The "Three Italy" of the COVID-19 epidemic and the possible involvement of SARS-CoV-2 in triggering complications other than pneumonia

J Neurovirol. 2020 Jun;26(3):311-323. doi: 10.1007/s13365-020-00862-z. Epub 2020 Jun 16.

Abstract

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), first reported in Wuhan, the capital of Hubei, China, has been associated to a novel coronavirus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). In March 2020, the World Health Organization declared the SARS-CoV-2 infection a global pandemic. Soon after, the number of cases soared dramatically, spreading across China and worldwide. Italy has had 12,462 confirmed cases according to the Italian National Institute of Health (ISS) as of March 11, and after the "lockdown" of the entire territory, by May 4, 209,254 cases of COVID-19 and 26,892 associated deaths have been reported. We performed a review to describe, in particular, the origin and the diffusion of COVID-19 in Italy, underlying how the geographical circulation has been heterogeneous and the importance of pathophysiology in the involvement of cardiovascular and neurological clinical manifestations.

Keywords: COVID-19; Cardiovascular manifestations; Italy geographical circulation; Neurological implications; Pathophysiology; SARS-CoV-2.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Age Factors
  • Betacoronavirus / drug effects
  • Betacoronavirus / immunology
  • Betacoronavirus / pathogenicity
  • COVID-19
  • Cardiovascular Diseases / diagnosis
  • Cardiovascular Diseases / epidemiology*
  • Cardiovascular Diseases / mortality
  • Cardiovascular Diseases / virology
  • Coronavirus Infections / diagnosis
  • Coronavirus Infections / epidemiology*
  • Coronavirus Infections / mortality
  • Coronavirus Infections / transmission
  • Cytokine Release Syndrome / diagnosis
  • Cytokine Release Syndrome / epidemiology*
  • Cytokine Release Syndrome / mortality
  • Cytokine Release Syndrome / virology
  • Geography
  • Humans
  • Italy / epidemiology
  • Nervous System Diseases / diagnosis
  • Nervous System Diseases / epidemiology*
  • Nervous System Diseases / mortality
  • Nervous System Diseases / virology
  • Pandemics*
  • Pneumonia, Viral / diagnosis
  • Pneumonia, Viral / epidemiology*
  • Pneumonia, Viral / mortality
  • Pneumonia, Viral / transmission
  • Prevalence
  • SARS-CoV-2
  • Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome / diagnosis
  • Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome / epidemiology*
  • Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome / mortality
  • Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome / transmission
  • Sex Factors
  • Survival Analysis