tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
Cureus
. 2023 Nov 19;15(11):e49067.
doi: 10.7759/cureus.49067. eCollection 2023 Nov. Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia in a Patient With COVID-19 Pneumonia: A Case Report on a Rare Presentation
Umair Khizer[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Jonathan Scott[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Akshit Chitkara[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Shukaib Arslan[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Sonia Shoukat[SUP] 1 [/SUP]
Affiliations
Patients with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2)/coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pneumonia can have a range of clinical presentations ranging from being asymptomatic to having severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). Autoimmune hemolytic anemia (AIHA) is a very rare presentation of COVID-19. We present the case of a 67-year-old male with a past medical history of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) who presented to the emergency department (ED) with shortness of breath and was found to be COVID-19-positive. His laboratory results demonstrated autoimmune hemolytic anemia with decreased hemoglobin (Hgb), elevated lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), decreased haptoglobin, peripheral smear showing spherocytes, and a positive direct antiglobulin (Coombs) test. The patient was started on glucocorticoids, but his hemoglobin continued to worsen. The dose of glucocorticoids was increased significantly, and his hemoglobin started improving with the resolution of hemolysis. Autoimmune hemolytic anemia is usually treated with glucocorticoids, but escalating glucocorticoid doses increases the risk of side effects. This case report highlights the importance of further research needed to establish guidelines for AIHA in the context of COVID-19 pneumonia.
Keywords: autoimmune hemolytic anemia (aiha); autoimmune hemolytic anemia covid19; autoimmune hemolytic anemia treatment; covid-19 pneumonia; steroids in hemolytic anemia.
. 2023 Nov 19;15(11):e49067.
doi: 10.7759/cureus.49067. eCollection 2023 Nov. Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia in a Patient With COVID-19 Pneumonia: A Case Report on a Rare Presentation
Umair Khizer[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Jonathan Scott[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Akshit Chitkara[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Shukaib Arslan[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Sonia Shoukat[SUP] 1 [/SUP]
Affiliations
- PMID: 38125223
- PMCID: PMC10730459
- DOI: 10.7759/cureus.49067
Patients with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2)/coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pneumonia can have a range of clinical presentations ranging from being asymptomatic to having severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). Autoimmune hemolytic anemia (AIHA) is a very rare presentation of COVID-19. We present the case of a 67-year-old male with a past medical history of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) who presented to the emergency department (ED) with shortness of breath and was found to be COVID-19-positive. His laboratory results demonstrated autoimmune hemolytic anemia with decreased hemoglobin (Hgb), elevated lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), decreased haptoglobin, peripheral smear showing spherocytes, and a positive direct antiglobulin (Coombs) test. The patient was started on glucocorticoids, but his hemoglobin continued to worsen. The dose of glucocorticoids was increased significantly, and his hemoglobin started improving with the resolution of hemolysis. Autoimmune hemolytic anemia is usually treated with glucocorticoids, but escalating glucocorticoid doses increases the risk of side effects. This case report highlights the importance of further research needed to establish guidelines for AIHA in the context of COVID-19 pneumonia.
Keywords: autoimmune hemolytic anemia (aiha); autoimmune hemolytic anemia covid19; autoimmune hemolytic anemia treatment; covid-19 pneumonia; steroids in hemolytic anemia.