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World J Clin Cases. Jul 6, 2021; 9(19): 4990-4997
Published online Jul 6, 2021. doi: 10.12998/wjcc.v9.i19.4990
COVID-19 and gastroenteric manifestations
Zhang-Ren Chen, Jing Liu, Zhi-Guo Liao, Jian Zhou, Hong-Wei Peng, Fei Gong, Jin-Fang Hu, Ying Zhou
Zhang-Ren Chen, Jing Liu, Zhi-Guo Liao, Jian Zhou, Hong-Wei Peng, Fei Gong, Jin-Fang Hu, Ying Zhou, Department of Pharmacy, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University, Nanchang 330100, Jiangxi Province, China
Author contributions: Chen ZR wrote the manuscript; Liu J, Liao ZG, Zhou J, Peng HW, and Gong F encouraged and supervised the manuscript; Hu JF and Zhou Y revised, supervised, and approved the manuscript.
Supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China, No. 81903724; Natural Science Foundation of Jiangxi Province, No. 20181BBG70008.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors have no conflict of interest.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Ying Zhou, PhD, Associate Chief Pharmacist, Research Assistant Professor, Research Scientist, Department of Pharmacy, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University, No. 17 Yongwaizhengjie, Donghu District, Nanchang 330100, Jiangxi Province, China. zyyiva@163.com
Received: January 26, 2021
Peer-review started: January 27, 2021
First decision: February 27, 2021
Revised: March 14, 2021
Accepted: May 15, 2021
Article in press: May 15, 2021
Published online: July 6, 2021
Abstract

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by the infection of a novel coronavirus [severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2)], has become a pandemic. The infection has resulted in about one hundred million COVID-19 cases and millions of deaths. Although SARS-CoV-2 mainly spreads through the air and impairs the function of the respiratory system, it also attacks the gastrointestinal epithelial cells through the same receptor, angiotensin converting enzyme 2 receptor, which results in gastroenteric symptoms and potential fecal-oral transmission. Besides the infection of SARS-CoV-2, the treatments of COVID-19 also contribute to the gastroenteric manifestations due to the adverse drug reactions of anti-COVID-19 drugs. In this review, we update the clinical features, basic studies, and clinical practices of COVID-19-associated gastroenteric manifestations.

Keywords: COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, Gastroenteric manifestations, Adverse drug reaction, Management

Core Tip: Gastroenteric manifestations, including anorexia, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, and gastrointestinal bleeding, can worsen the situation of patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). More efforts should be spared to understand its pathology and mechanism. Besides the infection of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 virus, the treatments of COVID-19 also contribute to the gastroenteric manifestations due to the adverse drug reactions of anti-COVID-19 drugs. Timely supportive or symptomatic treatment and withdrawal of adverse drug reaction-inducing drugs can help to manage COVID-19-associated gastroenteric manifestations.