This version of BIP! Finder aims to ease the exploration of COVID-19-related literature by enabling ranking articles based on various impact metrics.
Last Update: 18 - 01 - 2023 (628506 entries)
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| Title | Venue | Year | Impact | Source | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5601 | Post-vaccination COVID-19 among Healthcare workers in a Tertiary Care Hospital, Malaysia Purpose To describe the sociodemographic, comorbidities, indication of RT-PCR testing, number of doses of vaccine received, COVID-19 category among the post-vaccination healthcare workers. Methods & Materials A retrospective secondary data analysis was conducted at University of Malaya Medical Centre (UMMC), a tertiary referral and teaching hospital with more than 6000 HCWs located in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Immunisation Programme at UMMC started on 1st March 2021, prioritising medical and non-medical frontline staff. All HCWs were included in the study if they have received either one or completed both doses of BNT162b2 (Pfizer-BioNTech) vaccine and was subsequently inflicted with COVID-19 between 1st March until 31st May 2021. HCW were excluded whose gestation was not between 14-33 weeks at the time of the first dose and individuals who had a history of severe anaphylaxis reaction. Results A total of 39 HCWs tested positive for SARS CoV-2 through RT-PCR. 6(15.4%) of them tested positive after their first dose while 33 (84.6%) staff were confirmed to be infected after receiving the second dose. For the job category, 21(53.8%) nurses, 7(18%) physicians, 6 attendants (15.4%) and 5(12.8%) supporting staff were infected. 21 were indicated for testing because of close contact with positive SARS CoV-2 patients, whether they were symptomatic or not during the time of testing. The balance of the HCW were tested because they presented with symptoms ranging from mild flu and sore throat to cough and fever. 11 of the HCW (28.2 %) have underlying comorbidity declared prior to vaccination and the rest did not declare any previous underlying medical illness. 33.3%(n=13) of the HCW tested positive were in category 1 and 66.7%(n=26) in category 2. Both categories did not require any hospital admission and they were closed monitoring throughout the maximum of 10 days for isolation at home. They were only admitted if unable to isolate themselves at home. Conclusion Well-organized surveillance system is essential for early detection of infected HCW. COVID-19 vaccination among HCW did not only prevent them from getting seriously ill, but also reduced the need for ICU admission and eventually reduced the burden of the disease in the country. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5602 | Evaluation of neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio as a predicted marker for the assessment of severe Coronavirus Disease-19 patients under a resource-constrained setting Purpose Analysis of clinical and laboratory markers are critical to determining the disease severity in Coronavirus Disease-19 (COVID-19) patients. The purpose of this study was to evaluate neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR) as a predicting marker of severe COVID-19 cases under the resource-constrained setting. Methods & Materials This retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted among the purposively selected 71 COVID-19 patients admitted to the COVID hospital of the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU) from March 2021 to May 2021. The study population was grouped into mild to moderate COVID-19 (n=25) and Severe COVID-19 (n=46) patients based on the World Health Organization (WHO) COVID-19 disease severity classification. The predictive performance of the NLR for the assessment of severity in the COVID-19 population was determined by generating receiver operative characteristics (ROC) curves to obtain the best cut-off value. Results Among the study populations, none of the studied laboratory parameters was found to significantly varied between the mild to moderate and severe COVID-19 patients group except NLR. NLR values in severe COVID-19 patients (median: 12.57, IQR:3.79-18.6) were found significantly higher (P<0.01) than that of the mild to moderate COVID-19 group (median: 3.45; IQR: 2.71-8.16). Based on the ROC curve analysis, the best cut off value to determining the severe COVID-19 cases over mild to moderate COVID-19 patients was 4.26 with a sensitivity and specificity of 71.1% and 52.4% respectively. The area under the curve (AUC) was 0.701 with a 95% confidence interval (95% CI) of 0.557 to 0.845. Conclusion This study demonstrated NLR as a low-cost laboratory predictor for the assessment of disease severity in COVID-19 patients that can be utilized under resource constraints settings. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5603 | Trends of a syndromic approached based respiratory PCR during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in a tertiary care center in Mumbai Purpose The clinical presentation of COVID 19 disease caused by Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Related Coronavirus – 2 (SARS-CoV2) is similar to other causes of upper respiratory viral infections caused by influenza, epidemic corona viruses, Parainfluenza virus etc. This study was undertaken to study the presence of different pathogens in the nasopharyngeal samples of symptomatic patients visiting the COVID OPD or the Emergency services over six month duration. Methods & Materials This was a prospective study from Dec 2020 to May 2021 conducted in a 220 bed tertiary care hospital in Mumbai. We are a designated COVID care hospital with 55 isolation beds including 16 beds in the COVID ICU, a dedicated OPD for symptomatic patients and Emergency services (EMS). The test was performed on a syndromic approach based respiratory PCR with 22 targets inclusive of SARS-CoV2. Nasal and a pharyngeal swab samples (NPS) were collected and the results of the test were available in 1.5 hours from sample receipt to the lab. Results A total of 335 patient samples were received during the study period for the syndromic approach based PCR. 133 (39.7%) of the symptomatic patients had a positive test result. 87(26%) SARS-CoV2 and 27(8.05%) Rhinovirus/Enterovirus (RhV/EV) were the two common viruses that were identified during the study duration. Other viruses, like Parainfluenza 3 (PIV3), Coronavirus 229E (229E), Coronavirus HKU1 (HKU1), Influenza AH3 (AH3), H1N1, Coronavirus OC43 (OC43) and Adenovirus were also identified. We observed co-infections 1 each of RhV/EV+AH3, RhV/EV + OC43, SARS-CoV2 +PIV3 and 2 cases of SARS-CoV2+HKU1. The trend indicated the appearance of the 2nd wave of SARS-CoV2 infection that Mumbai experienced between 1st March to 15th May 2021. Other pathogens were mostly seen in the symptomatic population especially before and after the 2nd wave. Conclusion Our study documented the appearance of the second wave in Mumbai between 1st March to 15th May 2021. Approximately,34.5% of patients has other respiratory pathogens detected in the syndromic PCR. This is the 1st study from Mumbai documenting the types of respiratory pathogens and co infections seen during the 2nd wave of the COVID 19 pandemic in Mumbai. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5604 | Asymptomatic forms of COVID-19 in pregnant women: long-term consequences Purpose to establish the long-term effect of asymptomatic forms of COVID-19 on the course of pregnancy. Methods & Materials An analysis of pregnancy outcomes was carried out in 40 women who had asymptomatic forms of COVID-19. Results The COVID-19 pandemic in conditions of high fertility in the southern regions of Kazakhstan caused pregnant women to become ill with coronavirus infection, including asymptomatic forms. Often asymptomatic forms remain undiagnosed and unaccounted for. We have studied cases of visits to a doctor by pregnant women for various reasons: stopping fetal movement, reducing the size of the abdomen and other complications of pregnancy. When examining them by ultrasound, oligohydroamnion was detected in 85% of cases, premature aging of the placenta, placental cysts in 27.5%, and impaired blood flow in the utero-fetal-placental circulation in 12.5%. Subsequently, 51.4% of women gave birth at full term, 48.5% gave birth prematurely, that is every second woman in the study group gave birth prematurely. In a detailed retrospective laboratory examination of women with the above pathology, IgG SARS-Cov-2 was detected in 92.5% of cases, indicating an asymptomatic coronavirus infection. The development of obstetric complications required from the medical staff reinforced observation and additional assessment, more frequent reclassification of the condition of the mother and fetus, and in some cases induction of labor. This tactic was applied in 12 cases (34.2% of the total number of women who gave birth), when prolongation of pregnancy was associated with a high risk to the health of the mother and fetus. Conclusion Asymptomatic forms of COVID-19 in pregnant women have long-term consequences in the form of oligohydroamnion, premature aging of the placenta and impaired uterine blood flow. All cases of the transferred coronavirus infection in pregnant women, including asymptomatic ones, require more careful, in comparison with the generally accepted and frequent monitoring of pregnancy, in the form of control of the gravidogram, measurement of the abdominal circumference, the height of the uterine fundus, control ultrasonography of the fetus, amniotic fluid and uterine dopplerometry of fetal-placental blood flow. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5605 | Emerging COVID-associated Mucor-Aspergillosis-A Need of Separate Definition Purpose During COVID pandemic, several cases of isolated COVID-associated mucormycosis and COVID-associated pulmonary aspergillosis have been reported. There is no data regarding both infections in same patients. Herein, we present series of ten consecutive cases with dual invasive molds in patients infected with SARS-CoV-2. Methods & Materials Among patients hospitalized with diagnosis of COVID in May 2021 at a tertiary care center in North India, ten microbiologically confirmed dual/mixed COVID-associated mucor-aspergillosis (CAMA) were analysed. We hypothesised case definition for Covid-associated mucormycosis and aspergillosis infection derived from EORTC/MSG, as possible, probable, and proven CAMA. Results Six men and four women had a mean age of 49.2 ± 8.8 years. All patients were diabetic with history of COVID pneumonia. Patients presented with headache, fever, altered sensorium, decrease vision, nasal obstruction, periorbital swelling, nasal stuffiness, nasal discharge. Rhizopus arrhizus was isolated in all, Aspergillus flavus in seven and Aspergillus fumigatus in three patients. Patient 2,5,6,8,9 were histopathologically proven dual infections with patient 3 & 7 having only angioinvasion. Patients received amphotericin B and all except 3 were managed by surgical debridement, the remaining 3 succumbed. Conclusion These findings may help towards a better insight into the clinical profile of invasive CAMA and thus we propose a definition in connotation with EORTC/MSG for IFD. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5606 | Rare cases of systemic phaeohyphomycoses caused by Bipolaris species as a Post SARS-COV 2 sequelae Purpose The deadly second wave of COVID-19 brought an unprecedented rise of cases of associated invasive fungal infections. In this study we present two rare cases of systemic phaeohyphomycoses by Bipolaris species as a Post SARS-COV 2 sequelae, which may usually be neglected as contaminants. Methods & Materials Retrospective study of 1150 specimens received from patients with a high index of clinical suspicion of invasive fungal infections from April 2021 to June 2021 to identify cases of invasive phaehyphomycoses among post COVID patients. Diagnosis of phaeohyphomycoses was established on microbiological evidence including microscopy and culture, and radiological evidence along with supporting clinical features. The diagnosis of phaeohyphomycoses was confirmed when dark pigmented thin septate hyphae with or without spores were demonstrated in aseptically aspirated fluid or tissue specimen with pure culture isolate of velvety dark, brownish black flat colonies on Sabouraud dextrose agar at 25°C. Results During the study period, two cases were confirmed as invasive phaeohyphomycoses caused by Bipolaris spicifera phenotypically. The first case was of invasive fungal sinusitis and second of invasive pulmonary phaeohyphomycoses. Overall incidence rate was 0.55% (2/364). Both cases were post COVID, with history of COVID 2-3 weeks before current presentation and hospitalisation with oxygen support for the same, uncontrolled diabetes mellitus (HbA1C: 11 & 8 respectively), and hypothyroidism. First case was initially treated as of mucormycosis, considering her clinical presentation and high index of suspicion with several similar cases reported in our area. He was managed with Amphotericin B along with surgical debridement. Second case was suspected as case of invasive pulmonary aspergillosis and was managed with voriconazole initially and later started on itraconazole after laboratory confirmation. Due to initial false diagnosis in our cases, patients were subjected to long course of amphotericin B and voriconazole respectively, whereas it could have been managed with itraconazole which has far lesser side effects. Conclusion High index of suspicion is required to confirm invasive phaeohyphomycoses as dematiaceous fungi are often contaminants or commensals. Correct and timely diagnosis is necessary for adequate management of invasive phaeohyphomycoses cases. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5607 | Efficacy of Favipiravir in treatment of mild & moderate COVID-19 infection in Nepal: a multi-center, randomized, open-labelled, phase III clinical trial Purpose To study tolerability and outcome of oral favipiravir treatment among COVID-19 patients in Nepal. Methods & Materials In this multi-centered randomized, open-labelled phase III clinical trial, we enrolled 18-80 years old, RT-PCR confirmed patients with mild to moderate COVID-19 infection from 9 participating hospitals of Nepal, within 6 days of onset of symptoms. The investigational product (Favipiravir) was compared against placebo in patients with mild infection and against Remdesivir in moderate infection. Patients who met the eligibility criteria were randomly enrolled in the study after taking informed consent. This is a preliminary report of the data analysis. Results At the time of this preliminary data analysis, 90 cases were enrolled in the study including 70 mild and 20 moderate cases (see table). Among the participants with mild COVID19 infection, clinical improvement was noted in 30 (78.9%) and 27 (84.4%) patients who received Favipiravir and placebo, respectively (p=0.78). While among the participants with moderate infection, 9 (81%) and 8 (88.9%) patients who received Favipiravir and Remdesivir, respectively, had clinical improvement (p=1). Patients tolerated Favipiravir well with only 3 (6.12 %) patients showing adverse events, which were mainly elevated liver function test & uric acid level, both considered minor. None of the patients receiving placebo or remdesivir reported any adverse events. Conclusion The investigational product has been tolerated well by this group of patients with only mild and reversible side effects in 6.12 % cases. The outcomes between the study groups were comparable. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5608 | Achieving Interprofessional Education on Collaborative Problem-Solving for COVID-19 Using Project-Based Approach Purpose The interdisciplinary skills and competences are necessary for in-service current workforces who work in a collaborative health team environment for emerging disease prevention and control. To efficiently combat COVID-19, the pre-service students of health sciences need to be prepared through the interprofessional education (IPE). The present study aims to develop the IPE curriculum using project-based approach to address challenges of COVID-19 for training of undergraduate health science students, Chiang Mai University, Thailand Methods & Materials Teacher working group conducted a workshop to initiate a curriculum and the activities on interprofessional managements for human and animal health by combining interdisciplinary skills required for current Thai workforces. The knowledge and the attitude base of COVID-19 was evaluated before and after training. Self-assessment according to interdisciplinary skills was also performed. Use of ongoing IPE learning activities to manage the six projects for 94 participants including 22 nursing, 21 dentistry, 21 medical technology, 19 pharmacy and 12 veterinary students. Results An understanding of COVID-19 knowledge on the median score before and after learning were 60.00% (IQR 53.33-73.33) and 80.00% (IQR 70.00-86.67), respectively (p < 0.01). Self-assessment according to attitudes demonstrated that the health science students had moderately good level. The IPE competencies on median the students responded from the pre-lesson 4 (IQR 3.00-4.25) to the post-lesson 4 (IQR 3.00-4.00) (p = 0.37). However, an improvement of average relative gain score of the IPE competencies was 12.34%. Conclusion This study confirms that outcome of IPE learning activities could positively impact in improving the knowledge and the attitude on COVID-19, and interdisciplinary capacities of undergraduate health science students. However, sustainable adaptation of the IPE learning activities as an elective course should be accomplished within near future. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5609 | Descriptive Study On Starvation Ketoacidosis In Covid-19 Obstetric Patients In A Tertiary Hospital in Central Region of Malaysia Purpose This study describes the presentation of starvation ketoacidosis in cases of pregnancy related Covid 19 pneumonia and their outcomes toward Cytokine Release Syndrome (CRS), Intensive Care Unit (ICU) admission, overall maternal and fetal outcome. Methods & Materials Prospective study on all obstetric admissions for Covid 19 pneumonia in a tertiary hospital in central region of Malaysia (Hospital Ampang) from 1st July to 31st August 2021 was done. Starvation ketoacidosis cases as defined as serum bicarbonate less than 20mmol/L, with serum ketone of more than 3mmol/L or urine ketone more than 4+ were selected. Their outcome related to CRS, ICU admission and fetal outcome was monitor. Patients with incomplete data, and other cause of metabolic acidosis were excluded from this study. Results 31 patients been isolated to have starvation ketoacidosis based on our study criteria. The median age of our study population was 31 years old. Patients mostly presented in stable condition before the onset of starvation ketoacidosis whereby 23 cases (74.19%) presented with Category 1 to 3 Covid-19 infection and only 8 cases (25.81%) require oxygen (Category 4) on presentation. Starvation ketoacidosis has commonly been observed in gestational diabetes mothers (61.29%) and those with obesity (51.61%). It happened mostly at day 6 to day 10 of covid infection (54.83%) with commonly lower CRP count of less than 50 (61.29%) during onset of acidosis. The mean random blood sugar (RBS) among patients who diagnosed with starvation ketoacidosis was 5.95 mmol/L. Total of 25 from 31 patients (80.64 %) went into CRS, and required oxygen supplementation and 13 patients (41.94%) required ICU care. We also observed 21 out of 31 patients (67.74%) in our sample population whom needed delivery of the fetus Conclusion Starvation ketoacidosis in Covid 19 Obstetric patients may precede CRS and ICU admission. The association of starvation ketoacidosis with CRS and ICU admission or worsening Covid 19 pneumonia need to be further evaluated in a bigger study sample. A prompt early multidisciplinary treatment involving Infectious Disease team, Intensive Care team and Obstetric Team could avoid undesirable patient outcome. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5610 | Detection of SARS-CoV-2 by a Commercial RNA Detection Kit: a Public Health Laboratory Experience Purpose There is a critical shortage of the commercial SARS-CoV2 detection kits and a major problem for testing capacity in Bangladesh since December, 2019 to combat the Covid19 pandemic. So this study was aimed to assess SARS-CoV2 detection with a commercial RNA detection kit by the qualitative real time PCR from respiratory specimens (nasal or throat swab) of Covid19 suspected cases. Methods & Materials This cross sectional study was done by convenience sampling from Munshiganj district and four different hospitals in Dhaka city from 28 November 2020 to 4 December 2020. Nasal or throat swab samples were collected from Covid19 suspected cases and sent to NIPSOM RT-PCR lab, National Institute of Preventive and Social Medicine (a public health laboratory), NIPSOM, Mohakhali, Dhaka, Bangladesh. A commercial kit [Adaltis MOLGen SARS-CoV-2 (3Genes) RealTime PCR, Italy] containing the primer and probe set in fluorimeter channel was used to detect three genes of SARS-CoV-2: RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp), envelope (E) and nucleocapsid (N) with endogenous internal control (IC). Threshold cycle (Ct) value was selected at ≤40 for each positive gene and detection of at least two different genes (RdRp and E gene or N gene) was interpreted as SARS-CoV2 positive. Results A total of 1061 samples of Covid19 suspected cases within 4 to 98 years of age were included in this study and male female ratio was 1.33:1. Among 1061 samples, 299 (28.18%) were tested positive for SARS-CoV2 with mean age of 43.33 years and male was found predominantly. Of them, 94.98% were positive for RdRp, E and N genes whereas all (100%) were found positive for only RdRp and E gene. Here, the Ct value of IC ranged within <20 to 40 and 44.48% was found at Ct 30–35 followed by 36.79% at Ct 25–30 and 10.37% at Ct 35–40. For individual RdRp gene, E gene and N gene, highest Ct values were at 30–35 with 26.42%, 30.43% and 28.87% respectively. Conclusion To address accurate and safely diagnosis of SARS CoV-2, this commercial RNA detection kit will help during the COVID-19 pandemic. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5611 | Mask-Wearing and Individual Risk of Respiratory Illness during the COVID-19 Pandemic Purpose Ecological and laboratory studies suggest face masks are an effective non-pharmaceutical intervention for reducing spread of SARS-CoV-2. These studies cannot measure individual risk reduction or account for individual behavioral and demographic confounders. Here we present a novel longitudinal assessment of the protective role of masks in a national cohort of individuals enrolled in a syndromic surveillance tool prior to the first case of COVID-19 in the United States. Methods & Materials The study population consisted of a subset of participants (N=4,723 adults) enrolled in Flu Near You (FNY), a web-based longitudinal syndromic surveillance platform. Weekly self-reports of respiratory syndromes were used to assess the onset of COVID-like illness (CLI) symptoms from January to June 2020. An annual retrospective questionnaire submitted by this subset of FNY participants assessed precautionary behaviors (masking, distancing, etc.) and demographic information. We used a previously validated exposure variable (self-reported likelihood to wear masks while visiting family and friends and while grocery shopping) to measure mask wearing. A Cox proportional hazards model was used to assess the effect of mask wearing on CLI while controlling for age, gender, precautionary behavior (social distancing contacts, adoption date), county population density and time-varying county COVID-19 burden. Results There were 1,293 reports of respiratory symptoms over the study period. Individuals characterized as most likely to wear masks were 45% [24%-61%] less likely to report symptoms of COVID-like illness compared to individuals characterized as least likely to wear masks. Mask-wearing also demonstrated a protective effect for those characterized as somewhat likely to wear masks (HR: 0.60, 95% CI: 0.42-0.84, p=0.003) and those who were likely to wear masks in only one of the two circumstances (HR. 0.59, 95% CI: 0.42-0.83, p=0.002), compared to respondents least likely to wear masks. Sensitivity analyses with alternative broad and narrow CLI definitions produced a similar magnitude and protective effect. Conclusion Face masks were effective as a non-pharmaceutical intervention at preventing respiratory illness in the FNY population. The individual risk reduction was consistent with previous ecological measures of the protective effect of face masks, as well as robust to adjustment for behavioral, demographic, and environmental confounders. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5612 | Hybrid de novo Whole-Genome Assembly and Annotation of SARS-CoV-2 Virus from Nosocomial Infection in Pahang, Malaysia Purpose SARS-CoV-2 virus is highly contagious and spreads easily that it is difficult to detect in elucidating the pattern of infection for contact tracing purposes. The advent of high-throughput sequencing techniques has improved diagnosis in detection the viral lineages especially involving sporadic infection. The combination of short- and long-reads greatly improved the assembly of the SARS-CoV-2 genome and marked as a new approach to correct erroneous frame-shifts from single sequencing effort. Methods & Materials The samples were recovered from nasopharyngeal and oropharyngeal swab specimens of symptomatic health-care worker. The viral RNA was extracted for RT-qPCR and constructed for genomic library according to the ARTIC nCoV-2019 protocol. We performed whole-genome sequencing using hybrid approach combining both short and long-read sequencing approaches, respectively. The raw reads were reconstructed using a combination of bioinformatic tools for trimming, assembly and annotation. Finally, the consensus sequence was mapped with Geneious mapper using default parameters. Results The hybrid approach resulted in a 29,782bp complete whole-genome with GC content of 38%. The product was deposited to GISAID as hCov-19/Malaysia/IIUM316/2020, and was identified to be originated from B.6 lineage of clade O. Besides, we observed several mutational points such as M153I (spike), P13L (N), T1198K (NSP3), L37F (NSP6), and A97V (NSP12), which may representing the major contributor to early pandemic transmission in Malaysia. Conclusion The present study highlights the utility of whole-genome sequencing as a diagnostic tool of evaluating sporadic pattern of infection that can help to provide information regarding viruses relatedness, mutational rate, geographical spread and host adaptation. High-quality genome data can be used to assist in epidemiological investigation particularly when combined with other types of data. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5613 | Predictors of severe course of COVID-19 depending on comorbid background Purpose The COVID-19 pandemic poses a challenge for the medical community to study the peculiarities of patient management, particularly to refine the risk of a severe course of disease, depending on the presence of comorbidities. Aim of study: identification of factors affecting the likelihood of developing a severe course of COVID - 19 in comorbid patients. Methods & Materials A retrospective study of hospitalized patients diagnosed with COVID-19 with a comorbid background in the period from January to November 2020 in the Russian Federation. An analysis of the severity of the course was carried out depending on the comorbid background with the calculation of OR and CI 95%, significant factors influencing the development of a severe course of the disease were identified. Results Of 67567 patients, 22545 had comorbidities. 7025 (31.2%) of them had severe course of illness, 15520 (68.8%) - mild/moderate. 45,022 patients had no comorbidity: severe course was in 2558 (5.7%) patients, mild/moderate – in 42464 (94.3%). Calculating from the total number of patients: comorbidity and severe course was recorded in 10.4%; comorbidity and mild/moderate course - in 23%; severe course without comorbidity was in 3.8%; mild/moderate course without comorbidity was in 62.8%. The comorbidity increased the risk of developing a severe course by 7.514 times, compared with patients without a comorbid background (95% CI: 7.156-7.890). The presence of comorbidities of the respiratory system was detected in 3042 patients (4.5% of the total) and increased the risk of developing a severe course by 1.618 times (95%, CI: 1.478-1.771); cardiovascular system - 12706 (18.8%), risk increased by 5.015 times (95% CI: 4.788-5.253), endocrine - 2314 (3.4%), risk increased by 3.274 times (95%, CI: 2.995-3.579), oncology - 944 (1.4%), risk increased by 4.072 times (95% CI: 3.567-4.648). These indicators are statistically significant (p <0.001). Diseases of the gastrointestinal tract (p = 0.213) and urinary system (p = 0.12) were statistically insignificant. Conclusion The results indicate an increasing risk of severe course of COVID-19 in patients with comorbidities.. Additional diagnostic measures to search for a comorbid background will allow medical professionals to make more accurate predictions for each individual patient. