Researchers from Johns Hopkins University found the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 which causes Covid-19 hiding in an unexpected place – inside and behind the human ear.
A team of otolaryngologists and pathologists discovered that the coronavirus can comfortably settle in the middle ear and the mastoid region of the head behind the ear, which contains several hollow spaces believed to cushion it against trauma and protect the middle and inner ear.
Doctors autopsied three patients who had tested positively for coronavirus and were symptomatic for Covid-19 prior to their death.
They noted that there may be many other factors and comorbidities that affect the colonization of the mastoid and middle ear with coronavirus and these may differ in the living host. “There may be significant differences between dying from COVID-19 vs dying with COVID-19,” they said.