Weil syndrome coincident with upper gastrointestinal bleeding

Rev Esp Enferm Dig. 2023 Aug;115(8):458-459. doi: 10.17235/reed.2022.9086/2022.

Abstract

A 48 year old male was referred to our center due to a gastrointestinal bleeding with melena secondary to a Forrest IIb gastric ulcer treated endoscopically. Physical examination revealed bilateral conjunctival suffusion, bradypsychia, and asterixis. Epidemiological history included a trip to Dominican Republic two weeks before, presenting later a flu-like syndrome. He had no history of NSAID use. Laboratory tests showed a normocytic anemia, leukocytosis with neutrophilia, acute renal failure, severe hyponatremia, a predominant direct hyperbilirubinemia, hyperamylasemia, and mild coagulopathy (Table 1). An abdominal ultrasound was performed, with no pathological findings, and a chest-abdominal computed tomography (CT), bilateral diffuse ground glass pulmonary opacities and pleural effusion, mild hepatomegaly, and peritoneal and gastrohepatic ligament lymphadenopathy, with no signs of acute pancreatitis. A second look upper endoscopy revealed a Forrest III gastric ulcer. Gastric biopsies results ruled out malignancy and Helicobacter pylori infection. Due to his recent travel history combined with his characteristic signs and symptoms a clinical diagnosis of leptospirosis was made and empirical antibiotic therapy with meropenem was started. The serology for Leptospira was positive (IgG 1/1600) and antibiotic therapy was de-escalated to ceftriaxone with clinical and analytical remission on day five of his hospital stay with complete radiological resolution at 6 months.

Publication types

  • Case Reports
  • Letter

MeSH terms

  • Acute Disease
  • Anti-Bacterial Agents / therapeutic use
  • Endoscopy, Gastrointestinal
  • Gastrointestinal Hemorrhage / complications
  • Helicobacter Infections* / drug therapy
  • Helicobacter pylori*
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Pancreatitis* / complications
  • Stomach Ulcer* / complications

Substances

  • Anti-Bacterial Agents