AUTOANTIBODIES RELATED TO RHEUMATIC DISEASES AFTER COVID-19 INFECTION

BackgroundSARS-CoV-2(Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2) has been circulating worldwide for three years. It mainly causes upper respiratory tract infection, which can manifest as pulmonary infection and even respiratory distress syndrome in severe cases. Different autoantibodies can be detected in patients infected with COVID-19.ObjectivesTo explore autoantibodies related to rheumatic diseases after COVID-19 infection.MethodsNinety-eight inpatients were tested for antinuclear antibodies (ANA), antibodies to extractable nuclear antigens(ENA), anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibodies（ANCA), anticardiolipin antibodies,a-β2GPI (IgG/IgM). They were from a tertiary hospital in Guangzhou during the COVID-19 epidemic. Data were described statistically.ResultsNinety-eight hospitalized patients were tested for relevant antibodies. The average age was 50.64±19.54;67 (68.4%) were male, 64 (65.3%) were COVID-19 positive, 90 (90.9%) had rheumatic diseases, and 56 of them were COVID-19 positive patients with rheumatic diseases.There were 76 patients tested for antinuclear antibodies;29 （38.16%）were negative, 18 （23.68%）had a 1/80 titre, and 29（28.16%） had a titre greater than 1:80. The 31 covid patients were positive for ANA. In the high-titer group, 19 patients with rheumatic diseases were positive for COVID-19, and 12 patients had an exacerbation of the rheumatic diseases (6 of whom had previously had pulmonary fibrosis). Of 31 covid patients, only two were non-rheumatic patients, and both were elderly, aged 85 and 100, respectively.Fifty-six patients had ENA results, and 29 for positive antibodies, 8 for ds-DNA antibodies, 2 for anti-Sm antibodies, 6 for anti-nucleosome antibodies, 12 for anti-U1RNP antibodies, 2 for anti-Scl-70 antibodies, 12 for anti-SS-A antibodies, 3 for anti-mitochondrial M2 antibodies, 2 for anti-centromere antibodies, 1 for anti-Po antibodies, and one for anti-Jo-1 antibody. All 56 patients had rheumatic diseases, and no new patients were found.There were 62 patients with ANCA data. P-ANCA was positive in 12 cases(19.35%), and MPO-ANCA was positive in 2 cases. An 85-year-old non-rheumatic COVID-19 patient was P-ANCA positive. She had a history of hypertension, colon cancer, CKD3, coronary heart disease, and atrial flutter.In the anticardiolipin antibodies group, there were 62 patients;only 6 were positive, and 2 were rheumatic patients infected with COVID-19. Antiphospholipid antibodies were detected in 33 patients, and a-β2GPI was tested in one patient, an 82-year-old COVID-19 patient with gout, diabetes, and cerebral infarction in the past. We did not find a statistical difference in the above results.ConclusionWe have not found a correlation between SARS-CoV-2 and serum autoantibodies of rheumatic immune diseases. It needs large samples and an extended follow-up to research.AcknowledgementsThis work was supported by Scientific and Technological Planning Project of Guangzhou City [202102020150], Guangdong Provincial Basic and Applied Basic Research Fund Project [2021A1515111172], National Natural Science Foundation of China Youth Fund [82201998] and Third Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University Cultivating Special Fund Project for National Natural Science Foundation of China [2022GZRPYQN01].Disclosure of Interestsone declared.

Mental status in patients with cerebral infarction in central China at the early stage of coronavirus disease-19 pandemic

