An analysis of severe COVID-19 patients further suggests that the infection and illness caused by the novel SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus is in fact a microvascular disease. In the study, funded in part by the National Institutes of Health National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, the authors noted that both venous thromboembolism (VTE) and arterial thromboembolism have been identified as significant side effects of severe COVID-19. The combination of thrombosis and inflammation suggests that endothelial dysfunction is a central component of the viral infection and, therefore, inhibiting endothelial exocytosis could be a novel therapeutic approach.
