Article Summary
May 12, 2021
Antibody Responses After a Single Dose of ChAdOx1 NCoV-19 Vaccine in Healthcare Workers Previously Infected with SARS-CoV-2
[Pre-print, not peer-reviewed] Sera of participants with detectable spike antibodies produced by natural infection had higher levels of anti-SARS-CoV-2 spike IgG antibodies against the wild-type strain and variants of concern (B.1.1.7, B.1351, and P.1) at least one week after a single dose of the Oxford-Astrazeneca vaccine (n=83) compared to sera from a mixed group of…
Cross-Sectional Serosurvey of Companion Animals Housed with SARS-CoV-2-Infected Owners, Italy
Anti-SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid (N) antibodies were detected in 7% of pets (14 of 198) in a serosurvey conducted in Italy from March to June 2020. All 14 seropositive animals lived with SARS-CoV-2-infected owners. In the households of SARS-CoV-2–infected owners, 20% (11 of 54) of cats and 3% (3 of 93) of dogs were seropositive. The proportion…
Remdesivir for Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19): A Systematic Review with Meta-Analysis and Trial Sequential Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials
A systematic review and meta-analysis of 5 randomized placebo-controlled trials (n=7,540 total participants) found no significant evidence that remdesivir (100 mg over 10 days) reduced all-cause mortality (RR=0.94, CI 0.82-1.07), clinical progression (RR=1.08, CI 0.99-1.18), or diarrhea (RR=0.82, CI 0.40-1.66). The authors conducted a trial sequential analysis and found that the meta-analysis was underpowered to…
A Randomized Double-Blind Controlled Trial of Convalescent Plasma in Adults with Severe COVID-19
Participants with severe COVID-19 randomized to receive convalescent plasma (n=150) had significantly lower 28-day mortality (OR=0.44, 95% CI: 0.22-.91) compared to those receiving controlled plasma (n=73) in a randomized double-blind controlled trial conducted in New York and Brazil. However, no significant improvement in clinical status, as measured on an ordinal scale, was observed at 28…
Inappropriate Antibiotic Use in the COVID-19 Era: Factors Associated with Inappropriate Prescribing and Secondary Complications
34% of COVID-19 patients in a multicenter cohort in Spain (n=13,932) were inappropriately prescribed antibiotics, defined as the patient not fulfilling any accepted criteria for use of antibiotics such as shock, sepsis, or coinfections. Patients admitted to the hospital early in the pandemic (February to March 2020) and presenting with dry cough, fever, and flu-like…
SARS-CoV-2 Infectivity by Viral Load, S Gene Variants and Demographic Factors and the Utility of Lateral Flow Devices to Prevent Transmission
SARS-CoV-2 index cases with lower PCR cycle threshold (Ct) values (suggesting a higher viral load) tended to have a higher proportion of contacts infected with SARS-CoV2, according to a study combining testing and contact tracing data from England between September 2020 and February 2021. Attack rates were 12% for index cases with Ct=15 and 5%…
Household Overcrowding and Risk of SARS-CoV-2 Analysis of the Virus Watch Prospective Community Cohort Study in England and Wales
[Pre-print, not peer-reviewed] The proportion of people with SARS-CoV-2 positive PCR tests was higher among participants living in houses with more occupants than rooms (“overcrowded houses”) when compared to houses with fewer occupants (7% vs 3%) per room, according to a household community cohort study in England and Wales (n=10,33) conducted between June 2020 to…
May 11, 2021
Prevalence of Antibody Positivity to SARS-CoV-2 Following the First Peak of Infection in England: Serial Cross-Sectional Studies of 365,000 Adults
The prevalence of anti-spike SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in England was 5% by the end of September 2020 (prior to the onset of vaccination campaigns), according to three cross-sectional national surveys with non-overlapping random samples undertaken between late June to September (n>365,000). The prevalence of detectable antibodies over the three rounds was 6%, 5%, and 4%. The…
Decreases in Reported Sexually Transmitted Infections during the Time of COVID-19 in King County, WA
Reported cases of gonorrhea and syphilis decreased by 5-22% in King County, Washington from January to July 2020 compared to January to July 2019. Mean weekly case counts of gonorrhea, male urethral gonorrhea, and early latent syphilis decreased during statewide lockdowns in late March, but returned to pre-lockdown levels after reopening in June. The authors…
Severe COVID-19 in People with Type 1 and Type 2 Diabetes in Sweden: A Nationwide Retrospective Cohort Study
Type 2 diabetes was associated with increased risk of COVID-19-related hospitalization (HR=2.22), admission to ICU (HR=2.49), and death (HR=2.19) in a nationwide study in Sweden that compared adult patients with type 2 diabetes (n=44,639) to age- and sex-matched controls. Risks for COVID-19 related outcomes remained independently associated with type 2 diabetes after further adjustment for…
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