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5614 | Evaluating the Quality of Federal SARS-CoV-2 Diagnostic Testing Data Purpose In April 2020, the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention established the COVID-19 Electronic Laboratory Reporting program (CELR) to collect data on SARS-CoV-2 laboratory tests. Over the course of the following year, the federal government, partnering with the Association for Public Health Laboratories, onboarded every state to submit laboratory results to this system—the first of its kind in the US. We set out to evaluate the quality of data collected by CELR. Methods & Materials We compared jurisdiction-level data collected through CELR and published by HHS to the testing data published by jurisdictions on their health department webpages. Because jurisdictions define their testing data differently, we anticipated some differences from federal testing data. However, jurisdictions also tend to prioritize their dashboard reporting—since it is what is used for policy decisions like reopening—so we hypothesized that differences from federal data absent a definitional explanation could point to problems with federal data. Where we found differences between jurisdictional and federal data, we conducted interviews with public health officials to understand their cause. Results Of the 56 states and territories, as of April 2021 (the first month when all states were onboarded to CELR), 38 had federal total data that diverges from state data by more than 5%. Of those states, the differences of 27 could not be explained by definitional factors. Based on our interviews, we identified three problems: non-electronic reporting streams, out-of-date surveillance systems, and deduplication of laboratory data. Conclusion The federal testing dataset displays major unresolved quality problems, and because states present testing data so differently, state-published data forms a poor alternative to federal datasets. The federal government, which is uniquely positioned to provide testing data on infectious diseases, must work to improve the quality of laboratory data submissions by states. To support better national laboratory data, the United States should invest in updating state and laboratory data surveillance infrastructure—including updates to state surveillance systems and laboratory system updates to eliminate outdated reporting methods like faxes—and in creating more national laboratory data infrastructure. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5615 | Analysis of the influence of age and location of contacts on the frequency of transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in society Purpose Analysis of the frequency of transmission SARS-CoV2 in different age groups and locations allows to identify risks of transmission, influencing on the spread of COVID-19 in the population and to strengthen the control on pandemic Methods & Materials Epidemiological analysis of contacts with primary cases of COVID-19 and secondary cases of infection for 6 months of 2020 in the different age groups was performed on the data of epidemiological surveillance system in 190,856 COVID-19 patients and 146,996 their contacts Results Patients with mild form of disease had the main proportion of contact - 50.6 %, moderate form - 45.8%. The proportion of contacts in patients with severe form was only 3.6%. Group aged 41-64 years had the highest number of cases (44.4%) and contacts (44,5%), aged 18-40 years - 30.2% of cases and 34.2% of contacts; 0-6 years - 2.7% of cases and 1,9% of contacts, 7-17 - 4,0 % of the cases and 3.1% of the contact. The number of contact persons was directly related to the number of secondary cases of the disease in all age groups: at the age of 0-6 years - 3.5 %, 7-17 years - 5,8 %, 18-40- 33,9%, 41-64 - 42,1%, 65 and older -14.7%. Patients of all age groups mainly contacted with healthy people in domestic focuses: the age group 0-17 years accounted for 65.9% of contacts, 18-40 years - 63.9%, 41-64 years - 64.2% over 65 years - 65.18%, respectively. The frequency of contacts at work was the highest at the age of 18-40 years – 9.0% and 41-64 years - 9.0%, but were significantly less than contacts in everyday (family) life - 63.8% and 64.2%, respectively. Conclusion The most active transmission of infection is carried out by patients aged 18-64 years, carrying the disease in mild and moderate-severe form. Secondary transmission of COVID-19 most of all is active in household foci in all age groups. In the age groups of 18-64 years, the transmission of infection in the workplace is also important. These results of analysis can be used to optimize prevention measures against COVID-19. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5616 | Vaccination may not have a significant impact on superspreading events Purpose Vaccination for SARS-CoV-2 is highly effective in preventing severe disease and death but its impact on reducing transmission outside households in reducing super spreading events are not so clear. Methods & Materials We reviewed Singapore's Ministry of Health (MOH) daily detailed reports on cases and clusters from April - June 2021. Cases were classified as: Fully vaccinated- completed two doses of vaccine at least fourteen days prior or not fully vaccinated. Cases were also categorized by whether they were diagnosed while under quarantine or by symptomatic or routine surveillance testing. Index cases were defined as the first cases identified in each cluster. Secondary cases were classified as non-index cases. Stratified analysis was performed on VassarStats (Vassar College, USA). Results 803 cases were reviewed; 187 (23%) were fully vaccinated, 56 (7%) were partially vaccinated and 560 (70%) were completely unvaccinated. There were a total of 77 clusters reported during this period, ranging from 3 to 108 cases primarily in malls, markets and bars. The proportion of index cases for these clusters who were fully vaccinated (20.8%) was similar (RR 0.864, 95% CI 0.511-1.46) to the secondary cases (23.6%). In contrast, the majority of index cases for clusters were identified through surveillance (96.1%) with only three of the 77 (3.9%) detected in quarantine while the majority of 726 secondary cases (68.2%) were detected in quarantine. Conclusion Although many of the clusters may not represent true superspreading events, it is still concerning that vaccinated individuals formed such a significant proportion of the index cases for clusters. More studies are clearly needed to better understand super-spreading events and to devise better vaccination strategies to prevent single cases from sparking clusters. As vaccination rates increase globally, preventing superspreading events will be a major part of controlling the pandemic. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5617 | India's Second COVID Wave: How is it different from the First Wave? Purpose India is witnessing the resurgence of the COVID-19 pandemic in the form of a hard-hitting second wave. We wanted to compare the clinical profile of the first wave (April-June 2020) with the second wave (March-May 2021) of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2), to help prioritize the target population group and management strategies. This will further help in the management of any upcoming third COVID wave. Methods & Materials We conducted a retrospective observational study and examined the demographic profile, symptoms, illness severity, baseline investigations, treatment given, comorbidities, and outcomes of the COVID-19 patients belonging to the first (W1) and the second (W2) waves of the Indian COVID pandemic. Results W2 had most people affected in the age group 50.5 (17.7) years compared with 37•1 (16•9) for W1. Baseline oxygen saturation was lower for W2 [84•0 (13•4) % versus(v/s) 91•9 (7•4) %] than W1. 70.2 % of the cases belonged to the severe category in W2 compared to 37.5% in W1. The level of hepatic transaminases was higher for W2 [AST, 108.3 (99.3) v/s 54.6 (69.3); ALT, 97.6 (82.3) v/s 58.7 (69.7) IU/L] than W1. CT severity score in W2 [29.5 (6.7)] was greater than W1 [23•2 (11•5)] [All P<0.05]. The standardized mortality ratio for W2 was 3.5 times that of W1. Higher proportion of patients require oxygen (81.8% v/s 11.2%), high flow nasal cannula (11.4% v/s 5.6%), non-invasive ventilation (41.2% v/s 1.5%), invasive ventilation (24.5% v/s 0.9%), and ICU admissions (56.4% v/s 12.0%) in W2 as compared with W1. We found the second wave to be stronger in terms of oxygen requirement, organ dysfunction, and mortality Conclusion Higher age, oxygen and ventilator requirement, ICU admissions, and organ failure are more prevalent in the second COVID wave that has hit India compared to the first wave and is associated with more deaths. India swiftly needs to scale up the prevalent ICU set up and oxygen production capacity to help accommodate the higher load. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5618 | Pandemic Parallels: Common Threads between the COVID-19 Pandemic and the Ebola Virus Disease Epidemic of 2014 Purpose This analysis explored the parallels between the 2014-2016 Ebola virus disease (EVD) epidemic in West Africa and SARS-CoV-2 and its associated disease (Coronavirus disease 2019 [COVID-19] in order to compare and contrast patterns that enable or exacerbate epidemics of novel or non-endemic pathogens. Methods & Materials Our research team developed a core set of ten questions focused on features common to major disease epidemics, including the natural reservoir of the infectious agent, the initially impacted populations, resulting societal impacts, the political response parameters and dynamics, resulting scientific discoveries, long-term morbidity in patients, and disproportionately impacted populations. We utilized both the primary literature and contemporary accounts such as news coverage and documentary accounts to determine full answers to the core questions. Commonalities between the emergence of Ebola and SARS-CoV-2 were identified. Results Seven of the ten questions identified positive parallels between the Ebola and COVID-19 pandemics. These include the the damaging effects of public mistrust of health officials on disease transmission, negative impact of slow country-level responses, the introduction of lifelong morbidities in patients, disproportionate disease impacts on vulnerable populations, and the positive impact of governmental research funding on the pace of vaccine development and distribution. Conclusion This analysis identifies multiple common factors that influenced the epidemic dynamics and disease burdens of Ebola Virus Disease and SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19, despite the differences in transmission dynamics. Policies mindful of these impacts can guide future responses to rapidly growing outbreaks. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5619 | Willingness to accept Covid 19 Vaccines in a Rural Community in Kaduna State, Northwestern Nigeria Purpose In Nigeria, rural communities generally have poor access and utilization of health services including immunization services. In rural areas, household heads determine the utilization of health services including immunization. This study was conducted to determine the willingness to accept COVID-19 vaccine among household heads of a rural community in Kaduna State, Northwestern Nigeria. Methods & Materials A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted among all household heads in Anguwan Mangu in February 2021 using total population sampling. A pre-tested, electronic based, semi-structured interviewer-administered questionnaire was used for data collection from household heads. Data was analysed using SPSS version 23. Univariate and bivariate analyses were conducted at alpha level of significance set at p< 0.05 Results Three hundred and thirty-three respondents participated in the study. Age range was 15 to 80 years. Mean age of the respondents was 35 years (±14.45). Only 55% (183/333) of the respondents were willing to accept COVID-19 vaccines. Major reasons for unwillingness to accept vaccines included; didn't feel the need to be vaccinated (4.5%), lack of trust in government (1.8%), belief that vaccine is used for population control (1.8%), belief that COVID-19 is not real (3%), and concerns over safety of the vaccines (1.8%). Household heads less than 50 years were more likely to accept the vaccines than those aged 50 and above (46% vs 41%) (p<0.592), those who were educated were more likely to accept the vaccines (50% vs 46%) (p<0.235), male household heads were more likely to accept vaccines than female household heads (66% vs 48%) (p<0.002). Conclusion About less than half of the respondents were unwilling to accept the COVID-19 vaccines when available mainly due to misconception about the vaccines. This could pose a major setback in efforts towards controlling the pandemic. It is recommended that Zaria LGA health department should design effective health education intervention strategies based on these misconceptions directed towards enlightening the populace in rural areas in order to improve acceptability of COVID-19 vaccines to fast track the control of the pandemic. