Similarities in Cutaneous Histopathological Patterns between COVID-19-positive and COVID-19 High-risk Patients with Skin Dermatosis

Only recently histopathological studies of patients with dermatosis and concomitant SARS-Cov-2 viral infection were published. Seven months into the COVID-19 pandemic, more skin biopsies of COVID-19 positive patients are taking place. We examined the histological features of 30 skin biopsies from two groups of patients: Ten specimens of patients tested positive for COVID-19 with an active systemic infection and associated dermatosis. Twenty specimens were from patients not considered COVID-positive (due to PCR swab negativity or not tested at all) with cutaneous lesions either showing viral infection symptoms (fever, cough, ageusia and severe immunocompromised condition due to HIV infection and malignancies), or presented a high risk of being infected (such as cohabitation with COVID-19 positive parents and siblings with simultaneous chilblains). This study analyses the histological and immunohistochemical (SARS-CoV-2 2019-nCoV nucleocapsid antibody) characteristics of the two groups and identifies 4 histopathological patterns. The histopathological features of the two groups present similar features that may help to identify an ongoing COVID-19 infection even in asymptomatic carriers with dermatosis.

Keywords: COVID-19 and skin dermatosis; COVID-19 and skin histology; COVID-19 and skin immunohistochemistry; COVID-19 histopathology; COVID-19 and skin histopathology.