Pregnancy associated spontaneous coronary artery dissection: A case report and review of literature.

BACKGROUND: Pregnancy-associated spontaneous coronary artery dissection (PSCAD) is an important cause of chest pain and acute myocardial infarction in pregnant and postpartum women. Pregnancy is considered an isolated risk factor for spontaneous coronary artery dissection. The etiology, pathogenesis, and incidence of PSCAD are not known. CASE SUMMARY: We present a case of a 33-year-old postpartum female who presented with sudden onset chest pain and was diagnosed with spontaneous coronary artery dissection and needed urgent catheterization revealing left anterior descending coronary artery dissection. She underwent emergent coronary artery bypass graft surgery with good post-operative recovery. CONCLUSION: Most patients with PSCAD can be managed conservatively with medical management and have good outcomes. Patients with high-risk presentations benefit from the invasive approach. Coronary artery bypass graft may be required in select few patients based on angiography findings. Due to the risk of recurrent spontaneous coronary artery dissection, subsequent pregnancies are discouraged.

Diagnosis of Stroke on Neuroimaging of COVID-19 Patients in Coma: A Case Series.

Patients with severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) disease suffer from many thrombotic complications including deep vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolism, myocardial infarction (MI), and stroke. Large vessel strokes have been reported in young patients with COVID-19 disease. We report four cases of stroke diagnosed based on CT scan in critically ill individuals treated in the medical intensive care unit in a health facility in New York. All patients were receiving supportive treatment and mechanical ventilation at the time of diagnosis. All patients had impaired consciousness and were unable to wake up after sedation had worn off, prompting further workup. The pathogenesis of stroke could be secondary to the embolic phenomenon vs. hypercoagulopathy in our patients. Stroke should be considered in all COVID-19 patients who present with altered mental status. Severe COVID-19 patients with risk factors of stroke may benefit from therapeutic anticoagulation.

Clostridium Difficile and COVID-19: Novel Risk Factors for Acute Portal Vein Thrombosis.

The COVID-19 pandemic has created an unprecedented global health care crisis. COVID-19 patients are found to have increased thrombotic risk. Despite being on prophylactic anticoagulation, many develop serious arterial and venous thromboembolic events. Emerging reports indicate COVID-19 may be considered a novel risk factor for portal vein thrombosis. Although, intra-abdominal infections are identified as risk factors, clostridium difficile colitis has not been typically seen as a risk factor for PVT. We report a case of an elderly female with a recent diagnosis of COVID-19 and no prior history of cirrhosis or malignancy who presented with diarrhea due to clostridium difficile infection. She developed sudden onset severe abdominal pain during the course of hospitalization. Acute portal vein thrombosis was identified on CT imaging of the abdomen, and she improved well with therapeutic anticoagulation. Acute portal vein thrombosis usually results from a combination of local and systemic prothrombotic risk factors. The combination of local infection by clostridium difficile and COVID-19 coagulopathy led to development of portal vein thrombosis in our patient. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first case of portal vein thrombosis reported in a patient with clostridium difficile infection in the setting of COVID-19 coagulopathy. During the current pandemic, clinicians should strongly consider abdominal imaging in patients presenting with abdominal pain due to clostridium difficile infection in the setting of COVID-19 to rule out complications such as portal vein thrombosis. Early diagnosis and treatment of portal vein thrombosis prevent complications of portal hypertension and intestinal infarctions.

Systemic sclerosis with renal crisis and pericardial effusion.

Scleroderma renal crisis occurs in 10% of patients with systemic sclerosis carrying a poor prognosis. A kidney biopsy is consistent with thrombotic microangiopathy (TMA) with clinical findings discerning it from other TMAs. Progression to ESRD occurs in 50% of patients which can lead to further complications necessitating emergent interventions including dialysis. Patients with scleroderma can have pericardial involvement with tamponade physiology requiring intervention such as pericardiocentesis.

Addition of Tocilizumab to the Standard of Care Reduces Mortality in Severe COVID-19: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Introduction: Tocilizumab (TCZ) is an anti-interleukin-6 antibody that has been used for the treatment of severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). However, concrete evidence of its benefit in reducing mortality in severe COVID-19 is lacking. Therefore, we performed a systematic review and meta-analysis of relevant studies that compared the efficacy of TCZ in severe COVID-19 vs. standard of care (SOC) alone. Methods: A literature search for studies that compared "tocilizumab" and "standard of care" in the treatment of COVID-19 was done using major online databases from December 2019 to June 14, 2020. Search words "Tocilizumab," "anti-interleukin-6 antibody," and "COVID-19" or "coronavirus 2019" in various combinations were used. Articles in the form of abstracts, letters without original data, case reports, and reviews were excluded. Data were gathered on an Excel sheet, and statistical analysis was performed using Review Manager 5.3. Results: Sixteen studies were eligible from 693 initial studies, including 3,641 patients (64% males). There were 13 retrospective studies and three prospective studies. There were 2,488 patients in the SOC group (61.7%) and 1,153 patients (68.7%) in the TCZ group. The death rate in the TCZ group, 22.4% (258/1,153), was lower than in the SOC group, 26.21% (652/2,488) [pooled odds ratio 0.57 (95% CI 0.36-0.92), p = 0.02]. There was a significant heterogeneity (inconsistency index = 80%) among the included studies. Conclusion: The addition of TCZ to the SOC might reduce mortality in severe COVID-19. More extensive randomized clinical trials are needed to validate these findings.

