The Commonest Medical, Surgical, and Oncological Causes of Acute Abdomen in Adults With COVID-19. A Prospective Observational Study.

Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses that can cause mild to severe respiratory infections. 2019-nCoV is a novel coronavirus that was discovered in Wuhan, China. Since its discovery in humans in late 2019, it has had a global, rapid spread. Dry cough, fever, and fatigue are the most common symptoms in the first two to 14 days after exposure.

At the moment, it is unknown how common gastrointestinal symptoms are. However, COVID-19's initial clinical presentations have become more evident as the pandemic has progressed and case data has been gathered, and literature suggests that digestive symptoms are prevalent .

In a recent systematic review and meta-analysis of 47 studies involving 10,890 patients with COVID-19, the pooled prevalence of gastrointestinal symptoms were 7.7 % for diarrhea, 7.8% for nausea/vomiting, and 2.7% for abdominal pain. Only a few cases of isolated abdominal pain have been reported.

A wide range of diseases can cause acute abdominal pain, and diagnosing them can be difficult. The examining physician should prioritize life-threatening conditions that may necessitate immediate surgical intervention with such a broad differential diagnosis to avoid further mortality or morbidity. The objective of this study was to determine the characteristics, incidence, severity and of acute abdominal pain (medical and surgical causes) during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Acute abdominal pain in COVID-19 patients poses a diagnostic quandary for clinicians. Delays in treating an acute abdomen can lead to severe complications and even death. In contrast, performing unnecessary surgery on COVID-19 patients results in increased morbidity and mortality, increased strain on healthcare resources, and an increased risk of exposure for healthcare workers in operative fields. This study aimed to determine the characteristics, incidence and severity, and of various medical and surgical causes of acute abdomen in COVID-19. According to our study, gastritis is the most common medical cause of acute abdomen (19.2%). While acute appendicitis (42.4%), acute cholecystitis (11%), and biliary colic (9.8%) are the most frequently encountered surgical causes of acute abdomen, acute pancreatitis occurred in (3%) of cases and mainly was benign in course. Except for acute appendicitis, intestinal ischemia and liver abscesses, the severity of all causes of acute abdomen did not worsen.