A rare but potentially serious coronavirus-related syndrome could be behind the death of a doctor in Tennesee, according to a local report.
Dr. Barton Williams, a 36-year-old orthopedic physician from Memphis, is suspected of having died of multisystemic inflammatory syndrome in adults (MIS-A).
The condition, which is similar to Kawasaki’s disease, has affected children most since the beginning of the pandemic; Multisystemic inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) usually involves shock, cardiac dysfunction, stomach pain and hyperinflammation, among other complications.
Williams, who died last week at Baptist Memorial Hospital-Memphis, may have had an asymptomatic case of COVID-19, Dr. Stephen Threlkeld, an infectious disease specialist at the hospital, told a local news station.
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Similar to children who develop MIS-C, adults who develop MIS-A usually do so in the weeks following a coronavirus infection, in what is believed to be a delayed immune response to the virus.
Threlkeld told the Daily Memphian that Williams tested negative for COVID-19 several times in the hospital, but was later found to have antibodies against the virus from the natural coronavirus infection, in addition to those that his immune system created after he received the vaccine.
“The immune system’s response is to eradicate the virus. One of its most fundamental characteristics is the ability to shut down when it is done,” said Dr. Scott Strome, executive dean of the University of Tennessee Health Science School of Medicine. . the Daily Memphian.
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“He has to know when he is ready. If he does not have this, you will have an autoimmune situation. Whatever the reason, the body still thinks it has a threat and does not shut down on its own. So you have this systematic inflammation,” he added.
Still, MIS-A was not named as the ultimate cause of Williams’ death, with Threlkeld noting that an autopsy is pending. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are also investigating the man’s death, he said.
“It is difficult to draw broad conclusions in any direction when you are talking about something that has not been reported before anywhere,” Threlkeld told the newspaper. “Previously, no one has been informed of having this disease (MIS) who also had the vaccine. More than thirty-three million people have been vaccinated so far in the United States and none of these people have been reported to have this process. Only people who have had infections with SARS-CoV-2 had this process taking place. “
The CDC in October identified MIS-A for the first time, based on reports from 27 patients who had “cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, dermatological and neurological symptoms without severe respiratory disease and simultaneously received positive test results for SARS-CoV-2. “
MIS-A is still unknown, with a series of uncertainties about the schedule from SARS-CoV-2 infection to the beginning of MIS-A. However, the CDC report suggested that “MIS-A and MIS-C may represent post-infectious processes.” Adults who reported typical symptoms of COVID-19 developed MIS-A about two to five weeks later.
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Patients with MIS-A may not be tested positive for COVID-19, given the onset of the syndrome weeks later. The agency emphasized the importance of testing antibodies for previous SARS-CoV-2 infection to recognize and treat MIS-A.
“The results indicate that adult patients of all ages with current or previous SARS-CoV-2 infection may develop a hyperinflamatory syndrome similar to MIS-C,” wrote the authors at the time, adding that measures to limit the spread of COVID -19 can help prevent MIS -UMA.
Kayla Rivas of Fox News contributed to this report.