Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2021 Jan 6;9(1):8-23.
doi: 10.12998/wjcc.v9.i1.8.

COVID-19: An overview and a clinical update

Arunkumar Krishnan  1 , James P Hamilton  2 , Saleh A Alqahtani  2 , Tinsay A Woreta  2
Affiliations
Review

COVID-19: An overview and a clinical update

Arunkumar Krishnan et al. World J Clin Cases. .

Abstract

The outbreak of coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19, previously known as 2019 nCoV) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection in Wuhan City, China, has spread rapidly around the world. Most patients from the first cluster had an epidemiological connection to the Wuhan's Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market. Available evidence has shown that SARS-CoV-2 can be easily transmitted from person to person through close contact and respiratory droplets, posing a substantial challenge to public health. At present, the research on SARS-CoV-2 is still in the primary stages. However, dexa-methasone and remdesivir are appeared to be promising medical therapies. Still, there is no definite specific treatment, and the mainstay of treatment is still focused on supportive therapies. Currently, over 150 vaccines are under investigation. It is necessary to understand the nature of the virus and its clinical characteristics in order to find effectively manage the disease. The knowledge about this virus is rapidly evolving, and clinicians must update themselves regularly. The present review comprehensively summarizes the epidemiology, pathogenesis, clinical characteristics, and management of COVID-19 based on the current evidence.

Keywords: COVID-19; Coronaviruses; Epidemiology; Imaging; Laboratory; Prevention; SARS-CoV-2; Symptoms; Treatment; Vaccines.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Conflict-of-interest statement: None declared.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Pathogenesis. 1: Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 targets the viral structural S protein that binds to the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor; 2: The host cell, type 2 transmembrane serine protease, promotes viral uptake by cleaving ACE2 and activating the S protein. SARS-CoV-2: Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2; ACE2: Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2; TMPRSS2: Type 2 transmembrane serine protease.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Overview of symptomatic, systemic manifestations, and complications of coronavirus disease-2019. ARDS: Acute respiratory distress syndrome; DIC: Disseminated intravascular coagulation.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. World Health Organization. Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) situation report–41. [cited August 3 2020]. Available from: https://www.who.int/docs/default-source/coronaviruse/situation-reports/2... .
    1. Zhou P, Yang XL, Wang XG, Hu B, Zhang L, Zhang W, Si HR, Zhu Y, Li B, Huang CL, Chen HD, Chen J, Luo Y, Guo H, Jiang RD, Liu MQ, Chen Y, Shen XR, Wang X, Zheng XS, Zhao K, Chen QJ, Deng F, Liu LL, Yan B, Zhan FX, Wang YY, Xiao GF, Shi ZL. A pneumonia outbreak associated with a new coronavirus of probable bat origin. Nature. 2020;579:270–273. - PMC - PubMed
    1. World Health Organization. WHO Director-General's opening remarks at the media briefing on COVID-19 - March 11 2020. [cited August 3 2020]. Available from: https://www.who.int/dg/speeches/detail/whodirector-general-s-opening-rem... .
    1. World Health Organization. Novel Coronavirus—China. January 12 2020. [cited August 3 2020]. Available from: https://www.who.int/csr/don/12-january-2020-novel-coronavirus-china/en .
    1. Li Q, Guan X, Wu P, Wang X, Zhou L, Tong Y, Ren R, Leung KSM, Lau EHY, Wong JY, Xing X, Xiang N, Wu Y, Li C, Chen Q, Li D, Liu T, Zhao J, Liu M, Tu W, Chen C, Jin L, Yang R, Wang Q, Zhou S, Wang R, Liu H, Luo Y, Liu Y, Shao G, Li H, Tao Z, Yang Y, Deng Z, Liu B, Ma Z, Zhang Y, Shi G, Lam TTY, Wu JT, Gao GF, Cowling BJ, Yang B, Leung GM, Feng Z. Early Transmission Dynamics in Wuhan, China, of Novel Coronavirus-Infected Pneumonia. N Engl J Med. 2020;382:1199–1207. - PMC - PubMed