‘He had no symptoms, but his fingers were fast turning blue’: Doctors save Mumbai resident

The discolouration seen on the fingers of the patient’s left hand

A Bandra resident's hand, and life, were saved in the nick of time after doctors diagnosed his rare Covid-19 complication - blood clots in his veins - and immediately started treatment. The 42-year-old patient was referred to SevenHills Hospital (SHH) after three of his fingers on the left hand turned blue.

The patient first went to a local physician, who asked him to get tested for Covid-19. While the test returned positive, the patient had no other symptoms except the discolouration. This alerted doctors to the rare complication of arterial thrombosis that endangered his left hand.

"This patient came to us at night. He didn't have fever or cough. He was absolutely normal but had this discolouration of three fingers. We knew it could be arterial thrombosis and we needed to act immediately," said Dr Ganesh Manudhane, head of cardiology, SHH.

What is arterial thrombosis?

Arterial thrombosis happens when a blood clot forms in an artery. Arteries are blood vessels that carry oxygen-rich blood to various parts of
the body.

Doctors said the rare complication of arterial thrombosis endangered the patient's left hand

"Tests followed by peripheral angiography revealed that of the two arteries of his left hand, one had partial blockage and the other had complete blockage. The blood clots can lead to an acute circulatory cut-off of oxygen in the limb, increasing the risk of gangrene. It was important to restore the blood flow," said Dr Manudhane.

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The doctors performed a ‘thrombo-suction thrombectomy' to extract the clots. "A catheter was inserted from the patient's right thigh region to his left hand and kept for 24 hours. A thrombolytic drug was given to dissolve the remaining clots," said Dr Manudhane. Within 24-hours, the bluish colour disappeared.

Dr Manudhane's team has operated on five such patients in the past month, including the latest patient. "We hardly saw arterial thrombosis cases in the first wave. Unlike the other four, the only symptom this patient presented was the discolouration. We are glad that he was brought to us on time," said Dr Manudhane.

Covid-19 patients with blood clots are at risk of a stroke (clot in the cerebral artery), clots in the lungs, heart attack, deep vein thrombosis, and thrombosis in both upper and lower limb arteries.

"It is well known that thrombotic events happen in Covid-19 patients. Early diagnosis and management with medication and required surgical intervention can save lives. Multidisciplinary approach is essential to handle Covid-19 patients," said Dr Maharudra Kumbhar, officer on special duty at SHH.

24 hrs
Time in which discolouration disappeared post treatment