A Rare Case of COVID-19 Infection Leading to Colonic Stricture: Case Report and Review of Literature

Abstract

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) predominantly targets the respiratory tract; despite gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms that may present in many patients, colonic strictures in coronavirus disease (COVID-19) patients are extremely rare and, to our knowledge, have never been reported. We, herein, present a case of a 59-year-old lady who developed intestinal obstruction due to colonic strictures shortly after recovering from complicated COVID-19 pneumonia. Ultimately, she underwent laparoscopic subtotal colectomy with ileorectal anastomosis. After a long recovery period, she was discharged in good status. It has been more than two years since COVID-19 was declared as a pandemic by the World Health Organization. Infected individuals have highly variable clinical manifestations, yet the pathogenesis, diagnosis and ideal management of each of these complications is not well described in literature.

Independent Predictors and Causes of Thirty-Day Gastrointestinal Readmissions Following COVID-19-Related Hospitalizations: Analysis of the National Readmission Database

“…Intestinal obstruction following COVID-19 has been reported in a few case reports [ 18 - 20 ]. One was of a patient who presented with large bowel obstruction due to colonic strictures, subsequent colectomy showed chronic active inflammation on histology [ 18 ].…”

“…Intestinal obstruction following COVID-19 has been reported in a few case reports [ 18 - 20 ]. One was of a patient who presented with large bowel obstruction due to colonic strictures, subsequent colectomy showed chronic active inflammation on histology [ 18 ]. Bowel ischemia and COVID-19 colitis have been reported in other case reports which can be potential causes of bowel obstruction [ 21 - 23 ].…”