Aims: The study aimed to analyze the changes in mental health and social support in patients with cerebral infarction during the recovery period at the early stage of coronavirus disease pandemic. Subjects and Methods: During January-March 2020, 98 patients with cerebral infarction during the recovery period were selected from Wuhan city. Among them, 42 patients were living alone (called the solitary group) and 56 patients lived with their spouses (called the spouse group). The Self-Rating Anxiety Scale (SAS) and Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS) were used to evaluate anxiety and depression, respectively, and Multi-Dimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS), social support for patients. Statistical Analysis Used: The statistical calculations were carried out using GraphPad Prism 5.01 software (GraphPad, San Diego, California, USA). Results: At the early stage of the pandemic, patients with cerebral infarction in the solitary group and the spouse group experienced varying degrees of anxiety and depression. The SAS and SDS scores in the solitary group were significantly higher than those in the spouse group (P < 0.01). The subscale scores of MSPSS in the solitary group were lower than those in the spouse group (P < 0.01). Conclusions: It is necessary for medical staff to help the patients to overcome anxiety and depression and provide more social support to patients, especially for those patients living alone. © 2022 Heart and Mind ;Published by Wolters Kluwer - Medknow.

Stroke treatment during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Studies have reported that COVID-19 is associated not only with pneumonia but also with cerebrovascular disease. Consequently, medical personnel involved in treating stroke in the emergency medicine setting have been placed in a situation that requires them to provide treatment while always remaining mindful of the possibility of COVID-19. Here, we describe the current state of stroke treatment during the COVID-19 pandemic. Four patients with stroke and concomitant COVID-19 were treated at our facility. We treated 3 patients with cerebral infarction and 1 patient with cerebral venous sinus thrombosis. All 3 patients with cerebral infarction had a poor outcome. This was attributed in part to the poor general condition of the patients due to concomitant COVID-19, as well as to the severity of the major artery occlusion and cerebral infarction. One patient with cerebral venous sinus thrombosis had a good outcome. Anticoagulant therapy was administered at our hospital and resulted in a stable clinical course. Our hospital has worked to establish an examination and treatment system that enables mechanical thrombectomy to be performed even during the COVID-19 pandemic. We devised a protocol showing the steps to be taken from initial treatment to admission to the cerebral angiography room. Our hospital was able to continue accepting requests for emergency admission thanks to the examination and treatment system we established. Up-to-date information should continue to be collected to create examination and treatment systems.

Post-COVID isolated subclavian artery dissection with multiple cerebral infarctions.

Background: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a pandemic disease which predominantly affects the respiratory system with high critical care mortality and morbidity, yet it also causes multiple organs dysfunction in affected patients. There is a strong evidence that it increases the susceptibility of cerebrovascular strokes in such patients. Besides this prothrombotic complication, arterial dissection can be one of its mechanisms increasing the risks of stroke. Case presentation: Herein, we report a case of spontaneous isolated subclavian artery dissection in a COVID-19 patient. Sixty-one-year-old female presented with spontaneous isolated subclavian artery dissection without any traumatic events nor history of connective tissue disorders. She had left upper limb ischemia followed by cerebellar, thalamic and occipital infarctions. Whether this patient's subclavian artery dissection was triggered by exaggerated inflammatory response or arteriopathy secondary to COVID-19 remains speculative. Conclusions: Nonetheless, arterial dissection can be one of its complications, it is essential for treating physicians to be attentive for the diversity of COVID-19 clinical manifestations.

Oral Presentation: Signal of Hypertension Associated with COVID-19 Vaccination: VigiBase® Data and Evidence from Real World: An International Journal of Medical Toxicology and Drug Experience

