Fulminant Extra- And Intracranial Arteriovenous Thrombosis And Non-aneurysmal Subarachnoid Hemorrhage Following COVID-19 Infection.

PURPOSE: Coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19) is associated with increased risk of stroke and intracranial hemorrhage. This first report of fulminant panvascular arteriovenous thrombosis with subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) in a post-COVID-19 infection is attributed to extensive arteriovenous inflammation leading to arterial rupture following vasculitis. CASE REPORT: We report a rare case of extensive extra- and intra-cranial cerebral arteriovenous thrombosis following COVID-19 infection, presenting as fatal non-aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage. The clinical course, biochemical and radiological evaluation is discussed. The other possible etiological differentials which were analysed and ruled out during case management are also detailed. CONCLUSION: A high degree of suspicion for COVID-19 induced coagulopathy leading to extensive non- aneurysmal, non-hemispheric SAH and malignant intracranial hypertension should be entertained. Our experience and previous reports on non-aneurysmal SAH in such patients show a poor prognosis.

Cerebral Venous Thrombosis in COVID-19.

Background: COVID-19 causes a hypercoagulable state leading to thrombosis. Many of these thrombotic complications occur in those with severe disease and late in the disease course. COVID-19 has recently been associated with cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT). Objective: To study the onset of CVT in relation to COVID-19 and compare their characteristics and outcomes with non-COVID CVT patients admitted during the same period. Materials and Methods: This multicentric, retrospective study conducted between April 4 and October 15, 2020, included adult patients with CVT who were positive for the SARS-CoV-2 virus and compared them with CVT patients who were negative for the SARS-CoV-2 virus hospitalized during the same period. We studied their clinical profile, risk factors for CVT, and markers of COVID coagulopathy, imaging characteristics, and factors influencing their outcomes. Results: We included 18 COVID-19-infected patients and compared them with 43 non-COVID-19 CVT patients. Fourteen patients in the COVID-19 group presented with CVT without the other typical features of COVID-19. Thirteen patients had non-severe COVID-19 disease. Twelve patients had a good outcome (mRS ≤2). Mortality and disability outcomes were not significantly different between the two groups. Conclusion: Our study suggests a possible association between COVID-19 and CVT. CVT can be the presenting manifestation of an underlying COVID-19, occurring early in the course of COVID-19 and even in those with mild disease. Patients with worse GCS on admission, abnormal HRCT chest, severe COVID-19, and need for invasive ventilation had a poor outcome.

Concomitant Guillain-Barré syndrome and cerebral venous thrombosis complicating a SARS-CoV-2 infection: a case report.

Cerebral venous thrombosis associated to acute inflammatory axonal polyneuropathy during infection with SARS-CoV-2 (coronavirus-2) is unusual. We describe the case of a 66-year-old patient with typical clinical and electrophysiological criteria of acute axonal motor neuropathy, who was positive for SARS-CoV-2. The symptoms started with fever associated with respiratory symptoms, and complicated one week later by headaches, and general weakness. The examination showed bilateral peripheral facial palsy, predominantly proximal tetraparesis, and areflexia with tingling of limbs were found. The whole was concomitant with the diagnosis of an acute polyradiculoneuropathy. Electrophysiologic evaluation confirmed the diagnosis. Cerebrospinal fluid examination showed albuminocytologic dissociation, and brain imaging revealed sigmoid sinus thrombophlebitis. Neurological manifestations improved during treatment with plasma exchange and anticoagulants. Our case draws attention to the occurrence of cerebral venous thrombosis and Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) in patients with COVID-19. The neuro-inflammation induced by the systemic immune response to infection, can lead to neurological manifestations. Further studies should be conducted on the full clinical spectrum of patients with COVID-19 with neurological symptoms.

Cerebral Venous Thrombosis in Patients With Heparin-Induced Thrombocytopenia a Systematic Review.

