ABSTRACT
The novel pandemic of coronavirus infection (COVID-19) has been linked with coagulopathy and thromboembolic events, causing limb loss and finally death. The present report describes a case of upper limb ischemia in a patient with COVID-19 infection, who lacked conventional risk factors for acute limb ischemia (ALI).mAn 83 year-old man with intraluminal thrombus and the occlusion of the axillary and brachial arteries, ceasing blood supply to the distal part of the body, was tested positive for the COVID-19 infection. The patient received therapeutic anticoagulation and underwent open thromboembolectomy, which failed to save the patient's life. The link between COVID-19 and thromboembolism remains unknown and needs further studies to be disclosed.
Subject(s)
Axillary Artery , Brachial Artery , COVID-19/complications , Ischemia/etiology , SARS-CoV-2 , Thrombosis/complications , Upper Extremity/blood supply , Acute Disease , Aged, 80 and over , COVID-19/diagnosis , Humans , Ischemia/diagnosis , Lung/diagnostic imaging , Male , Thrombosis/diagnosis , Tomography, X-Ray Computed , Ultrasonography, DopplerABSTRACT
Novel COVID-19 continues to intrigue medical professionals with its varied presentations. Though it affects the respiratory tract primarily, thrombogenesis has been the Achilles' heel. A 44-year-old man diagnosed with COVID-19 presented with upper limb pain at a local hospital and was found to have thrombosis of the right axillary artery. Despite a successful embolectomy at the local hospital, there was re-occlusion of the axillary artery and the limb became ischaemic. He was referred to our institution by which time the limb became gangrenous above the elbow and had to be amputated. Extensive sloughing of the nerves was also seen in the local area. Hypercoagulability presenting with various manifestations is common in COVID-19 and needs early anticoagulation. We present this asymptomatic patient who lost a limb to this COVID-19 sequelae.