Purtscher-like retinopathy in a patient with COVID-19 and disseminated intravascular coagulation

Effie Z. Rahman, Pooja Shah, Jeremy E. Ong, Morton Goldberg, Sally S. Ong

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

17 Scopus citations

Abstract

Purpose: To describe a unique case of Purtscher-like retinopathy after a severe, complicated COVID-19 course which included development of disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC). Observations: A 58-year-old male developed blurry vision in the left eye one week after being discharged from the hospital for severe COVID-19 pneumonia and DIC. He had been intubated and ventilated for 5 days. Fundus examination revealed optic nerve hyperemia in the right eye, optic nerve pallor in the left eye, arteriolar attenuation, multiple cotton wool spots and ill-defined areas of retinal whitening in the posterior pole in both eyes. His exam findings were most consistent with Purtscher-like retinopathy in both eyes. Conclusions and Importance: While several cases of central retinal artery and vein occlusion have been described in COVID-19 patients thus far, there has not been any reported cases of Purtscher-like retinopathy. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first case of Purtscher-like retinopathy in a patient who developed DIC during a severe COVID-19 infection.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Article number101229
JournalAmerican Journal of Ophthalmology Case Reports
Volume24
DOIs
StatePublished - Dec 2021

Keywords

  • COVID-19 retinopathy
  • Disseminated intravascular coagulation in COVID-19
  • Purtscher-like retinopathy

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Ophthalmology

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