Gruesome pictures show how coronavirus ravaged blood vessels of a woman’s fingers that had to be amputated. A 86-year-old Covid-infected woman’s three fingers had to be cut off after the disease attacked her blood vessels, turning them black.
The pictures were shared in a medical journal, European Journal of Vascular and Endovascular Surgery, of the ‘necrotic’ dead fingers which the doctors in Italy called a case of ‘severe manifestation’ of coronavirus. Similar cases have been found in many coronavirus patient where it has caused severe damage to blood vessels, causing dangerous blockages known as blood clots.
The elderly Italian woman was said to have ‘dry gangrene of the second, fourth and fifth fingers of the right hand’ but didn’t show any symptoms of Covid-19, states the journal. Scientists believe that she suffered blood clots that cut off supply to her fingers.
Mirror reports that she has acute coronary syndrome in March in which blood flow to the heart is reduced suddenly and blood clots cut off supply to her fingers. Immune system can go into overdrive in the ‘cykotine storm’ when healthy tissue can be damaged, and if blood vessels are damaged,there is a chance of them leaking, hence, blood pressure can drop and patients can have increased clots forming.
In March, the woman was prescribed blood-thinning drugs when doctors found a lack of flow into her heart. When she was tested for coronavirus by doctors in Fermo in Rome, the results came positive. With no symptoms of corona, a month later, the woman developed dry gangrene resulting in her fingers turning black.
Doctors found that she had low pressure in the digital arteries. The medical team had to amputate her three fingers, and after an examination of the dead tissue under a microscope, signs of intravascular thrombosis were found.
Grahan Cooke, Professor at National Institute for Health Research, said that Covid is a multi-system disease and one of its features that differs it from other viral diseases is this more hypercoagulable state, in which the blood clots more than necessary.
Doctors have claimed that they have noticed a large amount of Covid-19 patients with blood clotting issues.
Daily Mail reports that Professor Roopen Arya, from King’s College London, estimated that 30% of coronavirus patients had blood clots in May.
He added that it is clear that thrombosis is a major problem during COVID-19 infection.