Musculoskeletal symptoms in SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) patients

COVID-19 clinical features range from asymptomatic patients to acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and multiple organ dysfunction [2, 3]. Interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF- α) levels in plasma and upper respiratory secretions directly correlate with the magnitude of viral replication, fever, and respiratory and systemic symptoms, including musculoskeletal clinical manifestations [4, 5] Musculoskeletal symptoms such as fatigue, myalgia and arthralgia are common COVID-19 symptoms, but their prevalence has not yet been systematically investigated [6, 7]. Musculoskeletal symptoms should be married with laboratory findings, such as inflammatory and infection-related parameters (Interleukin-6, Procalcitonin, C-reactive protein). Understandably, the involvement of the musculoskeletal system has not been deeply investigated during this pandemic, but synovial and muscle biopsy, and joint fluid analysis, for example, should clarify how extensive the attack of the virus on the whole of the human body is. [...]no report has been published on the presence of COVID-19 in the skeletal muscles, joint, or bones.