SARS-CoV2 in Different Body Fluids, Risks of Transmission, and Preventing COVID-19: A Comprehensive Evidence-Based Review.

The world is combating a common and invisible enemy severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV2), a highly transmissible virus responsible for serious respiratory illness coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19). As with all respiratory viruses, public health measures are focused on contact tracing, isolation, and treatment of affected individuals, who have respiratory symptoms. However, it is spreading efficiently, and it can be explained from its stealth transmission from presymptomatic and asymptomatic individuals. Droplet and contact precautions are followed universally. Healthcare workers are at higher risk of acquiring infection and they are additionally required to follow airborne and eye protection. Recent studies indicate viral particles can be isolated from many body fluids including feces, saliva, semen, and tears, suggesting transmission could be possibly occurring through some of these routes as well. We have done an evidence-based review of all potential modes of transmission and discussed preventive measures to stop the spread. There is an urgent need for educating the healthcare professionals, governments, and public regarding other potential modes of transmission. Strict preventive measures need to be used to stop the spread.

A Summertime Stupor.

Most commonly seen with alcohol use disorder in the developed world, Wernicke's encephalopathy (WE), a disorder caused by thiamine deficiency can be readily missed in the setting of other predisposing conditions such as malnutrition, the most common cause worldwide. We present a case of a 21-year-old female with sudden progressive decline in her level of alertness and mentation along with severe hypothermia who had clinical features and imaging findings consistent with WE in the setting of pancreatitis and chronic gastritis. WE should be suspected in all patients who present with altered mental status (AMS) and who are at an increased risk of malnutrition despite a normal or high body mass index, so that treatment with thiamine may be initiated and further neurologic sequelae can be averted.

COVID-19 and Avoiding Ibuprofen. How Good Is the Evidence?

Ibuprofen is an over-the-counter medication that is used widely for the treatment of pain and fever during COVID-19 pandemic. A concern was raised regarding the safety of ibuprofen use because of its role in increasing ACE2 levels within the Renin-Angiotensin-Aldosterone system. ACE2 is the coreceptor for the entry of SARS-CoV-2 into cells, and so, a potential increased risk of contracting COVID-19 disease and/or worsening of COVID-19 infection was feared with ibuprofen use. However, available data from limited studies show administration of recombinant ACE2 improves lung damage caused by respiratory viruses, suggesting ibuprofen use may be beneficial in COVID-19 disease. At this time, there is no supporting evidence to discourage the use of ibuprofen.

Secondary Aortoduodenal Fistula Presenting as Gastrointestinal Bleeding and Fungemia.

A 55-year-old African American man with a history of abdominal aortic pseudoaneurysm repair presented to the ED with complaints of black-colored stools mixed with fresh blood and fever for three days duration. The exam was unremarkable except for abdominal bruits and pallor. CT angiogram showed perigraft fluid collection, bowel wall thickening, and loss of normal fat planes between the aorta and adjacent bowel at the level of the third portion of the duodenum. Polymicrobial infection was noted in the aortic graft and blood cultures grew Candida. The patient underwent urgent removal of the infected graft, duodenal repair along with appropriate antimicrobial therapy. He did well postoperatively and was discharged in a stable condition. Our case highlights the importance of maintaining a high index of suspicion of aortoenteric fistula (AEF) when a patient with a prior abdominal aortic graft develops gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding as this condition is universally fatal if unrecognized.

Right ventricular dysfunction as an echocardiographic prognostic factor in hemodynamically stable patients with acute pulmonary embolism: a meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: We investigated whether right ventricular dysfunction (RVD) as assessed by echocardiogram can be used as a prognostic factor in hemodynamically stable patients with acute pulmonary embolism (PE). Short-term mortality has been investigated only in small studies and the results have been controversial. METHODS: A PubMed search was conducted using two keywords, "pulmonary embolism" and "echocardiogram", for articles published between January 1st 1998 and December 31st 2011. Out of 991 articles, after careful review, we found 12 articles that investigated the implications of RVD as assessed by echocardiogram in predicting short-term mortality for hemodynamically stable patients with acute PE. We conducted a meta-analysis of these data to identify whether the presence of RVD increased short-term mortality. RESULTS: Among 3283 hemodynamically stable patients with acute PE, 1223 patients (37.3%) had RVD, as assessed by echocardiogram, while 2060 patients (62.7%) had normal right ventricular function. Short-term mortality was reported in 167 (13.7%) out of 1223 patients with RVD and in 134 (6.5%) out of 2060 patients without RVD. Hemodynamically stable patients with acute PE who had RVD as assessed by echocardiogram had a 2.29-fold increase in short-term mortality (odds ratio 2.29, 95% confidence interval 1.61-3.26) compared with patients without RVD. CONCLUSIONS: In hemodynamically stable patients with acute PE, RVD as assessed by echocardiogram increases short-term mortality by 2.29 times. Consideration should be given to obtaining echocardiogram to identify high-risk patients even if they are hemodynamically stable.