Introduction: Hypertension is a serious disease that occurs when blood pressure is persistently elevated over time1. During the COVID19 vaccination campaign, several reports of hypertension occurred in plausible temporal relationship with immunization have been reported. Objective: To explore a possible signal of risk of hypertension associated with COVID-19 immunization using VigiBase® the World Health Organization (WHO) pharmacovigilance database and to review the evidence available from real world. Methods: We performed a disproportionality analysis using data on spontaneous reports recorded in VigiBase®. Data have been extract on May 8th, 2022. We calculated reporting odds ratio (ROR) as a measure of disproportionality for hypertension defined by the Standardized Medical Dictionary for Regulatory Activities (MedDRA) query (SMQ) narrow. ROR was estimated for all reports including the MedDRA preferred term (PT) "hypertension", "blood pressure increased" and "hypertensive crisis" (cases). All other reports have been defined as non-cases. All reports in which the suspected causative agent was a COVID-19 vaccine were used as index reports and all other reports as reference. A signal was defined by at least three reports of the PT of interest and ROR025 > 1. We reviewed the medical literature using MEDLINE from January 2021 to May 2022 using "COVID-19 vaccines" AND "hypertension" as a search terms to check for evidence from observational studies. Results: As of May 8th, 2022, VigiBase® included 3,746,090 reports of adverse events following immunization for COVID-19 vaccines and 87,653 de-duplicated reports of hypertension define by the SMQ. We identified 34,955 reports of "hypertension" (ROR:1.3;ROR025:1.2), 47,733 reports of "blood pressure increased" (ROR:2.6;ROR025:2.6) and 3,741 reports of "hypertensive crisis" (ROR:4.0;ROR025:3.8) in which a COVID-19 vaccine was indicated as suspected causative agent. Most frequently co-reported symptoms (> 9%) included headache (n = 16.817;19.2%), dizziness (n = 12,892;14.7%), fatigue (n = 8,406;9.6%). Overall, 75% of cases (n = 65,761) have been classified as not serious. A meta-analysis of observational studies that includes 357,387 individuals reported 13,444 events of blood pressure abnormal or increased2. These events have been often described as short periods of hypertensive response and often observed in patients with risk factors. Conclusion: Our results confirmed a signal of risk of events of elevated blood pressure following immunization with COVID-19 vaccines. However, there is no evidence that these episodes could result in serious complication typically associated with hypertension, such as stroke, aneurysms, heart failure, myocardial infarction and chronic kidney disease.

[The case of the development of ischemic stroke and cerebral edema after SARS-COV-2 infection in a patient with discirculatory encephalopathy and concomitant schizophrenia]. / Sluchai razvitiya ishemicheskogo insul'ta i oteka golovnogo mozga posle infitsirovaniya SARS-CoV-2 na fone distsirkulyatornoi entsefalopatii i soputstvuyushchei shizofrenii.

The article presents a case of ischemic stroke after SARS-CoV-2 infection in a patient with dyscirculatory encephalopathy and schizophrenia. Patient 44 years old, was hospitalized due to a confirmed diagnosis of a new coronavirus infection (COVID-19) and diagnosed bilateral pneumonia with a damage to 65% of the lung parenchyma. The patient has a history of dyscirculatory encephalopathy and paranoid schizophrenia, a continuous type of course. A fatal outcome occurs on the 2nd day of inpatient treatment. A brain autopsy revealed pericellular and perivascular edema, looseness of neuroglia with necrobiotic changes in the brain substance. Neuronal damage, small-focal gliosis, basophilic balls, destructive-productive vasculitis, ischemic small-focus necrosis were revealed. In the lungs, areas of atelectasis, disatelectasis, hyaline membranes, and edematous fluid were found. Epithelium of the convoluted tubules showed dystrophic and necrotic changes. The cause of death of the patient was a new coronavirus infection COVID-19, which caused bilateral viral pneumonia, complicated by the development of acute respiratory failure and COVID-associated ischemic cerebral infarction complicated by neuromorphological changes in the brain.

Acute ischemic stroke and vaccine-induced immune thrombotic thrombocytopenia post COVID-19 vaccination; a systematic review.

