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Don't forget arterial thrombosis in patients with COVID-19: A case series
Daniel D Gold1, Ramzi Kurd2, Sharon Einav3
1Emergency Department, Shaare Zedek Medical Center and Hebrew University, Faculty of Medicine, Jerusalem, Israel.
Insights
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection, or COVID-19, can cause arterial thromboembolic events, leading to severe organ damage. These arterial events occur despite heparin treatment and are often fatal, necessitating further research into prevention.
Area of Science:
- Medicine
- Infectious Diseases
- Cardiology
Background:
- Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
- COVID-19 is associated with a hypercoagulable state, with venous thromboembolic events frequently reported.
- Arterial thromboembolic events in COVID-19 have not been well-described.
Introduction:
The acute disease caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS COV-2) is accompanied by a hypercoagulable state. Multiple publications have described the venous thromboembolic events associated with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) but arterial thromboembolic events have yet to be described.
Cases Description:
We describe five COVID-19 patients that developed severe morbidity as a result of occlusive arterial thromboembolic events occurring despite treatment with low molecular weight heparin. All cases presented with an acute confusional state and were accompanied by rapid elevations of lactate and D-dimers and leukocytes. The end organs involved were the kidneys, spleen, liver, lungs, central nervous system, intestines and limbs. Only one of the five patients survived.
Conclusion:
COVID-19 is associated with not only venous but also arterial thromboembolic events. Further research is required to clarify the incidence, causes and possible modes of prevention of this potentially lethal disease complication.
