G6PD Deficiency Revealed by Sars-Cov-2 Infection: A Case Report from Senegal

Abstract

We report the case of a young girl in whom the diagnosis of G6PD deficiency was revealed by an infection with COVID 19. The patient was 17 years old, with no particular personal pathological history. Clinical examination revealed sepsis, with right basal pulmonary condensation syndrome, anemia, hemolytic icterus with non-discolored stools and dark urine, but no splenomegaly. The frontal chest X-ray showed blurred opacities in the lower right lung and the middle left lung. Thoracic angioscanner ruled out pulmonary embolism, but showed a typical appearance of  SARS-COV pneumonitis of minimal severity. The COVID-19 direct antigen test was positive, and the sputum cytobacteriological examination did not isolate any germs. The blood smear showed anisopoikylocytosis with the presence of numerous phantom red blood cells or hemighost, bitten red blood cells or "bite cells", with the absence of spherocytes and elliptocytes. Hemoglobin electrophoresis was performed, as well as G6PD assay, which had collapsed to 2.6 IU/g Hb (7 - 10 IU/d hemoglobin). After two weeks of hospitalization, the evolution was favorable, the Covid PCR test was negative and the control blood count showed a hemoglobin level of 12.1 g/dl.