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5620 | Real-Time Forecasting of COVID-19 Cases Using Human Mobility in Ontario, Canada Purpose To minimize the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, local public health authorities are often required to make prompt and informed decisions on anticipated case-loads, resource allocation for surveillance and testing, and public health intervention appropriateness. The objective of this research was to develop a near-term forecasting model to predict COVID-19 cases using real-time human mobility information in Ontario, Canada to assist public health authorities with outbreak response. Methods & Materials We utilized a deep neural network model to generate a short-term forecast of new COVID-19 cases by two weeks from May to August 2021. Variable selection was informed by a recent literature review and our ongoing research associating COVID-19 cases with human mobility, demographic and socio-economic factors. A real-time human mobility statistics consisting of a weekly summary of short and long-distance movement, demographic characteristics, weather, vaccination coverage, geo-location, and reported COVID-19 cases two weeks prior were included as predictors. We considered weeks as temporal and health regions as geographic units to account for population-level variabilities. We used a holdout method for model validation of over 300 iterations. Average mean squared error (MSE) and 95% confidence interval (CI) along with overlaying forecasted COVID-19 cases over the reported were used to evaluate the overall model fit. The model predictions were summarized as means and 95% CIs. Results Our best forecasting model had a mean MSE of 0.53 (95% CI: 0.49 – 0.56). Since May 2021, the overall trend of the reported COVID-19 cases in Ontario closely followed the forecasted cases, about 89% of the reported cases were within 1.5 times the interquartile range (IQR) and all were within the entire range of the distribution of the predictions. Forecasting accuracy also varied by health region characteristics, such a population size and density, remoteness, and reported COVID-19 case volume during the most recent weeks. Conclusion A near-term prediction of new COVID-19 cases with real-time population-level data could help public health authorities anticipate, plan and monitor disease burden in a population. Such predictions also allow the assessment of population-level health interventions to minimize new COVID-19 cases on a real-time basis and inform prompt decision making. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5621 | Comparison of different approaches in estimating the time-varying reproductive number for COVID-19 Purpose The time-varying reproductive number (Rt) is an indicator of transmissibility that has utility in evaluating public health interventions and assessing transmission factors. However, the Rt may be biased by generation time misspecification, reporting delays, underestimation of cases, and day-to-day variations. We compared several methods of adjustments in developing an approach to estimating an unbiased Rt. Methods & Materials A meta-analysis of generations times was conducted to reduce misspecification. A probabilistic bias approach was compared to standardization by a test positivity of 5% in adjusting for underestimation. A Poisson deconvolution process using an incubation period of 5.2 days (95% CI: 4.9-5.5) and laboratory turnover times between 2-, 5- and 10-days was utilized to adjust for reporting delays. We compared smoothing (7- and 14-day moving averages), a generalized additive model (GAM), and a local regression (LOESS) model to adjust for day-to-day variation. The adjusted Rt was compared to a crude Rt by eyeballing, Mean Average Percentage Error (MAPE), and Mean Absolute Deviation (MAD). We estimated the Rt using Malaysian COVID-19 daily case data from 7 March 2020-20 June 2021 utilizing Cori et al.’s method. Results We estimated a pooled serial interval of 4.95 days (95% CI: 4.62-5.29). The Rt estimated using case counts adjusted for underestimation using standardization by test positivity (MAPE: 0.31; 95% CI: 0.30-0.49, MAD: 0.5; 95%CI: 0.5-0.54) were more volatile, exhibited larger peaks and wider confidence intervals, especially in periods of lower incidence, compared to the probabilistic bias approach (MAPE: 0.07; 95% CI: 0.06-0.07, MAD: 0.26; 95%CI: 0.26-0.28). GAM (MAPE: 1.85, 95% CI: 1.63-2.08) and LOESS (MAPE: 0.29, 95% CI: 0.29-0.29) models had smoothed out almost all variations in the Rt. Longer lab turnover periods created smoother Rt with larger peaks and resulted in greater volatility in the estimates. Conclusion Biases in the estimation of the Rt may critically change its interpretation for public health interventions. It is important to adjust for these biases and understand the underlying limitations of these estimations; primarily when utilized within the context of pandemic control. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5622 | Estimating SARS-CoV-2 prevalence from large-scale wastewater surveillance: insights from combined analysis of 44 sites in England Purpose Accurate surveillance of the COVID-19 pandemic can be weakened by under-reporting of cases, particularly due to asymptomatic or pre-symptomatic infections, resulting in bias. Quantification of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in wastewater (WW) can be used to infer infection prevalence, but uncertainty in sensitivity and considerable variability has meant that accurate measurement remains elusive. Methods & Materials Data from 44 sewage sites in England, covering 31% of the population, are used in this analysis where samples are available from July 2020 to present day. Samples include the raw SARS-CoV-2 gene copy number and associated meta-data. To establish the sensitivity and specificity of the WW data, we compare to population representative prevalence surveys available across England (the ONS Covid Infection Survey - CIS). The WW data were mapped to sub-regional data of the CIS and fitted using mathematical modelling. First, a phenomenological model was developed to model how infected individuals shed SARS-CoV-2 into WW and how the markers may degrade in time and compare this to the data. Second, we develop a model to estimate SARS-CoV-2 prevalence directly from WW data which is trained on the CIS data. Results Data from 44 sewage sites in England, shows that SARS-CoV-2 prevalence is estimated to within 1.1% of estimates from representative prevalence surveys (with 95% confidence). Using machine learning and phenomenological models, differences between sampled sites, particularly the WW flow rate, influence prevalence estimation and require careful interpretation. SARS-CoV-2 signals in WW appear 4-5 days earlier in comparison to clinical testing data but are coincident with prevalence surveys suggesting that WW surveillance can be a leading indicator for asymptomatic viral infections. Conclusion Wastewater-based epidemiology complements and strengthens traditional surveillance, with significant implications for public health. Using WW to quantify infection prevalence requires knowledge of additional meta-data and outbreak detection needs to account for unexplained aberrations in WW data to improve reliability | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5623 | Integrating Health Belief model to determine factors associated with COVID-19 Vaccine Acceptance in Lebanon: Differences between Healthcare workers and non-healthcare workers Purpose Vaccine acceptance is critical to the success of immunization programs, especially for emerging infectious diseases. This study aims to assess the willingness to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, and the factors associated with this willingness among healthcare workers (HCWs) and non-healthcare workers in Lebanon. Methods & Materials A web-based cross-sectional survey was conducted among Lebanese adults aged 18 years and above during November 2020 among Lebanese adults from all Lebanese provinces using a snowball sampling technique. Data were collected using an anonymous Arabic questionnaire that included sociodemographic, health-related variables, intention to receive COVID-19 vaccine, and the Health Belief Model covariates. Multivariable logistic regression analyses were performed to identify the factors associated with the COVID-19 vaccine acceptance among the 2 groups. Results A total number of 2802 participants completed the survey. The overall intention to receive a COVID-19 vaccine among the Lebanese adult population was 51.5%. HCWs expressed a higher willingness of getting vaccinated against COVID-19 than non HCWs (65.8% vs. 47%, p< 0.001). The factors that are positively associated with the willingness to vaccinate among the general population, non HCWs and HCWs were: older age, being married, living in urban areas, receiving influenza vaccine for this season, higher perception of susceptibility and benefits, concerns related to availability and accessibility of vaccines and recommendation of vaccine from health authorities. However, the previous refusal of any vaccine, concerns about vaccine safety, and side effects impacted negatively this intention. Female gender, importance accounted to religiosity, and concerns about the reliability of the manufacturer were negatively associated with vaccine acceptance among non HCWs. Conversely, good knowledge, vaccine intake by the public, and self-motivation were positively associated with this willingness. Of note, these factors were not significantly associated with such willingness among HCWs. Conclusion To control COVID-19 effectively, efforts targeting modifiable factors driving COVID-19 vaccine acceptance are required to increase the acceptance rate among the Lebanese population. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5624 | Forecasting SARS-CoV-2 Incidence in Ontario Municipalities with Statistical and Algorithmic Modeling and Ensembles Purpose In this study, a variety of statistical and algorithmic models were applied to forecast Covid-19 incidence in two Canadian cities, Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph (WDG) and Toronto, Ontario. The purpose of forecasting incidence in the two cities was to explore and compare the predictive capacity of each approach in two regions where daily incidences differ due to population sizes, thus requiring different analytical approaches to inform public health. Methods & Materials The dataset consisted of daily Covid-19 incidence within WDG and Toronto, Ontario. Data was split into training data (March 13, 2020, to June 17, 2021) and validation data (June 18, 2021, to July 8, 2021). Models fitted to the training data were assessed on validation data. Additionally, the effective reproductive number (Re), holidays, type of variant (i.e., Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta), mutation common to a variant detected or no mutation detected as well as the cumulative number of first and second vaccination doses were included as predictors. Statistical models employed were General Linear Autoregressive Moving Average (GLARMA), Seasonal Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average (SARIMA) and Regression with ARIMA errors. The two machine learning algorithms were Neural Network Autoregression (NNAR) and Random Forest (RF). A hybrid model combining the statistical and algorithmic approaches (ARIMA-Boosted) was also explored. Ensembles combining several of the models were then generated to investigate improvement in predictive performance. Performance was assessed via Root Mean Square Prediction Error (RMSE) and Mean Absolute Scale Prediction Error (MASE). Results In WDG, regression with ARIMA achieved respectable forecast accuracy (RMSE = 3.50, MASE = 0.71). Ensembles provided a marginal gain in forecast accuracy (RMSE = 3.48, MASE = 0.67) In Toronto, SARIMA modeling had the superior forecasts (RMSE = 8.14, MASE = 0.52), whereas ensembles did not improve accuracy (RMSE = 8.57, MASE = 0.58). Conclusion Models based on observed associations (i.e., statistical modeling) provided more accurate forecasts than data driven algorithmic modeling (i.e., machine learning) for forecasting epidemic/pandemic trajectory. This finding was consistent in both WDG and Toronto, Ontario. While ensemble forecasts may slightly improve the forecast accuracy, the computational expense did not justify its application in the current examples. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5625 | MIP-1a and MIP-1b in serum as potential markers of the severe course COVID-19 Purpose Studying the pathogenesis of COVID-19 is necessary to developing of perspective predictors of severe course of disease and unfavorable prognosis. The macrophage activation syndrome observed in severe form of COVID-19 can potentially be used as a marker of poor prognosis, which makes it relevant to measure the levels of macrophage inflammatory proteins MIP-1a and MIP-1b. Methods & Materials Study included 80 patients (43 men and 37 women) aged 24 -90 years (mean = 58.3 years) with laboratory confirmed COVID-19 admitted Infectious Diseases Hospital in Moscow during April - August 2020. Patients were divided into 2 groups: group 1 included patients with a moderate form (N = 30), group 2 (N = 50) included patients with a severe form of COVID-19. Serum levels of MIP-1a and MIP-1b were assessed by ELISA. Results An increase of the MIP-1a level was observed in 3 patients in group 1 (10%) and in 42 patients in group 2 (84%). At the same time, the average concentration of MIP-1a was 3.71 pg/ml and 156.79 pg/ml in groups 1 and 2, respectively (p < 0.01). MIP-1b level above baseline was detected in 11 patients in group 1 (36.7%) and in 48 patients in group 2 (96%). The mean MIP-1b concentrations were 7.53 pg/ml and 152.62 pg/ml in groups 1 and 2, respectively. Similarly with MIP-1a, the difference in mean MIP-1b concentrations between the two groups was statistically significant (p < 0.01). A statistically significant correlation between the concentrations of MIP-1a and MIP-1b was observed for whole study population, the Pearson's correlation coefficient (r) is 0.756 (p < 0.01). At the same time, there were no statistically significant differences related to gender and age. Taken together, these data suggest the potential of serum concentrations of MIP-1a and MIP-1b as markers of the disease severity. Conclusion COVID-19 is accompanied by an increase in the level of macrophage inflammatory proteins. The severe disease in most cases was associated with significant increase in the concentrations of MIP-1a and MIP-1b in the blood serum, which makes it possible to consider these proteins as potential markers of the severe COVID-19. