Corpse Of Drowned Man Tests COVID-19 Positive 28 Times In 41 Days

The body of a 41-year-old man tested positive for coronavirus 28 times in the six weeks after his death, hinting at the persistency of the SARS-CoV-2 virus in dead bodies.

The disturbing discovery was made by researchers in Italy who studied the body of a Caucasian male who drowned to death, according to a study report published by the Journal Of Medical Case.

The Ukrainian man, who showed no COVID-19 symptoms while he was alive, went missing after swimming in the sea with a friend during rough weather near Chieti on central Italy's east coast.

His body was found wedged between rocks about 16 hours later. Primary inquiry and circumstantial data revealed the cause of his death as drowning.

Following this, an autopsy was conducted. As per the current norms, a nasal swab was taken for a test from the body before the autopsy. The results returned positive, following which the researchers decided to store the body in a cold room at 4°C, inside a sealed and disinfected waterproof bag.

His remains were stored following the guidelines issued for the management of SARS-CoV-2 corpses, according to scientists of Italy’s D’Annunzio University.

Over the next 41 days, 28 nasal swab tests were done on the body. The samples were collected always by the same team, following the "standardized procedures as per international guidelines."

All swabs performed during the observational period were reported as positive. "The present case shows the persistence of SARS-CoV-2 RNA up to 41 days after death," the researchers said in the study.

"It was not possible to perform other swabs beyond 41 days due to burial authorization and also the putrefactive state of the body," the study added.

According to the researchers, data about the persistence of coronavirus is important during the handling of corpses. More studies are required to estimate the contagiousness of the virus despite claims that a corpse can continue to be infectious for hours after death. However, there are no scientific data in this regard.

Earlier, the presence of coronavirus was detected on surfaces for up to five days as one study found the virus in cruise ship cabins 17 days after passengers disembarked.

Last year, German researchers who took tissue samples from the throats of deceased COVID-19 patients found that the virus could replicate up to 35 hours after death.