SARS

Definition : Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) is a viral respiratory disease of zoonotic origin that surfaced in the early 2000s caused by the first-identified strain of the SARS coronavirus (SARS-CoV or SARS-CoV-1).

In late 2017, Chinese scientists traced the virus through the intermediary of civets to cave-dwelling horseshoe bats in Yunnan province. No cases of the first SARS-CoV have been reported worldwide since 2004.

In 2019, a related virus strain, SARS-CoV-2, was discovered. This new strain causes COVID-19, a disease which brought about the ongoing 2019–20 coronavirus disease and coronavirus pneumonia pandemic.

Synopsis

 exudative phase of acute lung injury

• proliferative phase of acute lung injury
• edema
• inflammatory infiltrate
• pneumocyte hyperplasia
• fibrinous exudates
• organization

 diffuse alveolar damage pattern of acute lung injury
 acute fibrinous organizing pneumonia pattern (AFOP pattern)
 squamous metaplasia
 scattered multinucleate giant cells
 vascular fibrin thrombi
 pulmonary infarcts
 vascular endothelial damage of both small- and mid-sized pulmonary vessels

Complications

 invasive fungal disease

• Aspergillosis

 cytomegalovirus infection

References

 Stadler K, Rappuoli R. SARS: Understanding the Virus and Development of Rational Therapy. Curr Mol Med. 2005 Nov;5(7):677-97. PMID: 16305493

 Hwang DM, Chamberlain DW, Poutanen SM, Low DE, Asa SL, Butany J. Pulmonary pathology of severe acute respiratory syndrome in Toronto. Mod Pathol. 2005 Jan;18(1):1-10. PMID: 15272286

 Peiris JS, Guan Y, Yuen KY. Severe acute respiratory syndrome. Nat Med. 2004 Dec;10(12 Suppl):S88-97. PMID: 15577937

 Peiris JS, Yuen KY, Osterhaus AD, Stohr K. The severe acute respiratory syndrome. N Engl J Med. 2003 Dec 18;349(25):2431-41. PMID: 14681510

 Drosten C, Preiser W, Gunther S, Schmitz H, Doerr HW. Severe acute respiratory syndrome: identification of the etiological agent. Trends Mol Med. 2003 Aug;9(8):325-7. PMID: 12928032

 Chan HL, Tsui SK, Sung JJ. Coronavirus in severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). Trends Mol Med. 2003 Aug;9(8):323-5. PMID: 12928031