CDC warns of COVID-19 complication

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:

• A rare but serious coronavirus-related complication that was identified among children and teens was also found among adults, says a CDC case report.
• Although the condition called multisystem inflammatory syndrome in adults (MIS-A) does not exhibit any symptoms, it can be deadly for adults.
• The CDC reports that antibody testing had identified one-third of the 27 cases studied past SARS-CoV-2 infections.

Since the first COVID-19 cases were identified in December 2019, roughly 1 million people worldwide have already lost their lives with millions of others affected in varying degrees.

Of the many complications related to the SARS-CoV-2 infection, one rare but severe complication called a multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) was discovered among children and adolescents in spring.

However, some adults have also reported the condition since June, according to the latest CDC reports released in the MMWR on Friday.

MIS-A, which is similar to MIS-C, is not related to coronavirus. While those suffering from it do not show any COVID-19 symptoms, the case report indicates that MIS-A in adults can be fatal and may require intensive care.

The published case report studied 27 adults aged 21 to 50, experiencing critical “cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, dermatologic, and neurologic” symptoms, but without severe respiratory illness.

The report writes: “Although hyper inflammation and extrapulmonary organ dysfunction have been described in hospitalized adults with severe Covid-19, these conditions are generally accompanied by respiratory failure.”

But in the study, the patients described had slight respiratory symptoms, hypoxemia (low blood oxygen), or radiographic abnormalities according to the working case definition, which was intended to differentiate MIS-A from severe Covid-19.

Prior to MIS-A, only 8 of 16 patients had recorded respiratory symptoms that include a fever of more than 24 hours, chest pain, irregular heartbeat, gastrointestinal symptoms, and rashes.

The CDC has also pointed out that X-rays may show lung inflammation despite not manifesting any obvious respiratory symptoms. In about one-third of the 27 cases, antibody testing had identified past infections of SARS-CoV-2.

Furthermore, the condition was found to discriminate impacting racial and minority groups.

“All but one of the patients with MIS-A described in this report belonged to racial or ethnic minority groups,” the CDC noted in the report.

Fortunately, most of those identified with MIS-A had recovered.

Given the potential therapies that might benefit these patients, the report suggests “clinicians should consider MIS-A within a broader differential diagnosis when caring for adult patients with clinical and laboratory findings consistent with the working MIS-A case definition.”

While these patients might not have tested positive in positive SARS-CoV-2 PCR or antigen tests, they might still require antibody testing to determine previous SARS-CoV-2 infections, as per the report. 

Source: Yahoo!