Management of Acute Severe Ulcerative Colitis in a Pregnant Woman With COVID-19 Infection: A Case Report and Review of the Literature
Melissa Rosen, Jordan E. Axelrad, David Hudesman, David T. Rubin, Shannon Chang
Abstract
First detected in Wuhan, China, the novel 2019 severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is an enveloped RNA beta-coronavirus responsible for an unprecedented, worldwide pandemic caused by COVID-19. Optimal management of immunosuppression in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patients with COVID-19 infection currently is based on expert opinion, given the novelty of the infection and the corresponding lack of high-level evidence in patients with immune-mediated conditions. There are limited data regarding IBD patients with COVID-19 and no data regarding early pregnancy in the era of COVID-19. This article describes a patient with acute severe ulcerative colitis (UC) during her first trimester of pregnancy who also has COVID-19. The case presentation is followed by a review of the literature to date on COVID-19 in regard to inflammatory bowel disease and pregnancy, respectively.