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Case Reports
. 2020 Jul 3;15(9):1705-1708.
doi: 10.1016/j.radcr.2020.06.053. eCollection 2020 Sep.

Fulminant cerebral edema as a lethal manifestation of COVID-19

Antoon J M van den Enden  1 , Lennart van Gils  2 , Joost A M Labout  1 , Mathieu van der Jagt  3 , Walid Moudrous  4
Affiliations
Case Reports

Fulminant cerebral edema as a lethal manifestation of COVID-19

Antoon J M van den Enden et al. Radiol Case Rep. .

Abstract

The contribution of neurological symptomatology to morbidity and mortality after infection with Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome-associated Coronavirus (SARS CoV II) is ill-defined. We hereby present a case of a 57-year old male patient, in excellent physical condition, who was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), with respiratory distress duo to SARS CoV II-induced bilateral pneumonia. After 2 weeks at the ICU, with respiratory conditions improving, the patient developed lethal cerebral edema. This case advocates regular wake-up calls in Coronavirus disease 2019 patients for neurological (radiological) evaluation to provide rapid diagnosis and a therapeutic window for fulminant central nervous system complications.

Keywords: Imaging; Neurological complication; Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome-associated Coronavirus.

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Figures

Fig 1
Fig. 1
Chest X-ray on admission showing bilateral infiltrates compatible with COVID-19.
Fig 2
Fig. 2
Transversal cerebral CT scan showing extensive vasogenic edema and herniation of temporal lobes toward the brain stem with obliteration of basal cerebral cisterns.
Fig 3
Fig. 3
Transversal cerebral CT scan showing extensive vasogenic edema with effacement of ventricles and peripheral sulci and gyri.
Fig 4
Fig. 4
Transversal cerebral CT scan showing multiple juxtacortical microbleeds, which may be compatible with venous hemorrhagic infarction.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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