Article Summary
September 4, 2020
Hydroxychloroquine and Chloroquine Prescribing Patterns by Provider Specialty Following Initial Reports of Potential Benefit for COVID-19 Treatment — United States
• New prescriptions for hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine in the US by medical professionals in specialties that do not routinely use these medications (<2% of prescriptions in 2019) rose from 1,143 in February 2020 to 75,596 in March 2020, an 80-fold increase from March 2019. These medications were reported to have benefits for prevention and treatment…
Exploring Options for Reprocessing of N95 Filtering Facepiece Respirators (N95-FFRs) amidst COVID-19 Pandemic a Systematic Review
[Pre-print, not peer reviewed] Twenty-one different types of decontamination or reprocessing methods for N95 masks have been evaluated, the most common of which is ultraviolet irradiation. Other techniques found by this systematic review include moist and dry heat and exposure to chemicals, such as ethylene oxide and hydrogen peroxide. Paul et al. (Sept 3, 2020)….
September 3, 2020
SARS-CoV-2 Surveillance in Decedents in a Large Urban Medical Examiner’s Office
[Pre-print, not peer reviewed] The 7-day average percentage of SARS-CoV-2 test positivity among people who had died and were identified as possible recent COVID-19 cases and were posthumously tested (n=237) closely matched the trajectory of percent positivity in the catchment population, according to the Wayne County Medical Examiner’s office in Michigan. SARS-CoV-2 positive flagged decedents…
Infection Fatality Ratios for COVID-19 Among Noninstitutionalized Persons 12 and Older: Results of a Random-Sample Prevalence Study
The overall infection fatality ratio (IFR) for the state of Indiana, excluding institutionalized persons and children under 12 years of age, was 0.3%. Stratifying the IFR across demographic groups resulted in an IFR of 0.01% among those <40 years of age, 1.7% among those ≥60 years of age, 0.2 among white patients, and 0.6% among…
Risk Factors of Non-Adherence to Guidelines for the Prevention of COVID-19 among Young Adults with Asthma in a Region with a High Risk of a COVID-19 Outbreak
A survey of young people (age 16-24 years; n=2,372) in Mexico found 53% did not adhere to COVID-19 prevention guidelines. Among respondents with asthma, 31% did not comply with basic prevention guidelines. Among those with asthma, male sex, active smoker status, and belief that COVID-19 does not more severely affect people with asthma were associated…
Disease Severity Dictates SARS-CoV-2-Specific Neutralizing Antibody Responses in COVID-19
Greater disease severity was associated with higher levels of serum neutralizing capacity among 59 patients recovered from COVID-19 in China. Generation of antibodies capable of completely neutralizing pseudovirus was observed in 80% of patients who recovered from severe illness, while asymptomatic patients failed to generate competent neutralizing antibodies. Complete neutralization was observed in 47% of…
Phase 1–2 Trial of a SARS-CoV-2 Recombinant Spike Protein Nanoparticle Vaccine
NVX-CoV2373, a recombinant nanoparticle vaccine, induced higher levels of anti-spike IgG and neutralizing antibody responses compared to convalescent serum of mostly symptomatic COVID-19 patients. There were no serious adverse events, and events such as fever and sore arm were mild and not long-lasting. These results were from a primary analysis at day 35 of a…
Effect of Dexamethasone on Days Alive and Ventilator-Free in Patients With Moderate or Severe Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome and COVID-19
Intravenous dexamethasone plus standard of care compared with standard care alone resulted in 2.3 days (95%CI 0.02-4.4, p=0.04) more ventilator-free days during the first 28 days in a randomized clinical trial among patients with COVID-19 who had moderate to severe respiratory failure (n=299) in Brazil. The trial was stopped early before reaching the planned sample…
Effect of Hydrocortisone on Mortality and Organ Support in Patients With Severe COVID-19
Administration of hydrocortisone, either as a 7-day fixed-dose course, or dosing only during periods of shock, was associated with being alive and free of ICU-based respiratory or cardiovascular support within 21 days, according to findings of a randomized control trial (n=384) which was stopped early after results were released from another trial. The fixed-dose course…
Towards Improved Social Distancing Guidelines Space and Time Dependence of Virus Transmission from Speech-Driven Aerosol Transport Between Two Individuals
[Pre-print, not peer reviewed] A modeling analysis considering air flow and aerosol transport parameters suggests that physical distancing guidelines should also include a contact time recommendation. The authors recommend less than 5 minutes of contact at a distance of one meter apart and less than 15 minutes for two meters apart in scenarios where an…
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