COVID‑19‑associated acute appendicitis in adults. A report of five cases and a review of the literature

Georgakopoulou,Vasiliki Epameinondas; Gkoufa,Aikaterini; Damaskos,Christos; Papalexis,Petros; Pierrakou,Aikaterini; Makrodimitri,Sotiria; Sypsa,Georgia; Apostolou,Apostolos; Asimakopoulou,Stavroula; Chlapoutakis,Serafeim; Sklapani,Pagona; Trakas,Nikolaos; Spandidos,Demetrios A.

doi:10.3892/etm.2022.11409

COVID‑19‑associated acute appendicitis in adults. A report of five cases and a review of the literature

Authors:
- Vasiliki Epameinondas Georgakopoulou
- Aikaterini Gkoufa
- Christos Damaskos
- Petros Papalexis
- Aikaterini Pierrakou
- Sotiria Makrodimitri
- Georgia Sypsa
- Apostolos Apostolou
- Stavroula Asimakopoulou
- Serafeim Chlapoutakis
- Pagona Sklapani
- Nikolaos Trakas
- Demetrios A. Spandidos
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Affiliations: Department of Infectious Diseases, Laiko General Hospital, 11527 Athens, Greece, Renal Transplantation Unit, Laiko General Hospital, 11527 Athens, Greece, Unit of Endocrinology, First Department of Internal Medicine, Laiko General Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 11527 Athens, Greece, Department of Pathology, Sismanogleio Hospital, 15126 Athens, Greece, Department of Radiology, Laiko General Hospital, 11527 Athens, Greece, Department of Thoracic Surgery, Agios Savvas Hospital, 11522 Athens, Greece, Department of Cytology, Mitera Hospital, 15123 Athens, Greece, Department of Biochemistry, Sismanogleio Hospital, 15126 Athens, Greece, Laboratory of Clinical Virology, School of Medicine, University of Crete, 71003 Heraklion, Greece
Published online on: June 1, 2022 https://doi.org/10.3892/etm.2022.11409
Article Number: 482
Copyright: © Georgakopoulou et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of Creative Commons Attribution License.

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Abstract

The novel coronavirus has negatively affected patients and healthcare systems globally. Individuals with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‑19) experience a wide range of respiratory symptoms, from mild flu‑like symptoms to severe and potentially fatal pneumonia. Some patients report gastrointestinal symptoms, such as nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain in addition to the respiratory symptoms or as a separate presentation. Even though abdominal pain syndrome indicates acute appendicitis, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‑CoV‑2) infection should be considered as a possible diagnosis during this pandemic. However, there have been reports of a few cases of acute abdominal pain revealing acute appendicitis associated with SARS‑CoV‑2 infection. Appendectomy is challenging in COVID‑19‑infected patients with acute appendicitis as it includes high surgical risks for the patients, as well as hazards for healthcare professionals who are exposed to SARS‑CoV‑2. The present study reports five cases of adult patients with COVID‑19 with simultaneous acute appendicitis. In addition, the present study aims to provide the framework for the diagnosis and management of adult patients with COVID‑19 with acute appendicitis.

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