Article Summary
July 9, 2020
Increases in Health-Related Workplace Absenteeism Among Workers in Essential Critical Infrastructure Occupations During the COVID-19 Pandemic — United States, March–April 2020
While the effect of COVID-19 on overall workplace absenteeism in March and April was minor, absenteeism was significantly higher than expected (based on the previous 5-years) among workers in job categories that contain a large proportion of workers who are part of the essential critical infrastructure workforce. These include the areas of personal care and service, healthcare support, and production occupations. Many essential critical infrastructure jobs…
Clinical Characteristics of Patients With Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Receiving Emergency Medical Services in King County, Washington
Based on a study of patients who required 911 emergency medical services (EMS) care for COVID-19 in King County, Washington (February 1 to March 18), screening based on conventional COVID-19 symptoms or examination findings of febrile respiratory illness may not be sufficiently sensitive to identify patients with COVID-19. Of 147 unique 911 encounters, 29% had no symptoms of fever, cough, or shortness of breath. Based on EMS examination findings, fever (51%), tachypnea (rapid breathing) (32%), or hypoxia (54%) were only present in a…
Systematic Review with Meta-Analysis: Liver Manifestations and Outcomes in COVID-19
A systematic review and meta-analysis (107 studies, 20,874 COVID-19 patients) shows that the severity of elevated liver chemistries is associated with the outcome of COVID-19; however, the presence of chronic liver disease does not alter the outcome of COVID-19. COVID-19 patients with elevated liver chemistries had increased risk of mortality (OR=3.46; 95%CI 2.42-4.95) and severe disease (OR=2.87; 95%CI 2.29-3.6)…
Persistent Symptoms in Patients After Acute COVID-19
A study of 147 patients in Italy who had recovered from COVID-19 found that 87% reported persistence of at least 1 symptom, particularly fatigue and dyspnea (difficulty breathing) at a mean of 60 days (SD 13.6) after onset of symptoms. Carfì et al. (July 9, 2020). Persistent Symptoms in Patients After Acute COVID-19. JAMA. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2020.12603
Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pandemic Measures: Reports From a National Survey of 9,120 ICU Clinicians
Based on a survey of 9,120 ICU clinicians across the US, Kleinpell et al. identified personal protective equipment, specifically N95 respirator availability, and ICU staffing as the most critical ICU needs. 31% of ICU clinicians reported that minimizing healthcare worker virus exposure during care was the most challenging aspect of COVID-19 patient care. Both nurses and ICU clinicians who had provided care to COVID-19 patients reported a high level of concern about exposing family members to SARS-CoV-2 (median score of…
OpenSAFELY: Factors Associated with COVID-19 Death in 17 Million Patients
Williamson et al. linked primary care records of 17,278,392 adults in England (40% of all patients nationally) to 10,926 COVID-19-related deaths and found that COVID-19-related death was associated with being male (HR=1.59; 95% CI 1.53-1.65), older age and lower socioeconomic status (both with a strong gradient), diabetes, severe asthma, and various other medical conditions. Compared to…
Spatiotemporal Characteristics of COVID-19 Epidemic in the United States
COVID-19 incidence significantly decreased in early April in counties in the northeastern US (estimated weekly percentage change: -16.6%), but continued increasing in the Midwest (+13.2%), South (+5.6%) and West Regions (+5.7%). There was a higher likelihood of clustering and higher incidence of COVID-19 in metropolitan compared to rural counties, counties closest to core airports, in the most populous counties, and in counties with the highest proportion of racial/ethnic minority populations. However, geographic differences in incidence have decreased since early April. Wang et…
Rapid Emergence of SARS-CoV-2 in the Greater New York Metropolitan Area: Geolocation, Demographics, Positivity Rates, and Hospitalization for 46,793 Persons Tested by Northwell Health
Northwell Health Laboratories tested 46,793 persons in the greater New York metropolitan area for SARS-CoV-2 from March 4 through April 10, showing that SARS-CoV-2 incidence emerged rapidly and almost simultaneously across a broad demographic population in the region, and finding that 57% (n=26,735) of people tested positive for SARS-CoV-2. The total hospitalization rate was 31% of positive persons (n=8,174). There was a broad range (greater than 10-fold) in the cumulative…
Social Distancing, Population Density, and Spread of COVID-19 in England: A Longitudinal Study
Based on a 5-week longitudinal study, Tammes showed that COVID-19 incidence decreased more in the most densely populated administrative areas compared to less dense areas after the introduction of physical distancing measures by the UK government (March 16-22). In the last week of the study (April 13-19), the incidence was 22.4 per 100,000 persons (95% CI 16.9-28.0) in areas in…
Association of a Public Health Campaign About Coronavirus Disease 2019 Promoted by News Media and a Social Influencer With Self-Reported Personal Hygiene and Physical Distancing in the Netherlands
A targeted behavioral change campaign aimed at preventing SARS-CoV-2 transmission in the Netherlands that was promoted by a news platform and social media was associated with self-reported improvement in personal hygiene. Cross-sectional analysis of the post–campaign survey (n=17,189) found that that exposure to the video plus infographics (aOR=2.14) and to the infographics alone (aOR=1.31) were positively associated with washing hands. Exposure to the infographics alone and video plus…
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