INTRODUCTION: One of the rare but potentially serious side effects of COVID-19 vaccination is arterial and venous thrombosis. Acute ischemic stroke (AIS) cases have been reported post COVID-19 vaccination. Herein, we systematically reviewed the reported cases of AIS after COVID-19 vaccination. METHOD: This systematic review was conducted according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guideline. We searched PubMed and Scopus until April 14, 2022 to find studies that reported AIS post COVID-19 vaccination. RESULTS: We found 447 articles. From those, 140 duplicates were removed. After screening and excluding irrelevant articles, 29 studies (43 patients) were identified to be included. From all cases, 22 patients (51.1%) were diagnosed with AIS associated with Vaccine-induced immune thrombotic thrombocytopenia (VITT). Among AIS associated with VITT group, all received viral vector vaccines except one. The majority of cases with AIS and VITT were female (17 cases, 77.2%) and aged below 60 years (15 cases, 68%). Fourteen patients (32.5%) had additional thrombosis in other sites. Four of them (0.09%) showed concurrent CVST and ischemic stroke. Hemorrhagic transformation following AIS occurred in 7 patients (16.27%). Among 43 patients with AIS, at least 6 patients (14%) died during hospital admission. CONCLUSION: AIS has been reported as a rare complication within 4 weeks post COVID-19 vaccination, particularly with viral vector vaccines. Health care providers should be familiar with this rare consequence of COVID-19 vaccination in particular in the context of VITT to make a timely diagnosis and appropriate treatment plan.

Awareness of Tobacco-Related Diseases among Adults in Poland: A 2022 Nationwide Cross-Sectional Survey

Warning about the dangers of tobacco use is a key element of tobacco control policy. The COVID-19 pandemic may impact public perception of the health risks of tobacco use. The aim of this study was to assess the level of knowledge of tobacco-related diseases among adults in Poland, as well as to identify sociodemographic factors associated with awareness of tobacco-related diseases. This cross-sectional survey was carried out in March 2022 on a representative nationwide sample of 1090 adults in Poland using the computer-assisted web interview (CAWI) technique. Lung cancer was the most recognized tobacco-related disease (92.7%), followed by COPD (89.7%) and myocardial infarction (84%). Three-quarters of the respondents (76.8%) were aware that smoking causes stroke and 51% were aware that smoking increases the risk for type 2 diabetes. Out of 9 factors analyzed in this study, female gender, an age of 50 years and over, and being a non-smoker were significantly associated with a higher awareness of tobacco-related diseases. This study showed an increase in public awareness of smoking-related diseases during the COVID-19 pandemic. While awareness of lung cancer and COPD was very high, there are still significant gaps in the awareness of the non-respiratory effects of tobacco use.

Thrombotic Sequela of Asymptomatic COVID-19 Infection.

Severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is known to be associated with thrombotic events like ischemic stroke. However, in the case of mild or asymptomatic disease, a thrombotic event like ischemic stroke is rare and has never been reported in our country. We present the case of a 28-year-old male patient with no co-morbidities who was diagnosed to have ischemic stroke involving the basilar artery. No risk factors for ischemic stroke could be found except for post-COVID-19 status, evident by the presence of antibodies against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).

Mortality Sensitivity of Cardiovascular, Cerebrovascular, and Respiratory Diseases to Warm Season Climate in Japanese Cities

We investigated decadal (2010–2019) cardiovascular, cerebrovascular, and respiratory mortality sensitivity to annual warm temperatures in major Japanese cities: Sapporo, Tokyo (23 wards), and Osaka. The summer mortalities (June–August) increased with the monthly mean temperature for acute myocardial infarction, other acute ischemic heart diseases, cerebral infarction, and pneumonia in the three cities. Monthly mean temperatures were an indicator of these disease mortalities in Japan. However, similar responses were not found for cardiac arrhythmia and heart failure (excluding Sapporo), subarachnoid hemorrhage, and intracerebral hemorrhage. The decadal sensitivities and risk ratios between the maximum and minimum monthly mean temperatures were calculated using a linear regression model. In Sapporo, Tokyo, and Osaka, for example, the analyses of acute myocardial infarction showed summer positive responses of 0.19–0.25, 0.13–0.18, and 0.12–0.30, respectively, as the mortality rate (per 100,000 population) per 1 °C of monthly mean temperature, which estimated increased risks (between the coolest and hottest months) of 37–65% in Sapporo, 31–42% in Tokyo, and 35–39% in Osaka. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Atmosphere is the property of MDPI and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Epidemiological aspects about COVID-19 and the relationship with venous thrombosis in times of pandemics: a literature review

