ABSTRACT
Respiratory failure is presumptively caused by microvascular thrombosis in some patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) requiring therapeutic anticoagulation. Anticoagulation treatment may cause life-threatening bleeding complications such as retroperitoneal hemorrhage. To the best of our knowledge, we report first case of a COVID-19 patient treated with therapeutic anticoagulation resulting in psoas hematoma due to lumbar artery bleeding. A 69-year-old patient presented with fever, malaise and progressive shortness of breath to our hospital. He was diagnosed with COVID-19 by RT-PCR. Due to an abnormal coagulation profile, the patient was started on enoxaparin. Over the course of hospitalization, the patient was found to have hypotension with worsening hemoglobin levels. Computed tomography scan of the abdomen and pelvis revealed a large psoas hematoma. Arteriogram revealed lumbar artery bleeding which was treated with embolization. Anticoagulation therapy, while indicated in COVID-19 patients, has its own challenges and guidelines describing dosages and indications in this disease are lacking. Rare bleeding complications such as psoas hematoma should be kept in mind in patients who become hemodynamically unstable, warranting prompt imaging for diagnosis and treatment with arterial embolization, thus eliminating need of surgical intervention.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Novel coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) has been the focus of the medical world since being declared a pandemic in March 2020. While the pathogenesis and heterogeneity of COVID-19 manifestations is still not fully understood, viral evasion of cellular immune responses and inflammatory dysregulation are believed to play essential roles in disease progression and severity. CASE PRESENTATION: We present the first case of a patient with COVID-19 with massive pulmonary embolism treated successfully with systemic thrombolysis, VA-ECLS, and bail out catheter directed thrombolysis. He was discharged from the hospital after an eventful hospital course on therapeutic anticoagulation with warfarin. CONCLUSIONS: We present the first case of a patient with COVID-19 with massive pulmonary embolism (PE) treated successfully with systemic thrombolysis, VA-ECLS and bail out catheter directed thrombolysis. In our experience catheter directed thrombolysis comes with an acceptable bleeding risk despite use of mechanical circulatory support, particularly with meticulous attention to vascular access and dose response monitoring.
ABSTRACT
Respiratory failure is presumptively caused by microvascular thrombosis in some patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) requiring therapeutic anticoagulation. Anticoagulation treatment may cause life-threatening bleeding complications such as retroperitoneal hemorrhage. To the best of our knowledge, we report first case of a COVID-19 patient treated with therapeutic anticoagulation resulting in psoas hematoma due to lumbar artery bleeding. A 69-year-old patient presented with fever, malaise and progressive shortness of breath to our hospital. He was diagnosed with COVID-19 by RT-PCR. Due to an abnormal coagulation profile, the patient was started on enoxaparin. Over the course of hospitalization, the patient was found to have hypotension with worsening hemoglobin levels. Computed tomography scan of the abdomen and pelvis revealed a large psoas hematoma. Arteriogram revealed lumbar artery bleeding which was treated with embolization. Anticoagulation therapy, while indicated in COVID-19 patients, has its own challenges and guidelines describing dosages and indications in this disease are lacking. Rare bleeding complications such as psoas hematoma should be kept in mind in patients who become hemodynamically unstable, warranting prompt imaging for diagnosis and treatment with arterial embolization, thus eliminating need of surgical intervention.