A patient with mild respiratory COVID-19 infection who developed bilateral non-hemorrhagic adrenal infarction

A 76-year-old woman was admitted to the emergency room of Nagano Municipal Hospital with the complain of severe back pain. Chest and abdominal enhanced computed tomography scans showed bilateral adrenal infarction and minute pulmonary nodules, but she had no respiratory symptoms. After admission, a family member of the patient was found to have been in close contact with a coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patient. Thus, polymerase chain reaction and antigen tests of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 were conducted, and both tests returned positive. D-dimer levels were normal on admission but increased 2 days thereafter. Anticoagulation therapy and steroid replacement were started, and the patient improved over about two weeks. One month after the onset of adrenal infarction, a rapid adrenocorticotropic hormone loading test was conducted, which revealed that the primary adrenal insufficiency due to adrenal infarction might have been caused by the COVID-19 infection. This case was rare and suggestive of adrenal infarction with COVID-19, which usually presents at the severe stage. In patients with COVID-19, attention should be paid to the onset of thrombosis, even with mild respiratory infection. We also suggest that patients with thrombosis should be suspected of having COVID-19 even in the absence of respiratory infectious symptoms in a situation of COVID-19 epidemic.