Lorazepam:- A ‘boon’ for catatonic patients, concomitantly having: Covid-19 infection: A rare case report

BACKGROUND: - ”Catatonia” is characterized by alterations in motor, behavioral, and vocal signs occurring in the context of medical, neurologic, & psychiatric disorders. While considering medical etiology, renal failure has been described as one of the factors. It may result in seizures & catatonia. Furthermore, renal failure even though rare has also been implicated in the causation. AIM: - We aim to report a rare case describing multiple etiologies (Renal failure, Seizure, Covid-19) & treatment in a patient with catatonia. RESULT/CASE REPORT: - The patient had Covid-19 infection with concomitant renal insufficiency with uremia. He developed an episode of seizure on 3(rd) day of admission and subsequently developed catatonic symptoms in the post-ictal phase. He did not respond to anticonvulsive treatment but did so with Lorazepam. DISCUSSION: - A variety of conditions can produce catatonia. It is less widely recognized that this state may be caused by seizures; which in turn can also be due to renal failure. Catatonia occurring in the wake of seizures generally responds to the anticonvulsive medication. Even though rare and anecdotal, catatonia has been reported in a few cases reports in patients suffering from Covid-19 infection & it can occur in both the para & post-infectious states. CONCLUSION: - We also want to highlight that lorazepam proved to be an effective and safe choice for the treatment of catatonic symptoms & eventually led to the improvement in the symptomatology of Covid-19. Therefore, we also propose further studies for the treatment of such patients.