Article Summary
January 11, 2021
Health Websites on COVID-19: Are They Readable and Credible Enough to Help Public Self-Care?
A study evaluating the readability of websites with COVID-19-related information found reading levels were suitable for high school graduates or college students, which is higher than the recommended readability level. Search terms “coronavirus,” “COVID,” and “COVID-19” were input into Google, and the first thirty website results for each search term were evaluated. Most websites (87.2%)…
Antibiotic Prescribing in Patients with COVID-19: Rapid Review and Meta-Analysis
A rapid review and meta-analysis (n=154 studies, 30,623 patients) concluded that three quarters of patients with COVID-19 received antibiotics, which was significantly higher than the prevalence of bacterial co-infection (8.6% from 31 studies). Antibiotic prescribing was lower in children (prevalence OR = 0.10) compared to adults, and higher with increasing patient age (OR 1.45 per…
Optimal COVID-19 Quarantine and Testing Strategies
A mathematical model developed to quantify the probability of post-quarantine transmission in the context of travel found that SARS-CoV-2 testing on exit could reduce the duration of a 14-day quarantine by 50%, while testing on entry shortened quarantine by at most one day. The authors tested this approach in a real-world scenario involving offshore oil…
Impact of Tobacco Smoking on the Risk of COVID-19
A cross-sectional study of sailors on a navy aircraft carrier (n=1688, 87% male) found that current smoking status was associated with a lower risk of COVID-19 (OR = 0.59). 1279 (76%) crewmembers developed COVID-19 (62% RT-PCR positive, 14% with only clinical signs), and crewmembers >50 years old had an increased risk of contracting COVID-19 (OR…
The Importance of Anosmia, Ageusia and Age in Community Presentation of Symptomatic and Asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 Infection in Louisiana, USA; a Cross-Sectional Prevalence Study
A cross-sectional SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence study in Louisiana found that reported loss of taste or smell was strongly associated with a positive (PCR or antibody) test (OR: 13.6). Among people who tested positive, 47.3% (147/311) were asymptomatic. Modeling the probability of symptoms showed that the highest probability of reporting symptoms was 64.6% at age 29, which…
Prevalence and Clinical Significance of Persistent Viral Shedding in Hospitalized Adult Patients with SARS-CoV-2 Infection: A Prospective Observational Study
A prospective observational study of adults hospitalized with SARS-CoV-2 infection (n=121) detected persistent viral shedding (PVS) for at least 21 days in up to 38% of patients, which was strongly associated with immunosuppression (6.7% vs 21.7%), increased IL-6 levels (43.4% vs 67.3%), and need for mechanical ventilation (20.0% vs 41.3%). Time from onset of symptoms…
6-Month Consequences of COVID-19 in Patients Discharged from Hospital: A Cohort Study
A cohort study following patients recovering from COVID-19 in Wuhan, China found that fatigue or muscle weakness (63%) and sleep difficulties (26%) were the most commonly reported symptoms during the 6 months post-discharge. Anxiety or depression was reported among 23% of patients. In a comparison of laboratory values during the acute phase of illness versus…
Continuation versus Discontinuation of Renin–Angiotensin System Inhibitors in Patients Admitted to Hospital with COVID-19: A Prospective, Randomised, Open-Label Trial
A prospective, randomized, open-label trial concluded that renin–angiotensin system inhibitors, which are commonly used to treat hypertension, could safely be continued in patients hospitalized with COVID-19. Between March 31 and August 20, 2020, 152 participants were randomly assigned to either continue or discontinue renin–angiotensin system inhibitor therapy. 16 (21%) participants in the continuation arm versus…
Using Lorenz Curves to Measure Racial Inequities in COVID-19 Testing
A cross-sectional study using modified Lorenz curves to assess disparities in COVID-19 testing relative to disease burden found that in the St. Louis region, 89,341 SARS-CoV-2 tests (22.9%) were conducted in the 23 zip codes accounting for 50% of hospitalizations; 17 of these zip codes had a population where >50% of residents were Black. In…
Team-to-Team Transmission of COVID-19 in Ice Hockey Games – a Case Series of Players in Finnish Ice Hockey Leagues
An outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 among U-20 ice hockey teams in Finland was reported based on public statements by the local health authorities and the teams involved. One player who had asymptomatic COVID-19 infected 22 of 28 teammates. The team had returned from an away trip the day before the first players had symptoms. COVID-19 was…
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