TY - JOUR AB - From the end of 2019, an ongoing outbreak of a new type of unexplained pneumonia caused by a novel coronavirus, Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‑CoV‑2), was first identified in Wuhan, China. Since then, it has spread to most parts of China and worldwide, thus affecting the health of individuals worldwide. Until August 2020, >25 million cases of SARS‑CoV‑2 infection had been confirmed worldwide, causing >800,000 deaths. This disease was named by the World Health Organization as coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‑19). Similar to SARS and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome, which are also caused by coronavirus infections, COVID‑19 mainly causes severe respiratory system damage; however, it also causes damage to multiple organs, including the gastrointestinal tract, the cardiovascular system and the nervous system. The main aim of the present review article was to summarize the current knowledge of COVID‑19, such as the transmission process, diagnostic methods, pathological characteristics, potential pathogenic mechanisms and treatment measures. AD - Department of Respiratory Medicine, Qianjiang Central Hospital, Qianjiang, Hubei 433100, P.R. China Department of Pathology, Qianjiang Central Hospital, Qianjiang, Hubei 433100, P.R. China AU - Shu,Ying AU - He,Hui AU - Shi,Xiang AU - Lei,Yan AU - Li,Jingping DA - 2021/03/01 DO - 10.3892/wasj.2021.83 IS - 2 JO - World Acad Sci J KW - COVID‑19 SARS‑CoV‑2 coronavirus virus PY - 2021 SN - 2632-2900 2632-2919 SP - 12 ST - Coronavirus disease‑2019 (Review) T2 - World Academy of Sciences Journal TI - Coronavirus disease‑2019 (Review) UR - https://doi.org/10.3892/wasj.2021.83 VL - 3 ER -