While SARS-CoV-2 was originally considered a respiratory disease, this virus actually affects many organs, so much so that some scientists now consider it to be a systemic disease. Explanations.
While in some carriers, the virus causes no symptoms, others may experience very serious complications, including death. But while we originally thought this virus was confined to the respiratory sphere, what parts of our body can it invade?
The lungs: respiratory problems
Capable of entering the body through the alveoli of the lungs, Covid can reduce the oxygen supply to the whole body. And for good reason, the alveoli are the place where gas exchange occurs, that is to say where oxygen enters the body and carbon dioxide leaves. This explains in particular the symptoms of fever, cough and breathing difficulties.
The Brain: Depressive Disorders
If we do not necessarily understand the mechanisms that cause them, damage to the brain has also been observed. A study of British Medical Journal mentioned in particular an increased risk of presenting depressive disorders or sleep disorders (+40%).
The heart: disruption of blood flow
It was also realized that SARS-CoV-2 had the ability to penetrate endothelial cells via the ACE-2 receptor. Since these cells are close to the vessels, they play a role in blood flow, and the virus may thus be responsible for the formation of blood clots.
Contamination therefore increases the risk of heart attack by 63%, according to a study by Nature Medicine. The same study tells us that infected people are more likely to have a stroke (+53%).
The nose: loss of smell
Mentioned many times, the loss of smell is one of the possible symptoms of Covid, which would have the ability to invade the nerve cells of the nose.
If for some this phenomenon lasts only a time, others must carry out a rehabilitation to be able to overcome it.
Eyes: inflammation of the eyelids
Sometimes SARS-CoV-2 is also accompanied by eye problems. Several studies report inflammation of the eyelids, but also conjunctivitis. Generally, these disorders are observed in the patients most seriously affected by the disease.
The kidneys: potentially fatal attack
Again, it is often the most serious cases that can be affected by a kidney attack, which can be fatal. On the other hand, no study on the subject makes it possible for the moment to determine whether it is the kidney cells which are directly attacked, or whether other organ failures cause these attacks.
The intestines: attacks on the intestinal tract
The virus would also have the ability to attack the gastrointestinal tract, according to data from biopsies (surgical removal of a fragment of tissue or organ), because the cells are also rich in ACE-receptors. 2. In addition, approximately 20% of patients reported diarrhea.
The liver: organ degradation
Elevated liver enzyme levels observed in more than half of hospitalized patients may suggest that the virus is potentially responsible for organ damage.
