Rani Smitha
Department of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology, JSS Medical College, 163766JSS Academy of Higher Education and Research, Mysuru, Karnataka, India.
Med Sci Law. 2020 Oct;60(4):287-293. doi: 10.1177/0025802420949044. Epub 2020 Aug 16.
Wuhan Municipal Health Commission, China, reported a cluster of cases of 'pneumonia of unknown aetiology' in Wuhan, Hubei province in late 2019. The causative organism was eventually identified as a novel coronavirus. Subsequently, the disease spread to more provinces in China, then the rest of the world, and the World Health Organization declared it a pandemic. The virus was named Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and the disease was termed COVID-19 (Coronavirus disease). Since then, an increasing number of people have succumbed to this infectious disease. High contagiousness and rapid spread of the disease has been a matter of concern, as it may overburden healthcare systems. Hence, it is vital to implement strict infection prevention and control measures to curb the spread of the disease. This article reviews the guidelines available for the handling of bodies of deceased persons with suspected or confirmed COVID-19, and for their safe disposal. It also provides a summary of recommendations for conducting autopsies in cases where COVID-19 is suspected.
中国武汉市卫生健康委员会报告称，2019年末湖北省武汉市出现了一批“不明病因肺炎”病例。致病病原体最终被确定为一种新型冠状病毒。随后，该疾病传播至中国更多省份，进而蔓延到世界其他地区，世界卫生组织宣布其为大流行病。该病毒被命名为严重急性呼吸综合征冠状病毒2（SARS-CoV-2），疾病被称为COVID-19（冠状病毒病）。自那时起，越来越多的人死于这种传染病。该疾病的高传染性和快速传播令人担忧，因为这可能使医疗系统不堪重负。因此，实施严格的感染预防和控制措施以遏制疾病传播至关重要。本文回顾了针对疑似或确诊COVID-19死者尸体处理及其安全处置的现有指南。它还总结了在疑似COVID-19病例中进行尸检的建议。
