COVID-19-induced Neonatal Acute Aortic Thrombosis

Venous thromboembolism is a well-recognized, common complication of a severe COVID-19 disease. Arterial thrombosis is a less known complication, now being reported increasingly, mostly in the form of myocardial infarction and stroke, but acute aortic occlusion is infrequent. Neonatal acute aortic thrombosis as a sequelae of COVID-19 disease has far uncommon incidence with no literature-based evidence till date. A 10-day-old male child presented to the emergency department with informant being his mother with complaints of black discoloration of his right foot for 4 days noticed first on his toes. No history of trauma, no history of fever, and no history of umbilical artery catheterization at birth was noted. Birth history-full term normal vaginal delivery, small for gestational age baby, cried immediately after birth, birth weight – 2.45 kg with no additional birth events. No history of neonatal intensive care unit stay, immunized at birth. Baby was 3 rd by order of birth with no congenital anomalies noted in previous siblings. On examination, the baby was alert, afebrile, heart rate – 138/min, blood pressure – 90/60 mmHg, and SpO 2 98% on room air. Local examination of the right lower limb revealed black discoloration of the right lower limb from toes up to mid-calf, CRT-delayed in the right thigh (7 s), right femoral pulsations absent, left lower limb – pink, warm, CRT – 6 s, feeble pulsations of left femoral artery and popliteal artery, absent pulsations of left anterior tibial artery, and posterior tibial artery. A Doppler study revealed the presence of partial lumen occluding thrombus (hyperechoic) in abdominal aorta below the level of renal arteries, absent flow in right lower limb, and monophasic flow in left femoral artery. A prothtrombotic screen was performed and COVID-19 antibody test was found to be positive. A systemic thrombolysis with injection reteplase was performed which showed mild improvement in circulation with propagation of clot up to origin of superior mesentric artery on a Doppler scan. An abdominal aortic embolectomy was performed, with retrieval of a long segment thrombus from distal abdominal aorta and bilateral femoral arteries following good proximal inflow and good distal backflow. Bilateral limb perfusion improved postoperatively though the gangrenous right lower limb could not be saved and a right below knee amputation was performed for the same. This case adds to the growing list of potential sites and consequences of thrombosis in COVID-19 infection. We speculate that this case of aortic thrombosis was a result of direct COVID-19-induced vascular damage in the context of a hypercoagulable state with a possibility of vertical transmission of the disease.