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December 18, 2020
Prevalence and Risk Factors of Disability and Anxiety in a Retrospective Cohort of 432 Survivors of Coronavirus Disease-2019 (Covid-19) from China
A multi-center retrospective cohort study of COVID-19 survivors in China found that a significant proportion experienced disability and anxiety after discharge from the hospital. Prevalence of at least one problem on a measure assessing independent living skills (Lawton IADL) was 37%, dependence in personal care and mobility (as assessed by the Barthel Index) was present…
Racial Bias in Pulse Oximetry Measurement
Inpatients who identify as Black who were receiving supplemental oxygen had nearly three times the frequency of occult hypoxemia that was not detected by pulse oximetry when compared to white patients in a two separate cohorts. In a cohort from the University of Michigan, among the patients who had an oxygen saturation of 92 to…
Understanding COVID-19 Vaccine Demand and Hesitancy: A Nationwide Online Survey in China
Results from a nationwide survey conducted in May 2020 in China indicated that many respondents expressed probable (55%) or definite (29%) intent to receive a COVID-19 vaccine. The study examined the applicability of the health belief model to vaccine demand and hesitancy, and found that perceived benefits and barriers (namely related to efficacy and outcomes)…
Tocilizumab in Patients Hospitalized with Covid-19 Pneumonia
Tocilizumab reduced the rate of mechanical ventilation, but did not prevent deaths among hospitalized COVID-19 patients. In a randomized trial of patients hospitalized with COVID-19 pneumonia who were not receiving mechanical ventilation, tocilizumab reduced the likelihood of progression to the composite outcome of mechanical ventilation or death, but did not improve survival. The cumulative percentage…
Postmortem Stability of SARS-CoV-2 in Nasopharyngeal Mucosa
Infectious SARS-CoV-2 virus is persistent in postmortem tissue. A study of SARS-CoV-2 postmortem viral RNA stability found evidence for maintained infectivity of the virus from the tissues of deceased individuals, and no time-dependent decrease in viral load. There was also no correlation between the postmortem interval (time of death until cooling at 4°C; median 17.8…
December 17, 2020
Factors That Might Affect SARS-CoV-2 Transmission Among Foreign-Born and U.S.-Born Poultry Facility Workers — Maryland, May 2020
Interviews conducted in May on a convenience sample of poultry workers in two facilities in Maryland (n=359) found that foreign-born workers had a higher odds of working on the production floor, having shared commutes, and living with other poultry workers compared to US-born workers. Foreign-born workers had lower odds of participating in social gatherings (e.g….
Health Center Testing for SARS-CoV-2 During the COVID-19 Pandemic — United States, June 5–October 2, 2020
Patient data from Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)-funded health centers found higher testing rates among members of racial/ethnic minority groups, indicating a degree of success in the health centers’ capacity to reach minority groups at increased risk for COVID-19. Among persons with known race/ethnicity who received testing (n=2,506,935), 36% were Hispanic/Latino, 38% were white,…
Telehealth Practice Among Health Centers During the COVID-19 Pandemic — United States, July 11–17, 2020
A survey conducted in July 2020 among 1,009 Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)-funded health centers found that health centers in urban areas were more likely to provide >30% of visits virtually than those in rural areas (55.1% vs 29.9%). A higher proportion of health centers in the Northeast, West, US territories, and freely associated…
Estimating the Herd Immunity Threshold by Accounting for the Hidden Asymptomatics Using a COVID-19 Specific Model
A model using data from Japan, Italy, France, and Switzerland that incorporates undetected asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection suggests herd immunity could be achieved when active symptomatic patients are 10-25% of the population, much lower than current estimates. Kaushal et al. (Dec 16, 2020). Estimating the Herd Immunity Threshold by Accounting for the Hidden Asymptomatics Using a…
Quantifying the Importance and Location of SARS-CoV-2 Transmission Events in Large Metropolitan Areas
[Pre-print, not peer reviewed] An agent-based model simulating the New York City and Seattle metropolitan areas from February to June 2020 found 80% of infections were produced by 27% of people, and 10% of events were super-spreading events (SSE). The model found most infections occurred in community and workplace settings prior to NPIs, whereas households…
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