Gastrointestinal symptoms in COVID-19 and its implications in inflammatory bowel disease

Abstract

The SARS-Cov-2 pandemic has taken great relevance due to its diverse impact in the worldwide health systems. Initially, only the importance or respiratory symptoms and fever was considered, however daily we have more reports and publications about the relevance that gastrointestinal symptoms, like diarrhea, vomit, and abdominal pain, are having in COVID-19. Several studies have identified SARS-CoV-2 RNA in stool samples of infected patients, and it was also found that the viral receptor, the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor is highly express in the gastrointestinal cells. These findings suggest that SARS-Cov-2 can actively infect and replicate in the gastrointestinal tract. All the above have relevant implications in the disease treatment, transmission, and infection control. In patients with chronic pathologies, such as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), many questions and uncertainties, about symptoms severity, disease decompensation and use of immunosuppressive drugs, have been generated in the presence of COVID-19.