BACKGROUND

Multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) is a rare, severe complication of coronavirus disease 2019, commonly involving the gastrointestinal tract. Some children with MIS-C undergo appendectomy before the final diagnosis. There are several hypotheses explaining the pathomechanism of MIS-C, including the central role of the viral antigen persistence in the gut, associated with lymphocyte exhaustion. We aimed to examine appendectomy specimens from MIS-C patients and assess their pathologic features, as well as the presence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) antigens.

METHODS

In this cross-sectional study we included 21 children with MIS-C who underwent appendectomy. The control group included 21 sex- and age-matched children with acute appendicitis (AA) unrelated to SARS-CoV-2 infection. Histologic evaluation of appendiceal specimens included hematoxylin and eosin staining and immunohistochemical identification of lymphocyte subpopulations, programmed cell death protein-1 (PD-1) and SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid antigen.

RESULTS

Appendices of MIS-C patients lacked neutrophilic infiltrate of muscularis propria typical for AA (14% vs. 95%, P < 0.001). The proportion of CD20+ to CD5+ cells was higher in patients with MIS-C (P = 0.04), as was the proportion of CD4+ to CD8+ (P < 0.001). We found no proof of SARS-CoV-2 antigen presence, nor lymphocyte exhaustion, in the appendices of MIS-C patients.

CONCLUSIONS

The appendiceal muscularis of patients with MIS-C lack edema and neutrophilic infiltration typical for AA. SARS-CoV-2 antigens and PD-1 are absent in the appendices of children with MIS-C. These findings argue against the central role of SARS-CoV-2 persistence in the gut and lymphocyte exhaustion as the major triggers of MIS-C.