Acute splanchnic vein thrombosis in patients with COVID-19: A systematic review

There is increasing evidence that coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is associated with a significant risk of venous thromboembolism. While information are mainly available for deep vein thrombosis of the lower limb and pulmonary embolism, scarce data exist regarding acute splanchnic vein thrombosis (SVT) in this setting. PubMed, EMBASE and Google Scholar English-language articles published up to 30 January 2021 on SVT in COVID-19 were searched. Overall, 21 articles reporting equal number of patients were identified. 15 subjects presented with portal vein thrombosis, 11 with mesenteric vein thrombosis, four with splenic vein thrombosis, and two with Budd-Chiari syndrome. Male sex was prevalent (15 patients), and median age was 43 years (range 26-79 years). Three patients had a history of liver disease, while no subject had known myeloproliferative syndrome. Clinical presentation included mainly gastrointestinal symptoms. Anticoagulation was started in 16 patients. Three patients underwent bowel resection. Ten subjects developed gastric or bowel ischemia, seven of whom underwent bowel resection, and four died after SVT diagnosis. Although rare, SVT should be seen as a complication of COVID-19. Patients with severe gastrointestinal symptoms should be screened for SVT, as rapid recognition and correct management are essential to improve the outcome of these patients.