Does COVID-19 Involve the Retina?

Michael Karampelas; Maria Dalamaga; Irene Karampela

doi:10.1007/s40123-020-00299-x

Does COVID-19 Involve the Retina?

Ophthalmol Ther. 2020 Sep 21:1-3. doi: 10.1007/s40123-020-00299-x. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Michael Karampelas¹, Maria Dalamaga², Irene Karampela³

Affiliations

¹ Medical Retina Department, Hippokration General Hospital, Athens, Greece.
² Department of Biological Chemistry, Medical School, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece.
³ Second Department of Critical Care, Attikon General University Hospital, Medical School, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Chaidari, Greece.

PMID: 32983831
DOI: 10.1007/s40123-020-00299-x

Abstract

Endothelial cell involvement with COVID-19 has been shown in the lung, heart, kidney, intestine and brain with histopathological evidence of endotheliitis and vasculitis. Viral RNA of COVID-19 has been detected in the retina of affected patients and recent publications highlight the possibility of retinal microangiopathy in patients with confirmed COVID-19 infection. Given the magnitude of the current pandemic, emphasis should be given to better reporting of clinically significant ocular symptoms, e.g. new scotoma, which could indicate the need for a retinal examination as well as follow-up testing after recovery from COVID-19.

Keywords: COVID-19; Microangiopathy; Retina; SARS-CoV-2.

Publication types

Editorial

Associated data

figshare/10.6084/m9.figshare.12907244