BACKGROUND: Cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT) has recently been reported as a common thrombotic manifestation in association with vaccine-induced thrombotic thrombocytopenia, a syndrome that mimics heparin-induced thrombocytopenia (HIT) and occurs after vaccination with adenovirus-based SARS-CoV-2 vaccines. We aimed to systematically review the incidence, clinical features, and prognosis of CVT occurring in patients with HIT. METHODS: The study protocol was registered with PROSPERO (CRD42021249652). MEDLINE, EMBASE and Cochrane CENTRAL were searched up to June 1, 2021 for HIT case series including >20 patients, or any report of HIT-related CVT. Demographic, neuroradiological, clinical, and mortality data were retrieved. Meta-analysis of proportions with random-effect modeling was used to derive rate of CVT in HIT and in-hospital mortality. Pooled estimates were compared with those for CVT without HIT and HIT without CVT, to determine differences in mortality. RESULTS: From 19073 results, we selected 23 case series of HIT (n=1220) and 27 cases of HIT-related CVT (n=27, 71% female). CVT developed in 1.6% of 1220 patients with HIT (95% CI,1.0%-2.5%, I2=0%). Hemorrhagic brain lesions occurred in 81.8% of cases of HIT-related CVT and other concomitant thrombosis affecting other vascular territory was reported in 47.8% of cases. In-hospital mortality was 33.3%. HIT-related CVT carried a 29% absolute increase in mortality rate compared with historical CVT controls (33.3% versus 4.3%, P<0.001) and a 17.4% excess mortality compared with HIT without CVT (33.3% versus 15.9%, P=0.046). CONCLUSIONS: CVT is a rare thrombotic manifestation in patients with HIT. HIT-related CVT has higher rates of intracerebral hemorrhage and a higher mortality risk, when compared with CVT in historical controls. The recently reported high frequency of CVT in patients with vaccine-induced thrombotic thrombocytopenia was not observed in HIT, suggesting that additional pathophysiological mechanisms besides anti-platelet factor-4 antibodies might be involved in vaccine-induced thrombotic thrombocytopenia-related CVT.

Cerebral venous sinus thrombosis after adenovirus-vectored COVID-19 vaccination: review of the neurological-neuroradiological procedure.

Cerebral venous and sinus thrombosis (CVST) after adenovirus-vectored COVID-19 ChAdOx1 nCov-19 (Oxford-AstraZeneca) and Ad26.COV2.S (Janssen/Johnson & Johnson) is a rare complication, occurring mainly in individuals under 60 years of age and more frequently in women. It manifests 4-24 days after vaccination. In most cases, antibodies against platelet factor-4/polyanion complexes play a pathogenic role, leading to thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome (TTS) and sometimes a severe clinical or even fatal course. The leading symptom is headache, which usually increases in intensity over a few days. Seizures, visual disturbances, focal neurological symptoms, and signs of increased intracranial pressure are also possible. These symptoms may be combined with clinical signs of disseminated intravascular coagulation such as petechiae or gastrointestinal bleeding. If TTS-CVST is suspected, checking D-dimers, platelet count, and screening for heparin-induced thrombocytopenia (HIT-2) are diagnostically and therapeutically guiding. The imaging method of choice for diagnosis or exclusion of CVST is magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) combined with contrast-enhanced venous MR angiography (MRA). On T2*-weighted or susceptibility weighted MR sequences, the thrombus causes susceptibility artefacts (blooming), that allow for the detection even of isolated cortical vein thromboses. The diagnosis of TTS-CVST can usually be made reliably in synopsis with the clinical and laboratory findings. A close collaboration between neurologists and neuroradiologists is mandatory. TTS-CVST requires specific regimens of anticoagulation and immunomodulation therapy if thrombocytopenia and/or pathogenic antibodies to PF4/polyanion complexes are present. In this review article, the diagnostic and therapeutic steps in cases of suspected TTS associated CSVT are presented.

Large vessel stroke in six patients following SARS-CoV-2 infection: a retrospective case study series of acute thrombotic complications on stable underlying atherosclerotic disease.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Ischaemic stroke has been described in association with COVID-19. Several pathophysiological mechanisms have been suggested, i.e. prothrombotic state, cardiac injury etc. It was sought to assess the potential association between ischaemic stroke associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection and underlying atherosclerotic lesions. METHODS: A retrospective analysis of stroke related to large vessel occlusion was conducted amongst patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection and underlying mild atherosclerotic disease, between 19 March and 19 April 2020 in six different stroke centers in the Île-de France area, France. RESULTS: The median age was 52 years, median body mass index was 29.5 kg/m2 . All patients displayed previous vascular risk factors such as high blood pressure, diabetes, dyslipidemia or body mass index > 25. The delay between the first respiratory symptoms of COVID-19 and stroke was 11.5 days. At baseline, all had tandem occlusions, i.e. intracerebral and extracerebral thrombus assessed with computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging. Cases displayed a large thrombus in the cervical carotid artery with underlying mild non-stenosing atheroma, after an etiological workup based on angio-computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging and/or cervical echography. CONCLUSION: Our study should alert clinicians to scrutinize any new onset of ischaemic stroke during COVID-19 infection, mainly in patients with vascular risk factors or underlying atherosclerotic lesions.