SARS-CoV-2, recurrent ischemic strokes and carotid macrothrombosis: the other face of the cytokine storm (a case report)

Since December 2019, the world has experienced the emergence in China of a new infection called severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). This infection quickly has progressed to a global pandemic since March 2020, with very high human-to-human transmission rate. Besides lung injury, COVID-19 is also associated with cardio and neurovascular complications. Herein, we report the case of a 77-year-old female who presented with non-severe COVID-19 and multiple ischemic strokes secondary to an extensive carotid thrombosis. The ischemic stroke was supposed to have been caused by the cytokine storm related to COVID-19. The possibility of hemorrhagic transformation, based on the assessment of bleeding score, limited the use of anticoagulation, and probably explained the stroke recurrence and poor outcome in our patient. The pathogenic mechanism and the management of this complex situation are still lacking and further studies are needed.