COVID-19 gastrointestinal symptoms mimicking surgical presentations

n 2020 the World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARSCoV-2) a global emergency [1]. At the time of writing, there have been over 6 million confirmed cases and 350 thousand deaths in over 200 countries worldwide caused by COVID-19 [2]. Internationally recognized symptoms of classical COVID-19 include fever and respiratory signs such as persistent cough and dyspnea on minimal exertion [2]. However, with the evolution of the pandemic an underestimated prevalence of gastrointestinal symptoms caused by COVID-19 has been identified [2]. Early reports from Wuhan, China described 2–10% of patients presenting with gastrointestinal symptoms such as diarrhea, reduced appetite, abdominal pain and vomiting, and notably 10% of patients describing nausea and diarrhea prior to, or independent of, respiratory symptoms [2]. A recent single center retrospective case series of 76 patients presenting with abdominal pain during the COVID19 pandemic identified nine patients with confirmed COVID-19 infection in the absence of respiratory symptoms [3]. In this cohort abdominal computed tomography (CT) scans were reported as either normal or with clear surgical diagnoses identified (ileus, cholecystitis, and appendicitis)

• Tipo de recurso: Article of investigation
• Fecha de publicación: 2020
• Institución: Universidad de Bogotá Jorge Tadeo Lozano
• Repositorio: Expeditio: repositorio UTadeo
• Idioma: eng
• OAI Identifier: oai:expeditiorepositorio.utadeo.edu.co:20.500.12010/14107
• Acceso en línea: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amsu.2020.06.025; http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12010/14107
• Palabra clave: COVID-19; Coronavirus; SARS-CoV-2; Abdominal pain; Appendicitis; Síndrome respiratorio agudo grave; COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; Coronavirus
• License: Abierto (Texto Completo)