Article Summary
September 23, 2020
Patterns of COVID-19 Testing and Mortality by Race and Ethnicity among United States Veterans: A Nationwide Cohort Study
A nationwide sample collected from February to July, 2020 showed that US veterans who were Black or Hispanic were more likely to be tested for SARS-CoV-2 than white veterans (Black: 60%, Hispanic: 53%, white 39%), and more likely to test positive (Black vs white: OR=1.9; Hispanic vs white: OR=1.8). The disparity between Black and white…
Optimal Dynamic Prioritization of Scarce COVID-19 Vaccines
[Pre-print, not peer-reviewed] A modeling study reported that prioritizing a limited supply of SARS-CoV-2 vaccines to certain population groups resulted in 17-18% fewer deaths, infections, and years of life lost compared to a non-prioritized strategy. The optimal strategies consistently prioritized older essential workers, though the model allowed the priority groups to vary over time. Optimal…
Risk of Adverse COVID-19 Outcomes for People Living with HIV a Rapid Review and Meta-Analysis
[Pre-print, not peer-reviewed] Pooled results from 5 studies (median sample size 55 [IQR 35-115]) showed that people living with HIV had a 1.9-fold higher risk of COVID-19 mortality (95%CI 1.6-2.3) compared to people without HIV. Two studies reported that tenofovir-based antiretroviral therapy regimens were associated with a lower risk of adverse COVID-19 outcomes, but the…
Risk Factors for Hospitalization, Mechanical Ventilation, or Death Among 10 131 US Veterans With SARS-CoV-2 Infection
In a national cohort of 88,747 veterans in the US, 11% tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 from February to May 2020. Veterans with positive PCR results were predominantly male (91%) with a mean age of 64 (SD=16) years. Positive patients had increased rates of 30-day hospitalization (aHR=1.1), mechanical ventilation (aHR=4.2), and death (aHR=4.4). Among positive patients,…
Association of Red Blood Cell Distribution Width With Mortality Risk in Hospitalized Adults With SARS-CoV-2 Infection
An elevated level of red blood cell distribution width (RDW, >14.5%) at hospital admission was associated with an increased mortality risk among 1,461 patients diagnosed with SARS-CoV-2 infection in Boston (RR=2.7). In addition, patients whose RDW increased during hospitalization had higher mortality compared with those whose RDW did not change (6% vs 24% among 1,173…
Seroprevalence of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) Infection Among VA Healthcare System Employees Suggests Higher Risk of Infection When Exposed to SARS-CoV-2 Outside of the Work Environment
Among Veterans Affairs Healthcare System employees (n=2,900), those who reported direct contact with someone with COVID-19 outside of work were more likely to have SARS-CoV-2 antibodies. Facility-wide testing (June 8 to July 8, 2020) identified 5% of employees (n=1,476) of a Veterans Affairs Healthcare System tested positive for SARS-COV-2 IgG antibodies, of whom 29% reported…
Evaluation of Pooled Sample Analysis Strategy in Expediting Case Detection in Areas with Emerging Outbreaks of COVID-19: A Pilot Study
Pooling 5 nasopharyngeal or oropharyngeal samples during PCR testing would offer a reduction of laboratory turn-around time by 66% and the cost of diagnosis by 68%. However, the sensitivity was compromised, with 5 of the 109 pools showing discordant results when compared with individual results. Single samples with Ct value ³34 were likely to be…
Second Week Methyl-Prednisolone Pulses Improve Prognosis in Patients with Severe Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pneumonia: An Observational Comparative Study Using Routine Care Data
Receiving methyl-prednisolone pulses (MP) during the second week of COVID-19 disease was associated with lower risk of death or intubation in a study among 242 patient with severe COVID-19 pneumonia admitted at a university hospital in Spain (aHR=0.34, 95%CI 0.1-0.8). Ruiz-Irastorza et al. (Sept 22, 2020). Second Week Methyl-Prednisolone Pulses Improve Prognosis in Patients with…
Humoral Response to SARS-CoV-2 by Healthy and Sick Dogs during COVID-19 Pandemic in Spain
[Pre-print, not peer-reviewed] SARS-CoV-2 was not found in samples tested by RT-PCR from dogs presenting with pneumonia (n=40) nor among healthy dogs living in households with a COVID-19 case (n=20) in Spain (April to June 2020). Antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 were identified in 1 of 17 (6%) sick dogs that did not come from a COVID-19…
Seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 Significantly Varies with Age: Preliminary Results from a Mass Population Screening
A cohort study including 509 people in Milan, Italy found an IgG seroprevalence for SARS-CoV-2 was 23% and was positively associated with increasing age. The authors note that the lower seroprevalence among children could be due to lower exposure to the infection among school age children because schools were among the first institutions to be…
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