The link between the epidemiology and health planning is one of the topics most studied by researchers, teachers and professionals of health. Especially, recently in times of COVID-19 pandemic. Thus, searched to investigate the epidemiological aspects of COVID-19 related to venous thrombosis (TV), currently. The data source used was the Capes Journal Portal. A spatial evaluation of the publications was carried out, where a survey of 241 documents was obtained, 18 selected for the study, of which 10 tabulated. Was found that racial, economic and sociodemographic aspects aren't related to COVID-19 and TV. But, the increase in D-dimer is related to the pathology's coagulation deficiency processes. As well, the patient's elevate age, obesity, increased liver enzymes, systolic blood pressure, male patients, prolonged mechanical ventilation, with history of thrombosis and factors associated to cerebral venous thrombosis and pulmonary embolism, these lead to high rates of mortality. However, all these aspects must be investigated according to the evolution of the disease and the development of new treatments to TV in patients with COVID-19. These data confirm the importance of studying this correlation. All these aspects must be investigated according to the evolution of the disease and the development of new treatments to treat TV in patients with COVID-19. These data confirm the importance of studying this correlation. Knowledge of the epidemiology of the disease is essential to apply prophylactic measures, according to the specificity of each risk situation and, thus, to reduce its complications.

Ischemic Stroke in a 29-Year-Old Patient with COVID-19: A Case Report.

Increasing evidence reports a greater incidence of stroke among patients with Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) than the non-COVID-19 population and suggests that SARS-CoV-2 infection represents a risk factor for thromboembolic and acute ischemic stroke. Elderly people have higher risk factors associated with acute ischemic stroke or embolization vascular events, and advanced age is strongly associated with severe COVID-19 and death. We reported, instead, a case of an ischemic stroke in a young woman during her hospitalization for COVID-19-related pneumonia. A 29-year-old woman presented to the emergency department of our institution with progressive respiratory distress associated with a 2-day history of fever, nausea, and vomiting. The patient was transferred to the intensive care unit (ICU) where she underwent a tracheostomy for mechanical ventilation due to her severe clinical condition and her very low arterial partial pressure of oxygen. The nasopharyngeal swab test confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection. Laboratory tests showed neutrophilic leucocytosis, a prolonged prothrombin time, and elevated D-dimer and fibrinogen levels. After 18 days, during her stay in the ICU after suspension of the medications used for sedation, left hemiplegia was reported. Central facial palsy on the left side, dysarthria, and facial drop were present, with complete paralysis of the ipsilateral upper and lower limbs. Computed tomography (CT) of the head and magnetic resonance imaging of the brain confirmed the presence of lesions in the right hemisphere affecting the territories of the anterior and middle cerebral arteries, consistent with ischemic stroke. Pulmonary and splenic infarcts were also found after CT of the chest. The age of the patient and the absence of serious concomitant cardiovascular diseases place the emphasis on the capacity of SARS-CoV-2 infection to be an independent cerebrovascular risk factor. Increased levels of D-dimer and positivity to ß2-glycoprotein antibodies could confirm the theory of endothelial activation and hypercoagulability, but other mechanisms - still under discussion - should not be excluded.

Three-month functional prognosis of patients hospitalised due to acute ischaemic stroke in Aragon: regional analysis of the impact of COVID-19.

