigators purpose to investigate the pathological findings of COVID-19 patients who died from ARDS in the ICU by doing post-mortem lung biopsies

Detailed Description

Forty-four French ICUs participate to this study with the aim to perform 200 lung biopsies in 100 patients over a 12-month period. This cohort will be the largest pathological database of COVID-19 patients who developed ARDS. In accordance with the French law, this study has been approved and registered by the French Agency of Biomedicine and the French Ministry of Education and Research (#PFS 20-016). Two transcutaneous lung biopsies per patient will be performed using a 14G needle and anatomical landmarks (1 anterior biopsy and 1 posterior biopsy). All biopsies will be referred to the Department of Pathology of Nantes university hospital and analysed by a group of pathologists specialized in lung tissue. The primary objective is to describe and characterize the lesions of the lung induced by the SARS-CoV-2 infection. The secondary objectives are to correlate the pathological findings with the patients' demographics, the treatments administered during the ICU stay, the ventilator settings, to document the percentage of co-infections and their types, compare the radiographic findings (Chest X-ray and CT-scan of the chest) with the pathological findings, to compare the pathological findings of early deaths (\<1week after ICU admission) versus late deaths (\>1 week). These pathological findings will undoubtedly help to better understand the pathophysiology of SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia and pave the way to the development of new therapeutic strategies

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status
COMPLETED
Sex
All
Target Recruitment
170
Inclusion Criteria
  • Adult patients (Age≥18 years-old)
  • Hospitalized in Intensive Care Unit (ICU)
  • Dead in the ICU from documented Covid-19 (clinical and radiological signs of pneumonia with a positive SARS-Cov-2 PCR from the upper or lower respiratory tract)
  • Not registered in the national register of refusal of the French Biomedicine Agency
  • According to French law, there was no requirement for signed consent, but the patient's next of kin were informed about the study before enrolment and were given a letter of information about the study.
Exclusion Criteria
  • Covid-19 not documented by a positive SARS-Cov-2 PCR
  • Patient with a positive SARS-Cov-2 PCR but without any signs of pneumonia during the ICU stay (no clinical and no radiological signs of pneumonia)
  • Patient registered in the "national register of refusal" of the French Biomedicine Agency
  • Refusal expressed by the patient's next of kin to participate to the study

Study & Design

Study Type
OBSERVATIONAL
Study Design
Not specified
Arm && Interventions
GroupInterventionDescription
Critically-ill adult patients who died in the Intensive Care Unit from a documented COVID-192 post-mortem transcutaneous lung biopsies (1 anterior ; 1 posterior) using anatomical landmarks-
Primary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Analysis of the pathological findings of a large cohort of patients who died from COVID-19 in the ICUTwo post-mortem lung biopsies performed immediately after death.

Detailed description and analysis of the primary lesions of the lungs in patients who died in the ICU from Covid-19.

Secondary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Comparison between early (<1 week after ICU admission) and late (≥1 week) deathsTwo post-mortem lung biopsies performed immediately after death.

Comparison of pathological findings according to the time between ICU admission and death.

Analysis of the influence of ARDS severity and length on pathological findingsTwo post-mortem lung biopsies performed immediately after death.

Comparison of pathological findings according to the duration of acute respiratory syndrome.

Co-infectionsTwo post-mortem lung biopsies performed immediately after death.

Description of the co-infection (bacterial or fungal infections) documented by pathological findings

Analysis of the influence of pharmacological treatments (steroids) on pathological findingsTwo post-mortem lung biopsies performed immediately after death.

Comparison of pathological findings between patients who received steroids and those who did not.

Association between the primary cause of death and pathological findingsTwo post-mortem lung biopsies performed immediately after death.

Analysis of the pathological findings according to the primary cause of death (hypoxia, shock, hypoxia and shock, cardiac arrest, other).

Analysis of the correlation between radiological findings and pathological findingsTwo post-mortem lung biopsies performed immediately after death.

Comparison between radiological description of the CT of the lungs and the radiological findings.

Analysis of the correlation between the ventilator settings and pathological findingsTwo post-mortem lung biopsies performed immediately after death.

Analysis of the correlation between the ventilator settings (tidal volume, PEEP, driving pressure, plateau pressure, static compliance, volume or pressure mode) and pathological findings.

Trial Locations

Locations (44)

CH Ambroise Paré APHP

🇫🇷

Paris, France

Hopital Antoine Béclère APHP

🇫🇷

Paris, France

Angers University Hospital

🇫🇷

Angers, France

CH Compiègne-Noyon

🇫🇷

Compiègne, France

CH Amiens

🇫🇷

Amiens, France

CH Angoulême

🇫🇷

Angoulême, France

CHU Clermont-Ferrand

🇫🇷

Clermont-Ferrand, France

CHD Vendée

🇫🇷

La Roche-sur-Yon, France

CH Melun

🇫🇷

Melun, France

Nantes University Hospital

🇫🇷

Nantes, France

CH Annecy

🇫🇷

Annecy, France

Hopital Privé d'Antony

🇫🇷

Antony, France

CHU Bordeaux

🇫🇷

Bordeaux, France

Hopital Sainte Camille

🇫🇷

Bry-sur-Marne, France

Hôpital Lyon Sud

🇫🇷

Lyon, France

CH Argenteuil

🇫🇷

Argenteuil, France

CH Belfort

🇫🇷

Belfort, France

CH Cahors

🇫🇷

Cahors, France

CH Poissy

🇫🇷

Poissy, France

Hopital Lyon Sud

🇫🇷

Lyon, France

GHEF Marne La Vallée

🇫🇷

Paris, France

Hopital Georges Pompidou APHP

🇫🇷

Paris, France

Hopital La Pitié Salpetrière APHP

🇫🇷

Paris, France

Hopital Louis Mourier APHP

🇫🇷

Paris, France

CH Cergy Pontoise

🇫🇷

Cergy-Pontoise, France

CH Cholet

🇫🇷

Cholet, France

Marseille Hopital Nord APHM

🇫🇷

Marseillette, France

CH Montélimar

🇫🇷

Montélimar, France

CHU Nice

🇫🇷

Nice, France

CHR Orléans

🇫🇷

Orléans, France

Hopital Cochin APHP

🇫🇷

Paris, France

Hopital Necker APHP

🇫🇷

Paris, France

Hopital Privé Claude Galien

🇫🇷

Quincy-sous-Sénart, France

Hopital Saint-Louis APHP

🇫🇷

Paris, France

CHU Rennes

🇫🇷

Rennes, France

Hopital Saint-Antoine APHP

🇫🇷

Paris, France

CH Reims

🇫🇷

Reims, France

CHU Saint-Etienne

🇫🇷

Saint-Étienne, France

CH Troyes

🇫🇷

Troyes, France

Hopital Foch

🇫🇷

Suresnes, France

CHRU Tours

🇫🇷

Tours, France

CH Vannes

🇫🇷

Vannes, France

CH Versailles

🇫🇷

Versailles, France

CH Saint-Brieuc

🇫🇷

Saint-Brieuc, France

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