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Since the outbreak of the pandemic coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), there has been an increasing need for treatment to decrease morbidity and mortality of patients presenting with severe disease symptoms. There has been increasing evidence to suggest that the pathophysiological basis is a severe inflammatory response that resembles the cytokine release syndrome. Current strategies to counteract this involve modifiers of the immune response such as interleukin (IL)-6 receptor blockers and Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitors. An example of a JAK inhibitor is baricitinib. In this case, we present a 17-year-old female admitted with severe COVID-19 symptoms, who was placed on high-flow nasal cannula and started on azithromycin and hydroxychloroquine, which were standard of care at the time. Due to the worsening of symptoms, she was given baricitinib for compassionate use. There was a rapid improvement in clinical and imaging findings, and the patient was discharged from the hospital within 8 days of admission. This study is fascinating because there are very limited studies published on the benefits of baricitinib in managing patients with severe symptoms of COVID-19 especially in the pediatric population, and the rapidity in recovery time was remarkable.

There has been increasing evidence of co-infections with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pneumonia, which increases the severity of the disease. Organisms such as Klebsiella pneumoniae and Streptococcus pneumoniae have been previously isolated. We present a case of a COVID-19 patient treated with baricitinib and dexamethasone who later developed Klebsiella pneumoniae-carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) and Candida dubliniensis bloodstream infections, treated with meropenem/vaborbactam and micafungin, respectively. These infections are exceedingly rare and are mostly reported in immunosuppressed patients. The finding of these bloodstream infections raises concerns on the cause of immunosuppression in this patient infected with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) treated with baricitinib and dexamethasone. There has been no report so far of COVID-19 associated with these co-infections.

Spontaneous regression of cancer is a rarely recognized entity in modern medicine. Historically, this was recognized and hypothesized that an infection causes immune activation, indirectly stimulating the body to destroy tumor cells. Similarly, immune-oncology has now become a major modality in the treatment of solid and some liquid malignancies. However, now with improved therapeutic modalities in the oncology world, one does not get to appreciate our own immune system’s ability to fight cancer. We present a patient who had spontaneous regression of metastatic adenocarcinoma of the gastroesophageal junction (GEJ). The patient is a 58-year-old female who had presented with early satiety and dysphagia for which she underwent esophagogastroduodenoscopy which showed an esophageal mass and endoscopic ultrasounds (EUSs) confirmed adenocarcinoma of the GEJ with metastasis to the regional lymph nodes and left supraclavicular lymph nodes. The patient had refused to undergo any surgical, medical oncological, or holistic treatments. Interim disease monitoring positron emission tomography-computed tomography (PET-CT) showed resolution of the metastatic sites of gastroesophageal cancer with clinical improvement of her symptoms. She continues to have this distant regression of metastatic gastroesophageal cancer six months after the initial diagnosis. In literature, spontaneous cancer regression has been reported in melanoma, renal cell carcinoma, and basal cell carcinoma. To our knowledge, this is the first case reported of spontaneous regression of metastatic lesions involving adenocarcinoma of the GEJ with no medical or surgical intervention.

Antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) is managed with warfarin for secondary prophylaxis in patients who have had a thrombotic event in the past. Warfarin has been deemed superior to novel oral anticoagulants in preventing venous and arterial thrombosis in conjunction with aspirin. The catastrophic variant of APS (CAPS) is very rarely reported, especially in those who have been on a therapeutic dose of warfarin therapy. We present a rare case of CAPS in a patient with a history of APS who had been on a therapeutic dose of warfarin along with aspirin therapy. The patient is a 70-year-old male with APS diagnosed 30 years prior when he presented with a pulmonary embolism; aspirin was added to warfarin two years ago when he had a cerebrovascular accident (CVA). He presented to the hospital with acute onset right-sided weakness and aphasia, left lower extremity pain. He had ischemic CVA, acute deep vein thrombosis (DVT), acute renal failure with a creatinine of 2.8, anemia with hemoglobin of 3.8, gastrointestinal bleed (GIB) on EGD, with INR of 3.48 cardiolipin IgM of >140g/L. He was transfused packed red blood cells, fresh frozen plasma, and provided Vit K. Subsequently, he had a cardiac arrest and was intubated and placed on a mechanical ventilator. Given simultaneous multiorgan involvement, acute arterial and venous thrombosis, the patient was diagnosed with CAPS. The patient was started on high-dose dexamethasone, intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG), and underwent plasma exchange with significant improvement in symptoms, laboratory parameters; and was extubated with near normalization of his speech and motor deficits. He was discharged on enoxaparin and prednisone with sustained clinical improvement two months following discharge. This patient was on the recommended treatment for APS. However, he had presented with a CAPS. This is the first reported case of warfarin refractory CAPS. This case highlights that there might be a subgroup of the population in whom warfarin is not an effective form of treatment modality for an unknown cause, and in fact, it could potently expose a patient to the adverse events related to warfarin therapy as it did in our patient who had significant GIB. This case also highlights the uncommon scenario of spontaneous CAPS with no inciting event as previously reported in the literature, such as infection, recent surgeries, or trauma.

Hypertriglyceridemia is the third most common etiology for acute pancreatitis (AP), after alcohol and gallstones. Clinical evidence is relatively weak in its support of plasmapheresis for the treatment of hypertriglyceridemia-induced acute pancreatitis (HTG-AP). We report a case of severe HTG-AP in a young man who was successfully treated with plasmapheresis. The patient achieved full resolution of symptoms within 48 hours from presentation and was discharged two days later. To our knowledge, no other report in literatures shows such dramatic response to plasmapheresis.

Malaria is transmitted by the Plasmodium parasite, and most of the cases reported in the United States are often as a result of patients with recent return from endemic areas. Prompt diagnosis and treatment, particularly if there is severe parasitemia and drug failure, is essential in preventing mortality. Our patient had an unusual rapid rise in parasite but susceptible to intravenous artesunate.