Aim To investigate continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) with CytoSorb ® cartridge for patients with life‐threatening COVID‐19 plus acute kidney injury (AKI), sepsis, acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), and cytokine release syndrome (CRS). Patients and methods Of 492 COVID‐19 patients admitted to our intensive care unit (ICU), 50 had AKI necessitating CRRT (10.16%) and were enrolled in the study. Upon ICU admission, all had AKI, ARDS, septic shock, and CRS. In addition to CRRT with CytoSorb ® , all received ARDS‐net ventilation, prone positioning, plus empiric ribavirin, interferon beta‐1b, antibiotics, hydrocortisone, and prophylactic anticoagulation. We retrospectively analyzed inflammatory biomarkers, oxygenation, organ function, duration of mechanical ventilation, ICU length‐of‐stay, and mortality on day‐28 post‐ICU admission. Results Patients were 49.64 ±8.90 years old (78% male) with body mass index of 26.70±2.76 kg/m 2 . On ICU admission, mean Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II, was 22.52±1.1. Sequential Organ Function Assessment (SOFA) score was 9.36±2.068 and the ratio of partial arterial pressure of oxygen to fractional inspired concentration of oxygen (PaO 2 /FiO 2 ) was 117.46±36.92. Duration of mechanical ventilation was 17.38±7.39 days, ICU length‐of‐stay was 20.70±8.83 days, and mortality 28 days post‐ICU admission was 30%. Non‐survivors had higher levels of inflammatory biomarkers, and more unresolved shock, ARDS, AKI, and pulmonary emboli (8% vs. 4 %, p<0.05) compared to survivors. After 2±1 CRRT sessions with CytoSorb ® , survivors had decreased SOFA scores, lactate dehydrogenase, ferritin, D‐dimers, C‐reactive protein, and interleukin‐6; and increased PaO 2 /FiO 2 ratios, and lymphocyte counts (all p<0.05). Receiver‐operator‐curve analysis showed that post therapy values of interleukin‐6 (cutoff point > 620 pg/ml) predicted in‐hospital mortality for critically ill COVID‐19 patients (area‐under‐the‐curve: 0.87, 95% confidence‐intervals: 0.81‐0.93; p=0.001). No side effects of therapy were recorded. Conclusion In this retrospective case‐series, CRRT with the CytoSorb ® cartridge provided a safe rescue therapy in life‐threatening COVID‐19 with associated AKI, ARDS, sepsis, and hyperinflammation.

This is a rare case-report of a young female with systemic lupus erythematosus and end-stage kidney disease (on maintenance hemodialysis) who was admitted to our intensive care unit due to life-threatening COVID-19. The patient was diagnosed with a flare of lupus; while being on maintenance hydroxychloroquine therapy. However, after the administration of steroids she made an uneventful recovery and was discharged home. In this report, the diagnostic dilemmas and the therapeutic challenges due to the overlapping clinical, imaging, and laboratory findings between lupus and COVID-19 pneumonitis are outlined. In conclusion, patients with lupus may be affected by COVID-19 despite the administration of hydroxychloroquine. The administration of steroids may have a beneficial effect on mitigating both the flare of SLE and the COVID-19 associated hyperinflammation.

Scarce data exist regarding the natural history of lung lesions detected on ultrasound in those who survive severe COVID-19 pneumonia.Objective-We performed a prospective analysis of point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) findings in critically ill COVID-19 patients during and after hospitalization.Methods-We enrolled 171 COVID-19 intensive care unit patients. POCUS of the lungs was performed with phased array (2-4 MHz), convex (2-6 MHz) and linear (10-15 MHz) transducers, scanning 12 lung areas. Chest computed tomography angiography was performed to exclude suspected pulmonary embolism. Survivors were clinically and sonographically evaluated during a 4 month period for evidence of residual lung injury. Chest computed tomography angiography and echocardiography were used to exclude pulmonary hypertension (PH) and chest high-resolution-computedtomography to exclude interstitial lung disease (ILD) in symptomatic survivors.Results-Cox regression analysis showed that lymphocytopenia (hazard ratio [HR]: 0.88, 95% confidence intervals [CI]: 0.68-0.96, p = .048), increased lactate (HR: 1.17, 95% CI: 0.94-1.46, p = 0.049), and D-dimers (HR: 1.21, 95% CI: 1.03-1.44, p = .03) were mortality predictors. Non-survivors had increased incidence of pulmonary abnormalities (B-lines, pleural line irregularities, and consolidations) compared to survivors (p < .05). During follow-up, POCUS with clinical and laboratory parameters integrated in the semi-quantitative Riyadh-Residual-Lung-Injury scale had sensitivity of 0.82 (95% CI: 0.76-0.89) and specificity of 0.91 (95% CI: 0.94-0.95) in predicting ILD. The prevalence of PH and ILD (non-specific-interstitial-pneumonia) was 7% and 11.8%, respectively. Conclusion-POCUSshowed ability to monitor the evolution of severe COVID-19 pneumonia after hospital discharge, supporting its integration in clinical predictive models of residual lung injury.

COVID-19 may present as acute abdomen although the pathophysiology remains obscure. A 45 year-old-man had severe COVID-19 pneumonia with associated pulmonary embolism, and presented with acute abdomen. He underwent emergency laparotomy, and resection of an ischemic area of the jejunum. Postoperatively, he had septic shock, acute-respiratory-distress-syndrome, and acute kidney injury necessitating continuous-renal-replacement-therapy (CRRT). We administered antibiotics and therapeutic anticoagulation along with two sessions of hemoadsorption by CytoSorb® filter, in conjunction to the CRRT. The patient finally survived. Bowel ischemia due to thromboembolic disease should be promptly treated. Extracorporeal blood purification may be useful in managing sepsis in severe COVID-19.

This is the first reported case, to our knowledge, of co-infection of Bordetella bronchiseptica and SARS-CoV-2 in a young patient with underlying idiopathic bronchiectasis and vitamin D 3 deficiency that was treated successfully with a combination therapeutic regime integrating doxycycline, empiric therapies for COVID-19, vitamin D supplementation, and supportive ICU care. Large prospective studies are required to investigate further the role of co-infections in COVID-19 patients with bronchiectasis. Randomized control trials should examine the putative beneficial role of vitamin D supplementation in patients with COVID-19.