The emerging spectrum of cardiopulmonary pathology of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19): Report of 3 autopsies from Houston, Texas, and review of autopsy findings from other United States cities.

•COVID-19 is a viral disease caused by SARS-CoV-2.•Twenty-three autopsy cases demonstrate that COVID-19 is a systemic disease with major pulmonary and cardiac manifestations.•COVID-19 produces an acute interstitial pneumonia, usually with a prominent diffuse alveolar damage (DAD) component, often coupled with a thrombotic microangiopathy.•The heart frequently shows acute cardiomyocyte injury and, in some cases, pericarditis and/or myocarditis.•Patients with fatal COVID-19 frequently are obese and have pre-existing cardiac disease, hypertension and/or diabetes mellitus.