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.