Article Summary
August 26, 2020
An Inflammatory Cytokine Signature Predicts COVID-19 Severity and Survival
Measurement of inflammatory markers among hospitalized COVID-19 patients (n=1,484) found that high serum IL-6, IL-8, and TNF-α levels at the time of hospitalization were strong and independent predictors of patient survival. IL-6 and TNF-α serum levels remained significant predictors of disease severity and death after adjustment for disease severity, common laboratory inflammation markers, hypoxia and…
Sex Differences in Immune Responses That Underlie COVID-19 Disease Outcomes
Takahashi et al. found immune responses to SARS-CoV-2 infection differ by sex, suggesting potential factors that contribute to observed sex-based disparities in COVID-19. Among patients with moderate disease who had not received immunomodulatory medications (n=98), male patients had higher plasma levels of innate immune cytokines (e.g., IL-8 and IL-18), along with more robust induction of…
Post-Discharge Persistent Symptoms and Health-Related Quality of Life after Hospitalization for COVID-19
In a single-center study assessing post-discharge persistent symptoms and health-related quality of life of COVID-19 patients (n=279), most patients still had persistent symptoms 110 days after being discharged, especially fatigue (55%) and shortness of breath (42%). Twenty percent of patients, primarily women, reported significant hair loss. Among the participants who were actively working prior to…
Diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 in Children Accuracy of Nasopharyngeal Swab Compared to Nasopharyngeal Aspirate
[pre-print, not peer-reviewed] Comparing the diagnostic performance of nasopharyngeal swab (NS) to nasopharyngeal aspirate (NPA) for the detection of SARS-CoV-2 in children (n=300 paired samples), NS was found to have a low sensitivity in detecting SARS-CoV-2 in children when referred to NPA. The authors recommend that in children under 6 years of age, NS should…
Saliva Sample Pooling for the Detection of SARS-CoV-2
Pasomsub et al. showed that pooling of either five or ten saliva samples for testing by SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR did not compromise the detection of SARS-CoV-2. Pasomsub et al. (Aug 25, 2020). Saliva Sample Pooling for the Detection of SARS-CoV-2. Journal of Medical Virology. https://doi.org/10.1002/jmv.26460
Hydroxychloroquine in the Treatment of Outpatients with Mildly Symptomatic COVID-19 A Multi-Center Observational Study
[pre-print, not peer-reviewed] In a retrospective observational study of SARS-CoV-2 infected non-hospitalized patients (n=1,274), hydroxychloroquine exposure was associated with a decreased rate of hospitalization from COVID-19 in a 1,067 patient propensity score matched cohort (OR=0.53, 95%CI 0.29, 0.95). Among outpatients treated with hydroxychloroquine 22% with were hospitalized compared to 32% who did not receive hydroxychloroquine….
Strategies at Points of Entry to Reduce Importation Risk of COVID-19 Cases and Re-Open Travel
An assessment of the risk of exportation of active SARS-CoV-2 cases from 153 countries with confirmed COVID-19 cases across six importation risk reduction strategies revealed that testing and isolation of those who test positive is the most effective strategy as long as good testing practices are in place. If testing is not feasible, the authors…
Preventing and Mitigating SARS-CoV-2 Transmission — Four Overnight Camps, Maine
During the 2020 summer camp season, four overnight camps in Maine with 1,022 attendees from 41 states and international locations implemented a multilayered prevention and mitigation strategy that was successful in identifying and isolating three asymptomatic persons with SARS-CoV-2 infection and preventing secondary transmission. The four summer camps, which had similar sizes, session duration, and…
August 25, 2020
Primary Indicators to Systematically Monitor COVID-19 Mitigation and Response — Kentucky
The Kentucky Department for Public Health (KDPH) developed the Indicator Monitoring Report (IMR), which provides daily analysis of 5 key state-level indicators, including new cases, health care capacity data, and contact tracing capacity. IMR review by KDPH during May 19 – July 15 led to successful county-level hotspot identification and mitigation, suggesting that the IMR…
Impacts of K-12 School Reopening on the COVID-19 Epidemic in Indiana USA
[pre-print, not peer-reviewed] Espana et al. conducted a modeling study with varying degrees of school operating capacity and face-mask adherence to estimate the impact of a K-12 school reopening in Indiana on SARS-CoV-2 transmission. Their model indicated that, from August 24 to December 31, operating schools with high face-mask adherence would result in 3-times the…
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