INTRODUCTION: The COVID-19 pandemic has had an impact on ischaemic stroke management, with a reported decrease in hospital admissions, and even disruptions in healthcare and increased in-hospital mortality. However, there is a lack of evidence on the impact of the pandemic on functional prognosis. The aim of this study is to analyse the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on the 3-month functional outcomes of patients hospitalised due to acute ischaemic stroke in Aragon (Spain). METHODS: We reviewed the data of all patients admitted due to ischaemic stroke to any hospital in our regional healthcare system between 30 December 2019 and 3 May 2020. We compared modified Rankin Scale scores and mortality at 3 months in patients hospitalised before and after the declaration of a state of emergency due to the COVID-19 pandemic. RESULTS: In total, 318 patients with acute ischaemic stroke met our inclusion criteria. No differences were observed between periods in global or specific characteristics, with the exception of a higher proportion of patients older than 80 years during the first period (42.2% vs 29.0%, P = .028). In the comparative analysis, we found no significant differences in mortality (12.3 vs 7.9, P = .465) or in the proportion of patients with modified Rankin Scale scores ≤ 2 (57.7% vs 57.1%, P = .425) at 3 months. CONCLUSION: To our knowledge, this is the first study to analyse the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the 3-month functional outcomes of patients with ischaemic stroke. In our region, there has been no increase in rates of mortality or disability at 3 months in patients admitted due to ischaemic stroke during the pandemic.

COVID-19-Related Thrombosis in Japan: Final Report of a Questionnaire-Based Survey in 2020.

A questionnaire on COVID-19-related thrombosis in patients hospitalized before Aug 31, 2020, was sent to 399 hospitals throughout Japan. Responses were received from 111 (27.8%) with information on 6,202 COVID-19 patients. Of these, 333 and 56 required ventilation or extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), respectively, and 212 died (3.4%). D-dimer levels were measured in 75.0% of the patients, revealing that 9.2% and 7.6% exhibited D-dimer increases of 3-8-fold and ≥8-fold the reference value, respectively. Thrombotic events occurred in 108 patients (1.86% of the 5,807 patients with available data) including symptomatic cerebral infarction in 24, myocardial infarction in 7, deep vein thrombosis in 41, pulmonary thromboembolism in 30, and other thrombotic events in 22. Some patients developed multiple thrombotic events. Thrombosis occurred in 32 patients with mild or moderate COVID-19 severity (0.59% of those with data available) and in 52 patients on ventilation or ECMO (13.5% of severe patients for whom data were available). Thrombosis occurred in 67 patients during worsening clinical condition and in 26 during recovery. Anticoagulant therapy was provided to 893 patients (14.6% of the 6,119 patients with available data), the main reasons being provided as elevated D-dimer levels and worsening clinical condition.

[Improving the diagnosis, treatment and secondary prevention of stroke using a unified online system: primary vascular department - regional vascular center - family doctor]. / Sovershenstvovanie diagnostiki, lecheniya i vtorichnoi profilaktiki insul'ta s ispol'zovaniem edinoi onlain-sistemy: pervichnoe sosudistoe otdelenie ­ regional'nyi sosudistyi tsentr ­ semeinyi vrach.

OBJECTIVE: The introduction of the Stroke Platform (SP) in the Belgorod Region to improve the efficiency of diagnosis and care for patients with stroke. Stroke platform is a unified information platform that unites all stages of treatment of a patient with stroke, from the first symptoms to dispensary observation by a family doctor and control of targeted provision of medicines for the secondary prevention of vascular events. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The SP includes 6 modules: the Central Archive of Medical Images or the Picture Archiving and Communication System (PACS) and connection to a single circuit of all CT devices of the regional medical institutions; Stroke register; secondary prevention register; routing bureau; statistics and analytics; COVID platform. The SP, as it develops, can be supplemented with those modules that are necessary to improve the quality and availability of patient care. More than 100 consultations of CT images are carried out monthly through the SP, the average response time is less than 10 minutes, 52 platform participants are in constant contact, all medical institutions of the region are connected. Five hundred and forty patients were consulted for 6 months of 2020. RESULTS: The share of hospitalizations in specialized departments increased to 97.6% versus 86.3%. The availability of high-tech medical care for patients with stroke has increased due to timely transfer to the district vascular center. Endovascular interventions for aneurysms and arteriovenous malformations, stenting of extracerebral arteries during dissection, mechanical thrombectomy from large arteries are performed. Mortality decreased from 19.7% (2019) to 17.6%. At the stage of outpatient follow-up, it is possible to obtain information about the range of those drugs that are prescribed to the patient for prophylaxis and are delivered to the target. CONCLUSION: The main feature of the SP is the speed and efficiency of making medical decisions, ergonomics and ease of interaction, a single workspace.