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5626 | Assessment of High-Titer Convalescent Plasma as an Adjunctive Therapy in the Reduction of Mortality Rate and Viral Load in Patients with Severe COVID-19: A Meta-Analysis Purpose COVID-19 has emerged as the first pandemic of the 21st Century and continues to pose challenges to global health. Currently, the most common symptomatic management of COVID-19 patients involves isolation and oxygen therapy. However, present protocols are still deemed insufficient; hence, other treatment options are being considered and tested. This includes convalescent plasma therapy (CPT), which involves a strategy of passive immunization. With this, the primary objective of this systematic review/meta-analysis is to collate, systematically compare, and synthesize available clinical trials involving convalescent plasma (CP), more specifically, high-titer CP, as adjunctive therapy in the treatment of patients with severe COVID-19. Methods & Materials This was accomplished by comparing the effect of high-titer CP with standard treatment alone, in terms of mortality rate and viral clearance, by reviewing selected studies based on an inclusion-exclusion criteria and synthesizing selected studies through qualitative analysis and meta-analysis. Results A total of five studies were included, which consist of: three randomized clinical trials (RCTs); one retrospective trial; and one single arm trial. Four studies were subjected to meta-analysis for mortality rate. For instance, it was determined that the overall incidence mortality rate of patients who received high-titer CP is 11.59% of the experimental group, while the incidence mortality rate of patients who only received standard care is 20.25% of the control group (Risk Ratio (RR), 0.71; 95% confidence interval (CI),0.46-1.09; P-value = 0.46). Moreover, three of the included trials were subjected to qualitative analysis, all of which depicted undetectable viral levels in some patients as early as 3 days, while others exhibited a steady decline. Conclusion Treatment of COVID-19 with the use of high-titer convalescent plasma as an adjunctive therapy, compared with standard care or treatment, was not significantly associated with reduction of all-cause mortality. High-Titer CPT also shows potential in increasing COVID-19 viral clearance, which indicates an antiviral effect; however, controlled clinical trials with comparator or placebo groups are needed to further support these findings. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5627 | COVID-19 Variants of Concern: An Analysis of Critical Care Admission in Hospitalized Patients in a Canadian Health Region Purpose To examine outcomes in COVID-19 positive acute care patients and the differential impact of the presence of COVID-19 Variants of Concern (VOCs). Methods & Materials This study was a cross-sectional analysis using patient data from the patient's electronic medical records. Inclusion criteria were COVID-19-positive patients hospitalized within acute care sites in Fraser Health (British Columbia) between January 1 and April 30, 2021. Data analysis was conducted using SAS Studio 3.8 and STATA 17.0. Results Of the patients included in the study, 934 (33%) were classified as having a VOC. The proportion of VOC-related COVID-19 cases steadily increased from 0.6% of all COVID-19 admissions in January 2021 to 67.2% in April 2021. Males were more likely to have VOCs than females (36% vs. 30%). The age groups with the highest proportion of VOCs were 40-49 (51%), 50-59 (44%), and 60-69 (40%). After controlling for sex and age, it was shown that patients with VOCs were more than twice as likely to require critical care admission than those without VOCs (OR=2.04, 95%CI:1.67, 2.48; p<0.001). There was no statistically significant difference in overall length of stay (p=0.502) or length of stay in critical care (p=0.237) for those with VOCs after controlling for age and sex. While patients with VOCs were more than twice as likely to require critical care, there was no difference in mortality (OR=1.03, 95%CI:0.75,1.41), p=0.877). Conclusion VOCs were more likely to be present in middle-aged hospitalized patients than in older patients, and were more prevalent in males. Patients with VOCs were more likely to require critical care; however, there was no difference in length of stay in critical care, or in overall mortality. This is important to understand, as VOCs make up a larger proportion of COVID-19 cases, and will likely place significant burden on critical care resources. Limitations of this study are that other factors such as co-morbidities and socioeconomic status have not been controlled for, and the findings may not be generalizable to other health regions with different populations and health care systems. This study provides groundwork for future research on this evolving topic. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5628 | Spousal Occupational Sorting and COVID-19 Incidence: Evidence from the United States Purpose To evaluate the effect of patterns in spousal occupational sorting on the incidence of COVID-19 in the United States over the period of April-June 2020. Methods & Materials Two regression models with the state-level data from the United States are considered. The outcome variables are the number of COVID-19 cases per 100’000 people and the number of deaths from COVID-19 per 100’000 people in state s on date t. The daily observations of COVID-19 cases and deaths are pooled together for each week. The explanatory variables are taken from the 2015-2019 American Community Survey and include an array of socioeconomic and demographic characteristics: average household size, share of married couples, share of males, shares of age groups (20-39, 40-59, and above 60), shares of Black, Hispanic, and Asian, share of people without health insurance, median income, population density, average commute time to work, share of people who use public transportation, and employment of working-age population by occupations. The main variable of interest, the measure of spousal occupational sorting, is constructed using the Pearson correlation coefficient between the degrees of occupation contact intensity of husband and wife. All the explanatory variables represent the pre-pandemic characteristics of the U.S. states. The regressions are run for each week so that the coefficients are allowed to be time-varying. Results A higher degree of spousal sorting into occupations of different contact intensity is associated with a greater number of COVID-19 cases and deaths per 100’000 people over the first weeks of the pandemic. The effect on the number of cases is statistically significant during the first 2 weeks following April 1, 2020. The effect on the number of deaths is statistically significant over the first 12 weeks. Conclusion The degree of contact-intensity-based spousal occupational sorting is likely to account for the part of the state-level variation in the numbers of COVID-19 cases and deaths over the first months of the pandemic. First, this finding is consistent with the literature that emphasizes the importance of household transmission of COVID-19. Second, more broadly, it highlights the significant effects of socioeconomic factors on the incidence of COVID-19. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5629 | Investigation of SARS-CoV-2 RNAemia in the convalescent plasma of COVID-19 patients Purpose The novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), is responsible for the ongoing global COVID-19 disease pandemic. Convalescent plasma therapy (CPT) is one of the promising therapies being tried for COVID-19 patients. However, the presence or disappearance of SARS-CoV-2 RNA (RNAemia) in convalescent plasma is unclear and the prognostic implication of viral RNA detection in these samples is not fully understood. Hence, we aimed to investigate SARS-CoV-2 RNAemia in the convalescent plasma of COVID-19 patients. Methods & Materials Convalescent plasma samples from donors with a previous laboratory-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection were included in the study. Samples were screened for the presence of Anti-SARS CoV-2 IgG antibodies using a commercially available enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay targeting the whole-cell antigen of SARS-CoV-2. Then plasma samples were pooled by the mixing of five samples. RNA extraction and real-time RT-PCR for SARS-CoV-2 specific gene targets was performed for pooled plasma samples. Results A total of 250 convalescent plasma samples of COVID-19 patients with different disease severity were included in the study; of these, 149 (59.6%) were found to have anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies using serological tests. SARS-CoV-2 RNA was not detected in any of the convalescent plasma samples. Conclusion SARS-CoV-2 RNAemia was not found in individuals with a previous laboratory-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection at least 28 days after the resolution of their symptoms. All RT-PCR positive COVID-19 patients subsequently may not develop antibodies. Our study showed that screening for neutralizing antibody titres is more important rather than SARS-CoV-2 RNA detection in convalescent plasma samples for therapeutic use. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5630 | No Difference in the Incubation Period of COVID-19 in Different Gender, Ages and Epidemic Periods in South Korea Purpose The incubation period is an important epidemiologic characteristic of infectious diseases in determining the quarantine period. In South Korea, there still have been debates about the quarantine period of coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19). Furthermore, the differences in the incubation period of COVID-19 by age and gender are still not well understood. Methods & Materials We collected data on COVID-19 cases published by the South Korean public health authorities. Using this data, we estimated the incubation period by fitting three different distributions (Weibull, gamma, and log-normal) by gender, age group, and the different epidemic periods of COVID-19. We divided our study into two epidemic periods (First epidemic wave: 28 January 2020 – 18 April 2020, Second epidemic wave: 19 April 2020 – 30 August 2020). We used the Wilcoxon test to assess for any significant differences between the incubation periods by gender, epidemic period, and age group. We selected the best-fit model by comparing the Akaike Information Criterion. All analyses were done in R version 3.6.1 and level of significance was set at p-value < 0.05. Results The log-normal model was best fitted in the study. The estimated median incubation period using the log-normal model was 4.6 days (95% confidence interval: 1.19 - 1.34), and the 95th percentile was 11.74 days. There was no significant difference in incubation period between males and females (P = 0.42), as well as with the epidemic periods (P = 0.77). Conclusion This study provides evidence for the median incubation period for COVID-19 of approximately 4.6 days. Our work brings out more evidence of the incubation period for COVID-19 and shows that it may be prudent to continue with the current 14-day quarantine policy. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5631 | Real-Time Estimation and Forecasting of COVID-19 Cases and Hospitalizations in Wisconsin HERC Regions for Public Health Decision Making Processes Purpose The spread of the COVID-19 and surging number of cases have resulted in overtaxed healthcare systems. However, limited availability and questionable reliability of the data make outbreak prediction and resource planning difficult. Moreover, any estimates or forecasts are subject to high uncertainty and low accuracy when measuring such components. The aim of the study is to apply, automate, and assess a workflow for the real-time estimation and forecasting of COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations in Wisconsin HERC regions. Methods & Materials The reported cases are corrected for under-reporting and adjusted for test positivity by date of report. The corrected cases are estimated by date of infection, forecasted into the future, and transformed to date of report by region over time using a Bayesian latent variable model. The cases are corrected for hospitalization delay using log-normal distribution, and hospitalizations are estimated by county over time using Bayesian regression model. Models will be automated for real-time estimation and forecasting via RStudio Connect and made available as an R package. Results Both models were fitted weekly and forecasted over a 1-day or 3-day period during the peak of the epidemic from September 20, 2020 to December 6, 2020. For cases, both scenarios outperformed the credible level of the forecast where the 3-day period (20% CrI: 0.468, 50% CrI: 0.810, 90% CrI: 1.000) performed slightly better than the 1-day period (20% CrI: 0.462, 50% CrI: 0.785, 90% CrI: 1.000). Similarly, for hospitalizations, both periods outperformed the credible level of the forecast where the 3-day period (20% CrI: 0.368, 50% CrI: 0.667, 90% CrI: 0.987) performed slightly better than the 1-day period (20% CrI: 0.358, 50% CrI: 0.653, 90% CrI: 0.987). Conclusion We present an approach to estimate and forecast cases and hospitalizations and the corresponding uncertainty using publicly available data. The models were able to infer short-term trends consistent with reported values at the HERC region level. Models were able to accurately forecast and estimate the uncertainty of the measurements. This study can help to elucidate which regions are most affected and which regions will encounter outbreaks as well as support decision making processes. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5632 | Etiology of community-acquired and hospital-acquired pneumonia associated with COVID-19 Purpose The COVID-19 pandemic is accompanied by a high incidence of community-acquired pneumonia (CAP). Patients with a new coronavirus infection have an increased risk of developing hospital-acquired pneumonia. Aim: to study the etiological structure of CAP during the epidemic spread of COVID-19, to assess the risks of joining the pathogens of pneumonia associated with the provision of medical care. Methods & Materials Biological material from 1085 hospitalized patients with CAP was conducted from August 2020 - June 2021 in Rostov-on-Don (Russia). Verification of respiratory viruses including SARS-CoV-2 RNA was performed by polymerase chain reaction in nasopharyngeal smears. Bacteriological analysis of sputum was performed via classical methods, identification of isolated pathogens was carried out using time-of-flight mass spectrometry on an Autoflex (Bruker Daltonics) with BioTyper 3.0 software. Results Cases of type 3 parainfluenza virus (7.8±0.9%), other types of coronaviruses (HKU-1, OC43, HL-63 and 229Е) (2.7±0.5%), respiratory syncytial virus (1.9±0.5%) were detected in patients with COVID-19. Fungi of the genus Candida (35.6±1.8%) and Staphylococcus aureus (9.1±1.1%) were prevailing in the microbiota structure. Should be noted that the number of Streptococcus pneumoniae cultures decreased from 5.5 % in August 2020 to 1.1 % in June 2021, possibly due to pneumococcal vaccination. Gramm-negative enterobacteria were presented predominantly by Klebsiella pneumoniae (3.5±0.7%), Escherichia coli (2.9±0.6%), and non-fermenting Gramm-negative bacteria – Pseudomonas aeruginosa (1.5±0.5%) and Acinetobacter baumannii (1.2±0.4%). In 30.6% of patients treated in the hospital there was a secondary infection probably associated with compromised immune system and the transmission of infection from the hospital environment. Secondary infection with Candida spp., non-fermenting Gramm-negative bacteria (A. baumannii, and P. aeruginosa) and K. pneumoniae, including those characterized by multiple drug-resistance, prevailed. The most frequently registered resistance to penicillins, cephalosporins of 3rd generation. Conclusion A feature of CAP in patients with laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 is a higher incidence of mixed infection of both viral and bacterial etiology. Patients with COVID-19 represent a high risk group for the development of mycotic lung lesions, possibly against the background of treatment with antibacterial drugs. There is a significant risk of the formation of nosocomial infections in patients. