Background
Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is a double-stranded deoxyribonucleic acid virus
belonging to the Herpesviridae family. 1 It is more
commonly seen in individuals with immunosuppressive diseases, including
inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), hematological malignancy, organ
transplantation, acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), or therapies
such as cancer, and corticosteroids. 2 However, most
of the CMV-related infections in immunocompetent individuals go
undetected, 3 and presented as fever, sometimes with
pancytopenia. Diarrhea (watery and bloody in severe cases) may begin to
develop as an inflammatory response. Ulcerative changes can be seen when
the colon tissue affected by CMV.
Subsequently, inflammatory polyps may develop, which, rarely, may cause
colon obstruction. Severe inflammation and vasculitis may lead to bowel
perforation and peritonitis
due to ischemia and transmural necrosis. 4 We describe
a case of COVID-19 pneumonia on immunosuppressive treatment presenting
with lower gastrointestinal bleeding due to CMV colitis confirmed by
histopathology.