Hany A. El-Hady; Enas M. Darwish; Mona Kamal Eldeeb; May Abdelfattah; Doaa Elwazzan; Nessren M. Abd el-Rady; Amany Abosaif; Mohamed F.H. Abdallah; Marian S. Boshra; Rania M. Sarhan; Amany Abdel-Rahman; Taher Halawa; Amerah Rabee; Mohamed A. Abdelgawad; Gomaa Mostafa-Hedeab
Volume 24, Issue 5 , 2022
Abstract
Although it was initially believed that the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) only attacked the respiratory system, reports over time demonstrated that this disease could attack the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) as well. The predominant presenting symptoms in patients infected with COVID-19 were gastrointestinal ...
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Although it was initially believed that the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) only attacked the respiratory system, reports over time demonstrated that this disease could attack the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) as well. The predominant presenting symptoms in patients infected with COVID-19 were gastrointestinal (GI), resulting in GI pathological changes. While clinicians concerns are mostly related to respiratory system manifestations, GI symptoms should be monitored and managed appropriately.
This review summarizes the essential information about COVID-19 GIT infection in terms of pathogenesis, major pathological changes, microbiological bases of infection, the possibility of feco-oral transmission, the severity of associated symptoms, the major radiological findings, the impact on GI surgery, the role of therapeutic agents in induction or magnification of GI symptoms, and a pitfall on the nutritional supplementation in COVID-19 patients.