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5633 | COVID-19 in People Living with HIV Purpose The current COVID-19 pandemic affects all strata of the population. Particular interest is the study of the course of this pathology in people with comorbidity. The purpose of our research is to study the features of the course of a COVID-19 people living with HIV (PLHIV). Methods & Materials We conducted a retrospective analysis of the epidemiological, clinical and laboratory data of 121 patients with HIV infection treated for COVID-19 in 2020. Among PLHIVS, 87.6% were treated with antiretroviral therapy for HIV infection an average of 5.8 years. Results It was found that 45.5% were women and 54.5% were men. The average age was 41 years old (IQR: 20-78 years). The greatest number of cases was observed among both men and women in the age category of 30-49 years (74.2% and 72.7%, respectively). In the studied group, in 63.4%, in addition to HIV infection, patients suffered from other concomitant diseases, the most frequent of which were chronic lung diseases (22.3%), hypertension (18.2%), metabolic disorders (13.2%). In all cases, the COVID-19 disease occurred with a clinical manifestation. The most common symptoms were fever (76.0%), cough (63.6%) and sore throat (56.2%), loss of taste and smell was detected in 49.6% of cases. In 48.8%, COVID-19 in PLHIV was mild. In 88.1%, the duration of the disease did not exceed 14 days. Moderate forms were noted in 40.5% of cases. 10.7% of cases have severe form of COVID-19. The fatal outcomes were recorded in 8 patients, while in the group of patients receiving antiretroviral therapy, the mortality rate was 3.8%, and in the group without antiretroviral therapy therapy - 26.7%. Conclusion We estimated that the proportion of deaths in patients with HIV infection is higher than in the general population (2.2%). PLHIV are a vulnerable group in relation to the risk of death from COVID-19. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5634 | Quantifying Contact Patterns: Development and Characteristics of the British Columbia COVID-19 Population Mixing Patterns Survey Purpose Several non-pharmaceutical interventions such as physical distancing, self-isolation, a stay-at-home order, hand washing, and schools and businesses closures were implemented in British Columbia (BC) following the first lab-tested case of COVID-19 on January 26, 2020. These interventions were aimed at minimizing in-person contacts that could potentially lead to new COVID-19 infections. The BC COVID-19 Population Mixing Patterns survey (BC-Mix) was established as a surveillance system to measure behaviour and contact patterns in BC over time to inform the timing of the easing/re-imposition of control measures. We describe the BC-Mix survey design and the demographic characteristics of respondents. Methods & Materials The ongoing repeated online survey was launched in September 2020. Participants are recruited through a variety of social media platforms including Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and community group mailing lists. A follow up survey is sent to participants two to four weeks after completing the first iteration. Survey responses are weighted to BC's population by age, sex, geography, and ethnicity to obtain generalizable estimates. A survey completion rate of at least 33% AND a valid response for the sex questionnaire item AND a valid response for age questionnaire item were required for inclusion in weighting and further analysis. Additional indices such as material and social deprivation index, and residential instability are generated using census and location data. Results As of June 14, 2021, over 58,000 residents of BC had participated in the survey of which 31,007 survey responses were eligible for analysis. Of the eligible participants, about 60% provided consent for monthly follow up and about 26% provided their personal health numbers for linkage with other healthcare utilization databases. Approximately 51% were females 39% were 55 years or older, 63% identified as white or not a visible minority and 48% had at least a university degree. Conclusion The pandemic response is best informed by surveillance systems capable of timely assessment of behaviour patterns. BC-Mix survey respondents represented a large cohort of British Columbians providing near real-time information on behavioural and contact patterns in BC. Data from the BC-Mix survey continues to inform provincial COVID-19-related control measures. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5635 | Population Mobility and Socioeconomic Indicators in California, USA and Ontario, Canada during the COVID-19 Pandemic Purpose To explore the extent that socioeconomic indicators influenced mobility of populations during the COVID-19 pandemic in two jurisdictions. Methods & Materials We used anonymized, population-aggregated mobile-device location data to estimate dynamic changes in population mobility patterns across the province of Ontario, Canada and the state of California, U.S.A. Data from the Ontario-Marginalization Index at the Census Subdivision (CSD) level, as well as the California Healthy Places Index (HPI) at the Census Tract (CT) level, were used to determine the census geographical units in the lowest and highest quantiles of socioeconomic indicators during the COVID-19 pandemic. Ontario was under three province-wide stay-at-home orders between March 17, 2020 and June 2, 2021. California was under state-wide stay-at-home orders from March 19, 2020 to January 25, 2021. Weekly data from March 15, 2020 to June 19, 2021 were analyzed for Ontario, and weekly data were analyzed from March 15, 2020 to March 20, 2021 for California. We used the percentage of time spent away from home as the indicator for mobility and analyzed differences in mobility trends between the populations grouped by material deprivation score (Ontario) and HPI scores. Results In Ontario, populations with highest material deprivation spent an average of 25.7% of time away from home, while the populations with lowest material deprivation spent an average of 22.6% of their time away from home (difference: 3.1%, p <0.001) across the entire duration of the COVID-19 pandemic. Similarly, in California, the least advantaged populations spent an average of 30.0% of time away from their home, while the most advantaged populations spent 24.3% of their time away from home (difference: 5.7%, p <0.001). Conclusion Across both geographical locations, the least advantaged populations observed highest mobility compared to the most advantaged populations throughout the pandemic. This indicates that populations in communities with the least advantage in Ontario and California may have less ability or inadequate resources to comply with stay-at-home orders, leading to increased risk of COVID-19 exposure among these more mobile populations. Strategies to protect those most at risk of exposure to COVID-19 are imperative for controlling spread within communities. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5636 | Pandemic Parallels: Common Threads between the emergence of SARS-CoV-2 and HIV Purpose This analysis explored the parallels between the emergence of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and its associated disease (acquired immune deficiency syndrome [AIDS]), and SARS-CoV-2 and its associated disease (Coronavirus disease 2019 [COVID-19]) in order to highlight common patterns that enabled the epidemics of novel pathogens. Methods & Materials Our laboratory developed a core set of ten questions that focused on common features found in major disease epidemics, including the affected populations, the response parameters and dynamics of governments, the natural source of the infectious agent, and the impacts of epidemics on societies as a whole. We utilized contemporary accounts including news coverage, written descriptions, documentary accounts, and primary literatures to determine full answers to the core questions. Results Eight of the ten questions identified commonalities between the AIDS and COVID-19 pandemics. These include slow government policy responses that negatively impacted the timing and the epidemic trajectory, involvement of marginalized populations of societies who were disproportionately affected by the diseases, discovery of existence of persistent economic and social inequalities, and introduction of lifelong morbidities in patients. Most importantly, this analysis found the importance of collaborative, scientifically driven political leadership as evidenced by the improved pace of disease control measures and research for therapeutic and vaccine discovery following adoption of evidence-based policy. Conclusion This analysis identifies multiple factors that paralleled the trajectory of the HIV/AIDS epidemic and SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19 pandemic. In order to prepare for potential pandemics or large-scale outbreaks in the future, policies mindful of these lessons outlined will help provide guidance for future responses to emerging pathogens. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5637 | COVID-19 Transmission Under the Public Health Radar: High Prevalence in Young Adults for COVID-19 Pandemic Wave 1 Purpose Compare reported data on age specific rates of SARS-CoV-2 infections in countries from several continents to identify differences in age specific incidence of reported cases in different countries. Methods & Materials Data on age-specific case incidence of SARS-CoV-2 derived from publicly available databases from selected countries in Europe, North America, Australasia, and Asia were collected and analysed to identify and evaluate trends in reported age specific distribution of morbidity from SARS-CoV-2 in countries for which data was available. Results Data for laboratory confirmed COVID-19 cases from South Korea, Australia, New Zealand, Japan and the Netherlands exhibited essentially identical profiles, with a bimodal distribution that shows highest rate of confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infections among individuals in the 20-29 years age cohort (21%-27% of total), and a second lower peak for the 50-59 or 60-69 age cohorts (16-18% of total), while preliminary data from China, United States and Sweden exhibited a unimodal distribution with highest rate of positive individuals for the 50-59 age cohort. Conclusion There is increasing evidence that individuals < 30 years of age may be playing a highly significant role in the facilitation and amplification of COVID-19 transmission in countries worldwide. Data reported from the first wave of the COVID-19 Pandemic in at least 5 countries (South Korea, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Netherlands) demonstrated that greater attention should be paid to the frequency and epidemiological importance of COVID-19 infections among young adults in the 20-29 year age cohort, because individuals in this age range comprise a large proportion (21%-27%) of the known laboratory confirmed COVID-19 cases in these countries, and perhaps other countries for which reliable data are not yet available. The epidemiological importance of COVID-19 infections among young adults and adolescents in amplifying and facilitating the proliferation of the COVID-19 Pandemic has been systematically underestimated in many countries, because of low rates of testing among asymptomatic individuals and low rates of severe disease or mortality among individuals <30 years of age. Clarifying and understanding the epidemiological dynamics of SARS-CoV-2 transmission among individuals in younger age cohorts will help in determining control strategies at the individual and population levels. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5638 | Excess Deaths during COVID-19 pandemic in Alberta, Canada Purpose To determine if there was excess mortality in Alberta, Canada during the pandemic. We sought to confirm if excess mortality affected all age groups equally and determine what proportion of excess deaths is directly related to COVID-19. Methods & Materials Excess mortality was calculated by comparing observed to expected number of deaths. Monthly Crude death rates (CDR) for 2015 to 2019 was calculated by dividing monthly deaths by the mid-year population. Expected deaths was calculated by multiplying mean monthly CDR by the mid-year population in 2020 and the projected mid-year population in 2021 to calculate expected deaths. Age-adjusted monthly mortality rates for January 2020 to March 2021 was compared to the previous 5 years. Results From January 2020 to May 2021 there was a 11% excess mortality corresponding to an average of 248 monthly excess deaths with a minimum of 49 deaths in January 2020 (no COVID-19-related deaths) and a maximum of 781 excess deaths in December 2020. COVID-19 related deaths (n=2266) account for 53.8 % of the total excess deaths (n=4214) that occurred in the 17 months. Increase in all cause -excess deaths was proportionately higher, and in significantly greater numbers, in the younger age groups. Deaths directly linked to COVID-19 were: 8 (20-29 years), 12 (30-39 years), 32 (40-49 years), 74 (50-59 years), 225 (60-69 years), 409 (70-79 years), and 1274 (>80 years) Statistically significant increases in monthly drug poisoning deaths from March 2020 to April 2021 with a total of 1819 deaths. Excess 731 drug poisoning deaths representing 18.2 % of total all-cause excess mortality affected mostly those age 25-60. 