Kidney Biopsy Findings in Patients with COVID-19

BACKGROUND: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is thought to cause kidney injury by a variety of mechanisms. To date, pathologic analyses have been limited to patient reports and autopsy series. METHODS: hybridization, and electron microscopy to examine this tissue for presence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). RESULTS: high-risk gene variants. We found no definitive evidence of SARS-CoV-2 in kidney cells. Biopsy diagnosis informed treatment and prognosis in all patients. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with COVID-19 develop a wide spectrum of glomerular and tubular diseases. Our findings provide evidence against direct viral infection of the kidneys as the major pathomechanism for COVID-19-related kidney injury and implicate cytokine-mediated effects and heightened adaptive immune responses.