D-dimer level elevation can aid in detection of asymptomatic COVID-19 presenting with acute cerebral infarction.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) mainly manifests as a respiratory syndrome, besides causing other complications. Severe COVID-19 may also present with coagulopathy, leading to venous thrombosis and cerebral infarction. Generally, acute stroke is a secondary complication in patients displaying respiratory syndromes. Here, we present a case of acute stroke in an 84-year-old female patient who did not manifest any respiratory symptoms. The patient had no cough or fever before the stroke onset; nevertheless, COVID-19 PCR test was positive. The patient also had markedly elevated serum D-dimer levels. Our findings suggest that coagulopathy can occur even in a patient with asymptomatic COVID-19 infection, and to our knowledge, this is the first report of such a case. We concluded that elevated D-dimer levels can serve as an additional COVID-19 screening tool in stroke patients.

European Multicenter Study of ET-COVID-19.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Acute ischemic stroke and large vessel occlusion can be concurrent with the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection. Outcomes after mechanical thrombectomy (MT) for large vessel occlusion in patients with COVID-19 are substantially unknown. Our aim was to study early outcomes after MT in patients with COVID-19. METHODS: Multicenter, European, cohort study involving 34 stroke centers in France, Italy, Spain, and Belgium. Data were collected between March 1, 2020 and May 5, 2020. Consecutive laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 cases with large vessel occlusion, who were treated with MT, were included. Primary investigated outcome: 30-day mortality. SECONDARY OUTCOMES: early neurological improvement (National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale improvement ≥8 points or 24 hours National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale 0-1), successful reperfusion (modified Thrombolysis in Cerebral Infarction grade ≥2b), and symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage. RESULTS: We evaluated 93 patients with COVID-19 with large vessel occlusion who underwent MT (median age, 71 years [interquartile range, 59-79]; 63 men [67.7%]). Median pretreatment National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale and Alberta Stroke Program Early CT Score were 17 (interquartile range, 11-21) and 8 (interquartile range, 7-9), respectively. Anterior circulation acute ischemic stroke represented 93.5% of cases. The rate modified Thrombolysis in Cerebral Infarction 2b to 3 was 79.6% (74 patients [95% CI, 71.3-87.8]). Thirty-day mortality was 29% (27 patients [95% CI, 20-39.4]). Early neurological improvement was 19.5% (17 patients [95% CI, 11.8-29.5]), and symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage was 5.4% (5 patients [95% CI, 1.7-12.1]). Patients who died at 30 days exhibited significantly lower lymphocyte count, higher levels of aspartate, and LDH (lactate dehydrogenase). After adjustment for age, initial National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale, Alberta Stroke Program Early CT Score, and successful reperfusion, these biological markers remained associated with increased odds of 30-day mortality (adjusted odds ratio of 2.70 [95% CI, 1.21-5.98] per SD-log decrease in lymphocyte count, 2.66 [95% CI, 1.22-5.77] per SD-log increase in aspartate, and 4.30 [95% CI, 1.43-12.91] per SD-log increase in LDH). CONCLUSIONS: The 29% rate of 30-day mortality after MT among patients with COVID-19 is not negligible. Abnormalities of lymphocyte count, LDH and aspartate may depict a patient's profiles with poorer outcomes after MT. Registration: URL: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov. Unique identifier: NCT04406090.

COVID-19 Related Cerebrovascular Thromboembolic Complications in Three Young Patients.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a viral illness, caused by the novel severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2). It is currently affecting millions of people worldwide and is associated with coagulopathy, both in the venous and arterial systems. The proposed mechanism being excessive inflammation, platelet activation, endothelial dysfunction, and stasis. As an ongoing pandemic declared by WHO in March 2020, health systems worldwide are experiencing significant challenges with COVID-19-related complications. It has been noticed that patients with COVID-19 are at greater risk of thrombosis.