53.9 % of all excess deaths is directly related to COVID-19 and 18.2% are drug poisoning related excess deaths. The remaining 27.9 % of excess deaths are likely due other factors such as limited access to urgent medical care. Conclusion There was statistically significant increase in all-cause mortality. Although older adults are more likely to die of COVID-19, there was massive increase in non-COVID-19 related mortality among the youth. These should be factored in public policy decisions on epidemic/pandemic management. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5639 | Spatial Opinion Mining from COVID-19 Twitter Data Purpose In the first quarter of 2020, World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 as a public health emergency around the globe. Therefore, different users from all over the world shared their thoughts about COVID-19 on social media platforms i.e., Twitter, Facebook etc. So, it is important to analyze public opinions about COVID-19 from different regions over different period of time. To fulfill the spatial analysis issue, a previous work called H-TF-IDF (Hierarchy-based measure for tweet analysis) for term extraction from tweet data has been proposed. In this work, we focus on the sentiment analysis performed on terms selected by H-TF-IDF for spatial tweets groups to know local situations during the ongoing epidemic COVID-19 over different time frames. Methods & Materials The primary step is to extract terms from tweets using H-TF-IDF approach. Moreover, these terms are utilized in two ways i.e., 1) select tweets containing terms, 2) terms used as features for sentiment analysis. Thereafter, data preprocessing is performed to clean the text. Afterwards, Vectorization models i.e., bag-of-words (BOW) and term frequency-inverse document frequency (TF-IDF) are used to extract features with the help of n-gram techniques. These features are extracted to train the prediction models for sentiment analysis. Lastly, different statistical and machine learning models i.e., Logistic regression, support vector machine (SVM), etc. are applied to classify the spatial tweets groups. For preliminary results, experiments are conducted on H-TF-IDF tweets corpus having geocoded spatial information for the period of January, 2020. These tweets are extracted from the dataset collected by E.Chen (https://github.com/echen102/COVID-19-TweetIDs) that focuses on the early beginning of the outbreak. A uniform experiment setup of train-test (80% and 20%) split scheme is used for each prediction model. Results The results illustrate that specific terms highlighted by H-TF-IDF provide useful information that would not have been identified without this spatial analysis. The classification results spatial location tweet groups into positive, negative and neutral by subjectivity and polarity measures. Conclusion The current work is applied on English language-based Twitter information. A following work is to incorporate other languages to perform sentiment analysis. Furthermore, BERT will be used to extend these features. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5640 | SARS-CoV-2 associated multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children: data from Khimki hospital Purpose Multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) – the most severe status, associated with SARS-COV-2 infection. Clinical and laboratory characteristics of MIS-C, and treatment optimization are topical problems on current stage. Our aim to analyze main features of the MIS-C. Methods & Materials We evaluated 41 children (21M/18F) 1 - 16 yrs. (8,45±0,677 yrs.) hospitalized in Khimki Regional Hospital with MIS-C from June 2020 to April 2021. 7 children had background disease (allergy, nephroblastoma, ulcerative colitis, diabetes mellitus, urologic pathology). 5 children were mongoloid race (12%). Excessive weight had 27%, according to BMI; 17% had high growth to age. 58% had A(II) blood group, Rh(+)-positive were 74%. Results All children at the admission had fever more than 3 days. Anti-SARS-COV-2 IgM and IgG had 1 patient, IgG only - 25 (61%); 2 patients were positive SARS-Cov2 RNA in the oropharyngeal swab; 27% had family contact to СOVID-19. By severity 66% children were hospitalized to the ICU. Clinically skin and mucosal signs had 31 (76 %), gastro-intestinal symptoms – 22 (54%), pneumonia – 20 (49%), kidney injury –15 (40%), cardiovascular damage - 10 (24%), CNS –6 (15%). Simultaneous damage of 2 systems had 37% children, 3 – 46%, 4 - 12%, 5 – 1 patient, 6 – 1 patient. 5 cases developed acute kidney injury like hemolytic-uremic syndrome (HUS), as the main MIS-C performance. Laboratory features: increased ESR (Мe 40,0 (IQR 30-50) мм/ч), elevated CRP (Мe 118,9 (IQR 71,5-129,4)), ferritin (Мe 471,0 (IQR 214,08-990,28)), D-dimer (Мe 2,81 (IQR 1,76 – 4,55)), LDH (Мe 594,0 (IQR 511,0-663,0)), CK (Мe 112,0 (IQR 61,35-288,7)), CK-MB (Мe 44,95 (IQR 33,0-80,1)), decreased albumin (Мe 27,4 (IQR 23,0-33,0)). In 76% patients were treated with methylprednisolone pulse, IVIG in 20%, standard doses of corticosteroids – 10%. All children discharged home with recovery. Conclusion MIS-C is the most severe form of COVID-19 in children. In Khimki Regional Hospital 41 patient were successfully treated. The main features are severe status (66%-ICU), 63% children had 3+ affected systems; the main symptoms are skin and mucosal damage, gastrointestinal signs and headache, high BMI. There were 5 patients with HUS, during SARS-Cov2 associated MIS-C. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5641 | Novel PCR Test to Differentiate Between Infections with SARS-CoV-2, Influenza A and B Purpose Infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) causes COVID-19, a worldwide spreading disease with acute respiratory distress syndrome as one of the major complications. In the early disease stage, COVID-19 cannot be distinguished from influenza based on the clinical symptoms. During viraemia, direct pathogen detection by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) is the diagnostic gold standard. This study evaluated a novel real-time RT-PCR test for fast detection and differentiation of RNA from SARS-CoV-2 and influenza virus types A and B. Methods & Materials The assays´ diagnostic performance was compared to CE-IVD/FDA-EUA-marked reference PCR tests. RNA was extracted from patient samples collected as nasopharyngeal or oropharyngeal swabs. Virus-specific RNA was amplified after reverse transcription using the EURORealTime SARS-CoV-2/Influenza A/B PCR test (EUROIMMUN) allowing simultaneous detection of two target sequences in the SARS-CoV-2 ORF1ab and N genes as well as one target sequence each for influenza virus A and B. Assays were carried out on the CFX96 cycler (Bio-Rad) and evaluated with the EURORealTime Analysis Software (EUROIMMUN). The 95% limit of detection (LoD) was determined by Probit analysis using a dilution series of quantified target RNA. To exclude cross-reactivity and interference, the assay was run against human genomic DNA/RNA, nucleic acids from different viral, bacterial and fungal pathogens, and potentially interfering substances. Results Compared to the reference PCR tests, the EURORealTime SARS-CoV-2/Influenza A/B showed positive agreements of 97.8%, 93.0% and 100% and negative agreements of 100%, 100% and 98.9% for SARS-CoV-2, influenza A and influenza B, respectively. The 95% LoD values were calculated to be 0.55cp/µl for SARS-CoV-2, 0.92cp/µl for influenza A H3N2, 0.67cp/µl for influenza A H1N1 and 1.21cp/µl for influenza B. No cross-reactivities with human or pathogen-specific nucleic acids or interferences were detected. Conclusion The novel test is able to detect SARS-CoV-2, influenza A and influenza B with high sensitivity and clearly discriminate between these viruses. It is therefore optimally suited for differential diagnostics for patients presenting with symptoms compatible with COVID-19 and influenza. Combined detection of the three pathogens in one multiparameter assay helps to save time and resources in the diagnostic workup. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5642 | A Web-Survey Exploration of COVID-19 Knowledge, Misinformation and Sources of Information During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Nigeria Purpose Due to the novel and rapidly evolving nature of the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a widespread perpetuation of myths, rumours, and conspiracy theories about the pandemic. This has led to the emergence of an “infodemic” of fake news and distorted facts. Our study examines Nigerians’ knowledge and sources of COVID-19 information during the pandemic. Methods & Materials We conducted a web-based cross-sectional survey of internet users (≥ 16 years old) resident in Nigeria targeted through snowballing sampling. The questionnaire was deployed using the JISC platform (https://www.onlinesurveys.ac.uk/) between 19th May 2020 to 18th June 2020. Descriptive statistics and chi-square (χ2) were reported while multivariable logistic regression was conducted to estimate the association between selected predictor variables and a good COVID-19 knowledge. Results A total of 406 respondents across all six geopolitical zones in Nigeria were recruited for the survey. Varying proportion of the respondents agreed with some of the prevailing misinformation such as the bioengineered weapon origin of COVID-19 (29.6%), and that herbal mixtures (18.7%) and antibiotics (9.1%) are efficacious cures. A lesser proportion also believed the virus was engineered for population control (9.9%) and vaccination enforcement (5.7%), as a plague caused by sins (4.7%) and a consequence of the 5G network technology (2.5%). Most respondents ranked international health organisations (73.9%) and health/public health workers (70.7%) as their most trusted sources of COVID-19 information while a comparatively lower proportion indicated their trust in government statements (40.6%) and social media sources (22.4%). Multivariable regression reveals a number of predictors of COVID-19 knowledge such as being urban settlers (OR:2.98, 95% C.I:1.05 – 8.49, p = 0.04) compared to rural dwellers; resident in the North Central zone (OR:0.53, 95% C.I:0.30 - 0.95, p = 0.03) and the Northwest zone (OR:0.20, 95% C.I:0.07 - 0.60, p = 0.004) compared to those in Southwest zone of Nigeria; and having a non-medical educational/professional background (95% C.I: 0.29 - 0.85, p = 0.01) compared to a medical/science background. Conclusion The findings highlight factors to consider in designing proactive risk communication strategies during a disease outbreak and the importance of a targeted approach for COVID-19 health communication. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5643 | Risk Factors Associated with the Mucormycosis Epidemic During the COVID-19 Pandemic Purpose The second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in India is associated with an unprecedented surge of patients with mucormycosis. This study assessed the risk factors driving the epidemic of COVID-19 associated mucormycosis (CAM) and addressing these risk factors could reduce morbidity and mortality among vulnerable populations. Methods & Materials This is a case-control analysis of risk factors in 164 adults from a prospective cohort database, the POISE Mucor Study, approved by the institutional review board and ethics committee with proven invasive mucormycosis of paranasal sinuses admitted in a tertiary care hospital in South India from 01.07.2020 to 10.06.2021 included after informed consent. Cases were patients with COVID-19 confirmed by RT-PCR for SARS-CoV-2 on a nasopharyngeal sample within three months of mucormycosis. Patients with ROCM (Rhino-orbito-cerebral mucormycosis) negative RT-PCR for SARS-CoV-2 were the controls. Results The mean age of the 164 patients (132 cases and 32 controls) was 51 years, and 78% were men (table 1). Most patients with CAM had mild COVID-19 (76.7%); 16.3% and 7% had moderate and severe/critical disease, respectively. Almost all patients presented with acute ROCM within 3 months of COVID-19 occurrence. Diabetes mellitus (present in 97%) remained a strong predisposing factor in both groups. Uncontrolled diabetes mellitus (HbA1c of >7.0%), 40% of which was newly detected, was associated with CAM (OR: 4.6; p=0.026). Diabetic ketoacidosis and mean HbA1c values were not. Steroid use was common, even in mild disease, and was strongly associated with CAM (OR:38.3; p<0.001). Oxygen use was uncommon among cases (14.4%). Serum ferritin was significantly higher among patients with CAM (p=0.041); whereas C-reactive protein was not. Acute presentation of ROCM was commoner in CAM. Involvement of brain and orbit were similar between groups. Multivariate analysis revealed that steroid use was independently associated with CAM (OR 28.4; p=0.001). Conclusion The current Indian mucormycosis epidemic (mostly acute ROCM) was precipitated by a unique confluence of risk factors – diabetes mellitus, widespread use of steroids, and the COVID-19 infection itself. Restricting steroid use to patients with severe COVID-19 requiring oxygen therapy, screening for and optimally controlling hyperglycaemia can prevent CAM in a large majority. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5644 | The Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic On Malaysian Police Officers Mental Health: Depression, Anxiety and Stress Purpose Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak has causes life-changing impacts such as new environmental policies, slowdown of world economy and impact on global health and society. Police officers are among the front liners who continue to bravely fight this pandemic. As the frontline in managing the COVID-19 pandemic, police officers are at high risk for many forms of psychological problems which includes anxiety and depression. It is reported that a total of 60 officers from the New York Police Department died from suicide due to mental health disturbance and approximately 95 police officers in China died on the frontline of fighting this outbreak. Thus, it is important to provide appropriate mental health services and to be able to do such, there is the need to understand the psychological risk factors and their subsequent needs during pandemic. The main purpose of this study is to identify the impact of COVID-19 pandemic to mental health of Malaysian police officers. Methods & Materials Police Stress Questionnaires (PSQ) was used to measure the police-specific stressors related with COVID-19. Meanwhile, Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS-21) questionnaires use to determine the prevalence of occupational stress among police officers. Results It is found that the highest percentage reported of 41.1% moderate depression, 45% of moderate anxiety and 31.8% moderate stress among the respondents. Lack of resources, unequal sharing of work responsibilities, inadequate equipment and high risk to COVID-19 infection are associated with depression, anxiety and stress among police officers. There is significant correlation between COVID-19 stressors and level of depression, anxiety and stress among the police officers with direct correlation. Conclusion Majority of the police officers suffer moderate to severe depression, anxiety and stress during COVID-19 pandemic. Identified stressors from the study help to develop best practices and offers recommendations for policing when handling pandemic in future. