Preprint
Case Report

SARS-CoV-2 Infection in the Central Nervous System of a 1-Year-Old Infant Submitted to Complete Autopsy

Submitted:

18 September 2020

Posted:

19 September 2020

Read the latest preprint version here

A peer-reviewed article of this preprint also exists.

Abstract
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) was initially characterized as a respiratory illness. Neurological manifestations were reported mostly in severely affected patients. Routes for brain infection and the presence of virus particles in situ have not been well described, raising controversy about how the virus causes neurological symptoms. Here, we report the autopsy findings of a 1-year old infant with COVID-19. In addition to pneumonitis, meningitis and multiple organ damage related to thrombosis, a previous encephalopathy may have contributed to additional cerebral damage. SARS-CoV-2 infected the choroid plexus, ventricles, and cerebral cortex. This is the first evidence of SARS-CoV-2 detection in an infant post-mortem brain.
Keywords: 
Subject: 
Medicine and Pharmacology  -   Neuroscience and Neurology
Preprints on COVID-19 and SARS-CoV-2
Copyright: This open access article is published under a Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 license, which permit the free download, distribution, and reuse, provided that the author and preprint are cited in any reuse.
Alerts
Prerpints.org logo

Preprints.org is a free preprint server supported by MDPI in Basel, Switzerland.

Subscribe

© 2025 MDPI (Basel, Switzerland) unless otherwise stated