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May 14, 2020
Performance of the Rapid Nucleic Acid Amplification by Abbott ID NOW COVID-19 in Nasopharyngeal Swabs Transported in Viral Media and Dry Nasal Swabs in a New York City Academic Institution
A comparison study found that the Abbot ID NOW COVID-19 assay missed one-third of the samples that tested positive by Cepheid Xpert Xpress when using NP swabs in VTM and missed over 48% when using dry nasal swabs. While the Abbot ID NOW COVID-19 platform offers faster turn-around time compared to RT-PCR platforms, it may have poor sensitivity, resulting in a high false negative rate. Basu. (2020). Performance of…
Early Safety Indicators of COVID-19 Convalescent Plasma in 5000 Patients
Joyner et al. evaluated the safety of transfusing ABO-compatible human COVID-19 convalescent plasma among 5,000 hospitalized adults with severe COVID-19 disease. Only 36 (<1%) serious adverse events were reported in the first four hours after transfusion, only 2 of which were judged by the treating physician to be related to the convalescent plasma transfusion. Although…
Effects of Mobility and Multi-Seeding on the Propagation of the COVID-19 in Spain
Mazzoli et al. found that between-region mobility explained the high heterogeneity in incidence between otherwise similar geographic regions of Spain that implemented uniform mobility control measures. Their findings suggest that “multi-seeding,” which occurs when multiple infected individuals arrive in a susceptible population, likely played an important role in the spreading of SARS-CoV-2 from the initial outbreak in Madrid to other regions of Spain. Mazzoli et al….
Tracing Two Causative SNPs Reveals SARS-CoV-2 Transmission in North America Population
Based on phylogenetic analysis of 2,599 global SARS-CoV-2 viral RNA sequences, the dominant strains circulating in North America are most closely related to those that predominate in Europe. A genome wide association study identified two mutations that predominate in North American samples. The authors hypothesize these mutations may be associated with increased transmissibility and that the mutations…
Risk Factors for Viral RNA Shedding in COVID-19 Patients
Among 410 COVID-19 patients admitted to three hospitals in Wuhan, China, the authors estimate the median duration of viral RNA shedding (from symptom onset to rRT-PCR conversion) to be 19 days (IQR 16-23 days; range 3-44 days). Most patients (96%) tested negative for SARS- CoV-2 RNA within 30 days after symptom onset. The median duration from fever resolution to rRT-PCR conversion was…
YouTube as a Source of Medical Information on the Novel Coronavirus 2019 Disease (COVID-19) Pandemic
D’Souza et al. reviewed the medical content of the 113 most-widely viewed YouTube videos on COVID-19. They found 70% of videos were useful and 9% were misleading. Of the videos classified as useful, 72% were posted by news agencies and 22% were posted by individuals. Of the misleading videos, 60% were posted by individuals and 40% were posted…
Lower State COVID-19 Deaths and Cases with Earlier School Closure in the U.S.
This ecological study found that earlier state-wide school closure was associated with fewer COVID-19 cases and deaths per capita. The authors estimate that state-wide cases were 2.7% higher and deaths were 12% higher for each addition day that schools remained open. Rauscher. (May 13, 2020). Lower State COVID-19 Deaths and Cases with Earlier School Closure…
May 13, 2020
On the Front (Phone) Lines Results of a COVID-19 Hotline in Northeast Ohio
Margolius et al. examine the effectiveness of a physician telehealth visits during the first five weeks of a 24/7 physician-staffed COVID-19 hotline in Northeast Ohio. Of 4,213 calls referred for a physician telehealth visit, most (79%) were advised to self-isolate at home, 14% were determined to be unlikely to have COVID-19, and 3% were advised to seek emergency care. A…
Protecting Health during COVID-19 and beyond: A Global Examination of Paid Sick Leave Design in 193 Countries
Heymann et al. assess the availability of paid sick leave in 193 UN member states. They found 27% of countries do not guarantee paid sick leave from the first day of illness, and 58% do not have explicit provisions to ensure self-employed and gig economy workers have access to paid sick leave benefits. Critical gaps remain between jeopardize health and economic security….
Estimating Excess 1-Year Mortality Associated with the COVID-19 Pandemic According to Underlying Conditions and Age: A Population-Based Cohort Study
Banerjee et al. estimate the excess 1-year COVID-19 mortality under different scenarios by levels of transmission suppression and relative risk (RR) of mortality above the baseline level using electronic health records from 3.8 million people in UK. Based on a population-based cohort study 20% of the population is in the high-risk category (aged >70 years or aged £70 years with at least one underlying condition). Baseline 1-year…
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