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5645 | Sub-genomic RNA Expression in SARS-CoV-2 B.1.411 and B.1.1.7 Infections in Sri Lanka Purpose As experienced by many countries, Sri Lanka is currently experiencing a large COVID-19 outbreak, with over 90 cases/one million population. The previous outbreak, which was due to the B.1.411 virus (Sri Lankan lineage) resulted in a significantly fewer number of cases and deaths compared to the current outbreak caused by B.1.1.7. Therefore, we sought to explore if the differences in the transmission rates and higher mortality rates with the introduction of B.1.1.7 is due to an increased expression of sub-genomic RNA, which is an essential step in the virus life cycle. Methods & Materials Sputum or nasopharyngeal samples of 472 patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection were included in the analysis. Samples with the cycle threshold <30, were sequenced using 247 amplicons targeting the SARS-CoV-2 genome (MN908947v3). Library preparation was done using AmpliSeq prep kit and sequenced either on illumina iSeq100 or Nextseq550 platforms. Basecalling and demultiplexing were done using the default bcl2fastq (v2.20) pipeline. Raw index-trimmed fastqs were analyzed for sub-genomic RNA using Periscope (https://github.com/sheffield-bioinformatics-core/periscope). Raw reads were aligned and checked for the leader sequence at the start of each open reading frame (ORF). The sgRNA detected reads were counted, classified into ORFs and normalized using the genomic RNA counts at each position. Groups were compared with an unpaired Wilcoxon test using R statix package. Figures were generated in Rggpubr. Results Out of the remaining 434 datasets after the quality control step, 164 were of B.1.1.7 lineage while 237 were B.1.4.11. Means of the normalized sgRNA counts between B.1.411 and B.1.1.7 viruses were significantly different in six ORFs. Viruses of the B.1.411 lineage expressed significantly higher sgRNA for Spike protein (p = 0.014), ORF3a (p = 0. 0001), Membrane protein (p = 3.62E-10), ORF8 (p = 1.81E-05), and ORF7a (p = 0.0004) than those in B.1.1.7 samples. Contrastingly, Nucleocapsid (N) protein had significantly higher sgRNA expression in B.1.1.7 samples (p=0.0001). Conclusion Our results suggest that increased expression of sgRNA for a particular virus lineage does not necessarily associate with higher transmissibility as higher expression of sgRNA of B.1.1.7 compared to the B.1.411 lineage virus was only seen for the N protein. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5646 | Characterization of the Nasopharyngeal Microbiota of COVID-19 Patients According to Disease Severity Purpose Increasing evidence indicates a possible relationship between the pathogenesis of COVID-19 and the nasopharyngeal microbiota. This study aimed to compare the nasopharyngeal microbiota of COVID-19 patients with different disease severity. Methods & Materials A comparative study was performed on patients classified into four groups according to their disease severity. A total of 26 patients were recruited for each of the following study groups. Group 1 (G1): patients with a confirmatory diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 and hospitalized in the ICU. Group 2 (G2): patients with a confirmatory diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 and hospitalized in regular hospitalization wards. Group 3 (G3): patients with a confirmatory diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 who were not hospitalized and had mild or no symptoms. Group 4 (G4): healthy patients with a negative result for SARS-CoV-2. The diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 was performed by reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). The nasopharyngeal microbiota was characterized using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) targeting 13 representative bacteria genus. Results The detection of some bacteria genus was significantly more frequent in the hospitalized groups compared to healthy subjects. This is the case of Lactobacillus with 96.15% in G1, 96.15% in G2, 23.08% in G3 and 15.38% in G4. Similarly, Prevotella presented 96.15% in G1, 80.77 in G2, 0.00% in G3 and 19.23% in G4. Veilonella, Bacteroidetes and Firmicutes presented a similar prevalence. On the other hand, the detection of Eubacterium was more frequent among asymptomatic and healthy subjects, with 3.85% in G1, 19.23% in G2, 50.00% in G3 and 30.77% in G4. The relative abundance of the bacteria was evaluated and Lactobacillus and Veilonella were predominant in both of the hospitalized groups (G1 and G2). On the other hand, Actinobacteria and Eubacterium were predominant in the asymptomatic and healthy groups (G3 and G4) Conclusion In conclusion a unique nasopharyngeal microbiota profile was found in COVID-19 patients with different disease severity. Lactobacillus, Prevotella, Veilonella, Bacteroidetes and Firmicutes were the predominant bacteria genus in critical and hospitalized patients. While. Eubacterium and Actinobacteria were predominant in the groups of asymptomatic and healthy subjects. Further longitudinal studies are required to determine the prognostic role of the nasopharyngeal microbiota. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5647 | To Determine the Efficacy of Remdesivir in Covid-19 Purpose To Determine the Efficacy of Remdesivir in Covid-19 Methods & Materials We conducted an interventional, single-center study. Two groups were made. First group was labeled ‘Remdesivir group’, to whom after Informed Consent Injection Remdesivir (200 mg on the first day followed by 100 mg per day for next four days) was given. Second group was the ‘Control group’, to whom injection Remdesivir was not given. Patients in both groups had corona virus disease confirmed either through nasopharyngeal swab RT-PCR or HRCT. Convenience sampling technique with lottery method was used to make comparable groups. On admission all patients were oxygen dependent. The primary outcome was to compare the time to recovery, defined by ‘Number of days spent in hospital to maintain oxygen saturation of at least 93% on room air’. The secondary outcome was to determine overall mortality benefit, defined by decreased mortality incidence. For comparison purpose; three major categories were made within both groups. (1) ‘Mild Category ‘had oxygen saturation 91% to 93% on Room air, (2) ‘Moderate Category’ had oxygen saturation 71% to 90% on Room air and (3) ‘Severe Category’ had oxygen saturation less than 70 % on Room air. Results Total 236 patients were included in the study. Remdesivir group comprised of 118 patients and Control group comprised of 118 patients. In Remdesivir group 21 patients had Mild disease (19 discharged, 2 died), 48 patients had Moderate disease (46 discharged, 2 died). 49 patients had Severe disease (10 discharged, 39 died). In Control group 24 patients had Mild disease (20 discharged, 04 died), 48 patients had Moderate disease (46 discharged and 2 died). 46 patients had severe disease (15 discharged, 31 died). The mean hospital stay in Remdesivir group was 13 days and overall mortality rate was 36.44%, the mean hospital stay in Control group was 11 days and overall mortality was 31.35% (p-value.97, chi-square statistic 0.0013). Conclusion Our data show that Remdesivir was not superior to standard of care treatment in shortening the overall time to recovery in adults with established Covid-19. No Mortality benefit was observed with Remdesivir treatment. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5648 | COVID-19 associated Invasive Fungal Rhinosinusitis: A Retrospective Analysis of 15 Cases Purpose India is witnessing an increasing number of invasive fungal infections, especially mucormycosis, associated with the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. The purpose of this study is to describe the epidemiological and clinical features of patients with COVID-19 associated invasive fungal sinusitis (CIFRS) who presented to our centre (KIMSHEALTH, a tertiary hospital in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India). Methods & Materials We included biopsy and/or culture proven invasive fungal rhinosinusitis in patients who had history of COVID-19 infection (confirmed by RT-PCR or an antigen based test). Clinical details were collected by review of the electronic medical records and analysis was done by descriptive statistics. Results 15 patients who satisfied the inclusion criteria were included in the analysis. This included 11 cases of rhino orbital mucormycosis, 2 cases of invasive aspergillosis and 2 cases of co-infection with Mucorales and Aspergillus species. Fungal culture showed growth of Mucorales in 4 patients and Aspergillus flavus in one patient. The mean age of the patients was 58.0 ± 9.7 years, and 12 were male. Type 2 diabetes mellitus was a common additional risk factor in all the patients and the mean HbA1c was 9.9 ± 2.1. All patients except two had received corticosteroids as a part of their COVID-19 treatment. All patients except one had used steam inhalation for symptom relief for COVID-19 symptoms. The median duration between the diagnosis of COVID-19 and the diagnosis of CIFRS was 20 days (interquartile range: 16-27). All patients underwent emergency endoscopic sinus debridement surgery followed by antifungal medicines. Antifungals used included liposomal amphotericin B, amphotericin B deoxycholate and isavuconazole for mucormycosis patients while two patients with invasive aspergillosis were treated with isavuconazole. At the time of reporting one patient had expired while the others have shown clinical improvement. Conclusion The common risk factor for all cases of CIFRS was diabetes mellitus. Majority of patients also had history of steroid use and steam inhalation during their COVID-19 treatment. Their role in pathogenesis need to be ascertained by larger studies. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5649 | Prediction of hospital-onset COVID-19 using networks of patient contact: an observational study Purpose Predicting healthcare-acquired infections (HAIs) has the potential to revolutionise the prevention and control of transmissible infections. Existing prediction models for HAIs, however, fail to capture fully the contact-driven nature of infectious diseases. Here, we investigate the epidemiological predictivity of patient contact patterns through a forecasting model for hospital-onset COVID-19 infection (HOCI). Methods & Materials Our cohort comprises all patient admissions at a large London NHS Trust between 1/04/2020 and 1/04/2021. For patients, we consider (i) their hospital pathway, (ii) patient contacts, and (iii) date of COVID-19 infection. We consider rolling 14-day windows and forecast patient infection over the subsequent 7 days. Over each window, we construct a patient contact network and compute network features that capture contact centrality. We then combine network features, hospital environmental variables and patient clinical data to predict subsequent infections. Results A total of 51,157 patient admissions/episodes were observed during the study. Across all models, we find that contact-network features showed the highest performance (0.91 AUC-ROC). A reduced model with the six most predictive variables was almost as predictive and contained five features from patient contact (including direct contact with and network proximity to infectious cases) and only one environmental variable (length of stay). Conclusion Our results reveal that the number of direct contacts and network proximity to infectious patient(s) are highly predictive of HOCI. Such contact-based risk factors are easily extracted from routinely collected electronic health records providing a highly accessible route to improve personalised disease prognostics in future models. | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 | |
| 5650 | Clinical and epidemiological assessment of the epidemic process of covid-19 in hostels depending on the type of their planning arrangement Purpose During the COVID-19 pandemic, people living in dormitories became one of the most vulnerable groups of the population involved in the process of focal morbidity. Aim To analyze the clinical and epidemiological features of the manifestation of the epidemic process of COVID-19 in hostels, depending on the type of their planning arrangement. Methods & Materials A prospective analytical study of 350 foci of COVID-19 formed in hostels in Moscow in the period from 04.12.2020 to 06.23.2020 with 3,228 cases in total. Results The epidemic process in the corridor-type dormitories (СTВ) had an earlier development, the first foci of COVID-19 began to form as early as 04/12/2020, which was 7 days ahead of the formation of foci in block-type dormitories (BCD). The average growth rate in the corridor-type dormitories was 8.4%, which was 5.3 times higher than the corresponding indicator in block-type dormitories. The prevalence rate was 1.5 times higher in the corridor-type dormitories. From 04/12/2020 to 06/23/2020, the number of COVID-19 infected in the block-type dormitories was significantly less than in the corridor-type dormitories: there were 4 cases of infection per 100 guests of the block-type dormitories, while in the corridor-type dormitories there were 10 cases of COVID-19 per 100 residents. The prevalence rate of severe COVID-19 in block-type dormitories was 1.1%, while in corridor-type dormitories the studied coefficient was 11 times higher and averaged 11.6%. Conclusion The type of planning arrangement of collective housing organizations is a fundamental factor influencing on the course of epidemic process of COVID-19 in dormitories. The complex of necessary anti-epidemic measures aimed at localizing | Int J Infect Dis | 2022 | CORD-19 |
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