Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Case Reports
. 2022 Aug 5;14(8):e27722.
doi: 10.7759/cureus.27722. eCollection 2022 Aug.

COVID-19-Associated Superior Mesenteric Artery Thrombosis and Acute Intestinal Ischemia

Fernando D Segovia  1 , Sarah Ream  2 , The Dang  1 , Bhanu T Chaganti  3 , Andrew J Ortega  1 , Seunghong Rhee  4 , Jorge C Borges  3
Affiliations
Case Reports

COVID-19-Associated Superior Mesenteric Artery Thrombosis and Acute Intestinal Ischemia

Fernando D Segovia et al. Cureus. .

Abstract

The prothrombotic nature of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has been well-established since the start of the global coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Mesenteric artery thrombosis and acute mesenteric ischemia are, on their own, rare occurrences and often present with fatal gastrointestinal (GI) pathologies requiring quick identification and intervention by the clinician to improve clinical outcomes. SARS-CoV-2 infection can present with acute GI pathologies and warrants further investigation regarding anticoagulation therapy in COVID-19 positive patients. We report on a 64-year-old woman infected with SARS-CoV-2 who presented with superior mesenteric artery thrombosis and acute intestinal ischemia.

Keywords: acute gi pathology; bowel; covid-19; covid-19 associated coagulopathy; gastrointestinal; ischemia; mesenteric; sars-cov-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus -2); thrombus; vascular.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Axial soft tissue window does not allow for adequate visualization of bowel wall pneumatosis (green arrows).
Figure 2
Figure 2. Axial lung window allows for visualization of bowel wall pneumatosis (green arrows).
Figure 3
Figure 3. Axial lung window demonstrating very subtle mesenteric vein air (green arrows).
Figure 4
Figure 4. Saggital reformat in lung window again demonstrating very subtle mesenteric vein air (green arrows).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Ischemic gastrointestinal complications of COVID-19: a systematic review on imaging presentation. Keshavarz P, Rafiee F, Kavandi H, Goudarzi S, Heidari F, Gholamrezanezhad A. Clin Imaging. 2021;73:86–95. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Gastrointestinal complications in critically ill patients with COVID-19. Kaafarani HM, El Moheb M, Hwabejire JO, et al. Ann Surg. 2020;272:0–2. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Acute mesenteric ischemia in COVID-19 patients. Serban D, Tribus LC, Vancea G, et al. J Clin Med. 2021;11:200. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Mesenteric ischemia in patients with COVID-19: an updated systematic review of abdominal CT findings in 75 patients. Ojha V, Mani A, Mukherjee A, Kumar S, Jagia P. Abdom Radiol (NY) 2022;47:1565–1602. - PMC - PubMed
    1. The hypercoagulable state in COVID-19: incidence, pathophysiology, and management. Abou-Ismail MY, Diamond A, Kapoor S, Arafah Y, Nayak L. Thromb Res. 2020;194:101–115. - PMC - PubMed

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources