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Objective: After the outbreak of the global pandemic caused by SARS-CoV-2 infection at the end of the year 2019, it took one year to start vaccinatioagainst this infection with products from various manufacturers. As of November 2021, more than 8 billion vaccine doses against COVID-19 havbeen administered, which is essentially linked to a spike in adverse events reports following these vaccinations, including a number of neurologicaadverse events. Case Report: We report a case of a 71-year-old patient with lethal fulminant onset of Guillain-Barre syndrome after the second dose of mRNA vaccintozinameran. This is, to our best knowledge, the first case report of this adverse event supported by autopsy and histological examination. Thpatient presented with progressive ascending weakness and paresthesia, with typical cytoalbuminologic dissociation in cerebrospinal fluid ansevere motoric and sensitive axonal-demyelinating polyneuropathy on electromyography. The patient's history and complex diagnostic workup dinot reveal any other possible causative factors. The patient did not respond to the treatment with intravenous immunoglobulins and died 10 daylater due to aspiration bronchopneumonia as a complication of respiratory muscles paralysis. Conclusion(s): Most of the reported adverse reactions following COVID-19 vaccination include mild or moderate events noticed in the post-vaccination periodhowever, reports of possible lethal outcomes are no exception. Still, the overall incidence of GBS after vaccination does not significantly exceed itincidence in the general population. Each such report should be carefully examined by a team of specialists to prevent overestimation of lethaadverse events linked to vaccinations, especially in fatalities that happen in the post-vaccination period. Copyright © 2022 Mosna et al.
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SESSION TITLE: Using Imaging for Diagnosis Case Posters SESSION TYPE: Case Report Posters PRESENTED ON: 10/19/2022 12:45 pm - 01:45 pm INTRODUCTION: The vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 or COVID-19 have been shown to be safe and effective at preventing severe disease and death. In a phase 3 trial the BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 vaccine showed a 52% and 95% efficacy after the first and second doses, respectively (1). Side effects following vaccination are common but are typically mild and self limited (2). The most common side effects are headache, fever, fatigue, arthralgias and pain at the injection site (2). More severe and devastating side effects have been reported including cerebral venous thrombosis and myocarditis (3) (4). Here we report a case of unilateral diaphragmatic paralysis following the second dose of the BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 vaccine. CASE PRESENTATION: The patient was a 56 year old female with a past medical history of reactive airways disease and hypertension who was seen in the pulmonology clinic shortly after receiving her second dose of the BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 vaccine. After her second dose she developed burning shoulder pain, erythema and swelling that extended to the neck and axilla. She went to an urgent care and was advised to treat with ice and NSAIDs, she had a chest radiograph performed which was reported to be negative. Her symptoms persisted and she was sent to the emergency room, chest x-ray showed interval development of an elevated left hemidiaphragm. A CT Chest with inspiratory and expiratory films was performed and the left diaphragm was noted to be in the same location during inspiration and expiration consistent with diaphragmatic paralysis. PFT showed a reduction in her FVC, TLC and DLCO compared to 13 years prior. DISCUSSION: Diaphragmatic paralysis is a well described clinical entity that is most often associated with cardiothoracic surgery where hypothermia and local ice slush application are thought to induce phrenic nerve injury (5). It has also been described as a complication of viral infections, including a recent report of unilateral diaphragm paralysis in a patient with acute COVID-19 infection (6). In a case series of 246 patients with amyotrophic neuralgia which can include diaphragm paralysis, 5 patients received a vaccine in the week before developing symptoms (8) Additionally, Crespo Burrilio et al recently described a case of amyotrophic neuralgia and unilateral diaphragm paralysis following administration of the Vaxzevri (AstraZeneca) COVID-19 vaccine (7). This case highlights a potential side effect of the BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 vaccine that has not been previously reported CONCLUSIONS: Reference #1: Polack FP, Thomas SJ, Kitchin N. Safety and efficacy of the BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 vaccine. N Engl J Med. 2020;383:2603–2615. Reference #2: Menni, C., Klaser, K., May, A., Polidori, L., Capdevila, J., Louca, P., Sudre, C. H., Nguyen, L. H., Drew, D. A., Merino, J., Hu, C., Selvachandran, S., Antonelli, M., Murray, B., Canas, L. S., Molteni, E., Graham, M. S., Modat, M., Joshi, A. D., Mangino, M., … Spector, T. D. (2021). Vaccine side-effects and SARS-CoV-2 infection after vaccination in users of the COVID Symptom Study app in the UK: a prospective observational study. The Lancet. Infectious diseases, 21(7), 939–949. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1473-3099(21)00224-3 Reference #3: Jaiswal V, Nepal G, Dijamco P, et al. Cerebral Venous Sinus Thrombosis Following COVID-19 Vaccination: A Systematic Review. J Prim Care Community Health. 2022;13:21501319221074450. doi:10.1177/21501319221074450 DISCLOSURES: No relevant relationships by Jack Mann No relevant relationships by John Prudenti
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Introduction: Diaphragm dysfunction has been described as being responsible for weaning failure with an incidence of 23-80%. It has also been associated with difficult weaning from mechanical ventilation, prolonged intensive care unit (ICU) stay and increased ICU and hospital mortality.1 This case report describes the use of bedside ultrasound to diagnose diaphragm dysfunction, assess the severity of dysfunction, refer to specialist care and monitor disease progression in patient with COVID-19 pneumonitis with difficulty weaning from mechanical ventilation. Main body: A 59 year-oldmale with no known past medical history was admitted to our ICU with respiratory failure due to COVID-19 pneumonitis. He had received continuous positive pressure ventilation with oxygen supplementation on the medical high dependency unit for 15 days prior to deteriorating and requiring invasive ventilation in ICU. In ICU, the patient was mandatory ventilated using lung protective ventilation strategies for 26 days before he was switched to pressure support ventilation for attempts to wean him from mechanical ventilation. During the initial phase of his ICU admission, he was severely hypoxaemic and required deep sedation as well as muscle relaxation for a total of 370 hours. Prone positioning was required on 4 occasions before he was stable in the supine position. Once attempts to liberate him from mechanical ventilation were being made, pressure support was gradually reduced along with PEEP and FiO2. Progress with this reduction in support was slow due to marked tachypnoea and a dyssynchronous respiratory pattern. It was also noted that he had poor air entry in his right base with corresponding right lower zone opacities on his chest x-ray. At this stage a bedside ultrasound was used to investigate the cause of weaning difficulty and consequently, the diagnosis of right diaphragmatic paralysis was made. This was a new finding, as his admission chest x-ray did not show a raised hemidiaphragm. This diagnosis led to an increased focus on physical rehabilitation and mobilisation with tolerance of his tachypnoea and respiratory pattern as we now appreciated this didn't represent ongoing underlying parenchymal lung disease. We also made a referral to the respiratory team in order to facilitate longer-term rehabilitation and follow up. The patient was successfully extubated after intense physical rehabilitation, post extubation he remained tachypnoeic and still required supplemental oxygen at the point of hospital discharge. A follow up diaphragm ultrasound 6 months after discharge did not show any improvement in the right diaphragmatic function, he remains dyspnoeic on exertion and still occasionally uses ambulatory supplemental oxygen. Conclusion: Ultrasound assessment revealed an unexpected cause of weaning difficulty in our patient that allowed us to individualise his weaning plan and rehabilitation. This case shows that bedside intensivist performed ultrasound can accurately evaluate diaphragmatic function in patients who are difficult to wean from mechanical ventilation. Brief description of ultrasound video: The diaphragm was scanned using low frequency curvilinear ultrasound probe. There is lack of diaphragmatic excursion and absent thickening of the right hemidiaphragm on subcostal and intercostal views. M-mode evaluation and 'sniff test' confirms diaphragmatic paralysis.
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Persistent shortness of breath is one of the most common concerns reported by patients with post-acute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2. Here, we present a case of bilateral diaphragmatic paralysis as a cause shortness of breath that developed after SARS-CoV-2 infection. A middle-aged gentleman with history of sleep apnea and body mass index 27.9 kg/m2 presented to our post-COVID clinic with 3 months of dyspnea and orthopnea after contracting SARS-CoV-2 in November 2020. During acute infection, he was hospitalized for hypoxemia, which improved with steroids and supplemental oxygen. At 3 months, he continued to report dyspnea and orthopnea. On examination, he had tachycardia and increased respiratory rate with paradoxical respiratory abdominal movement. Chest imaging showed elevated bilateral hemidiaphragms without any parenchymal lung disease. Pulmonary function test revealed severe ventilatory defect with restrictive lung disease. He was diagnosed with bilateral diaphragmatic dysfunction which was confirmed by absence of evoked potentials in diaphragm after phrenic nerve stimulation bilaterally. He was advised to use continuous positive airway pressure machine to assist with breathing at night. At his last follow-up (1-year post-infection), he was symptomatically improving without specific interventions.