Article Summary
May 4, 2021
SARS -CoV-2 T-Cell Immunity to Variants of Concern Following Vaccination
[Pre-print, not peer-reviewed] A study using two standardized, functional assays to measure memory T cell immunity to SARS-CoV-2 found that individuals vaccinated with the COVID-19 mRNA vaccines (n=29) mounted a more robust T cell response than convalescent patients (n=19) or healthy controls with no prior infection (n=25). The assay was based upon the “Quantiferon Gold”…
SARS-CoV-2 antibody-positivity protects against reinfection for at least seven months with 95% efficacy
Incidence of SARS-CoV-2 infection was 95% lower among persons with prior SARS-CoV-2 infection, indicated by seropositivity, in a cohort study in Qatar. In the study, 129 of 43,044 seropositive persons (0.3%) followed for a median of 16 weeks had at least one positive PCR test supported by evidence of reinfection at least 14 days after…
Factors Associated With Access to and Timing of Coronavirus Testing Among US Adults After Onset of Febrile Illness
In a study of 2,679 US participants reporting new onset of fever from April 2020 to October 2020, only 17% indicated ever taking a SARS-CoV-2 test within 2 weeks of symptom onset, and only 12% indicated receiving a result. Among those who received a SARS-CoV-2 test result, only 21% received their test result within 7…
Implications in the Quantification of SARS-CoV2 Copies in Concurrent Nasopharyngeal Swabs, Whole Mouth Fluid and Respiratory Droplets
In a study of 55 patients with SARS-CoV-2 PCR-positive nasopharyngeal (NPS) swabs, whole mouth fluid (WMF) samples had detectable SARS-CoV-2 RNA in 44 (80%) patients and had overall similar viral loads compared to NPS samples. Patients with severe disease course produced WMF samples with significantly higher virus copies. The authors suggest indicates that WMF, which…
Clinical Characteristics and Transmission of COVID-19 in Children and Youths During 3 Waves of Outbreaks in Hong Kong
Among 397 individuals aged ≤18 years with confirmed COVID-19 during the first 3 waves in Hong Kong (January to December 2020), imported infections comprised 79% and 93% of all cases during the first and second wave, respectively, but domestic infections comprised 73% of all cases during the third wave. Overall among domestic infections, 91% had…
Are the Portable Air Cleaners (PAC) Really Effective to Terminate Airborne SARS-CoV-2?
Air sampling in residential rooms of COVID-19 patients (n=7) in Spain showed that 100% of samples were positive for SARS-CoV-2 RNA (cycle threshold (Ct) cutoff 41), but only 15% (1 of 7) of samples were positive after installation of a portable air cleaner (PAC) with a HEPA filter. Notably, the one positive sample after installation…
Increasing Facemask Compliance among Healthcare Personnel during the COVID-19 Pandemic
In a quality improvement study, median weekly face mask compliance among healthcare personnel (HCP) in a tertiary care center in Connecticut was higher (93% vs 82%) after implementation of a multimodal intervention developed from semi-structured interviews of HCP. No difference in face mask compliance was observed between COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 units. The intervention consisted of…
May 3, 2021
Quality-Adjusted Life-Year Losses Averted With Every COVID-19 Infection Prevented in the United States
Averting one SARS-CoV-2 infection among a representative US resident would generate an additional 0.061 quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs) (0.055 for the patient; 0.006 for the patient’s family members) according to a probabilistic simulation model informed by CDC COVID-19 estimates. Preventing one infection would result in a total of 1.51 total QALYs gained over a longer time…
US Pediatric Emergency Department Visits for Mental Health Conditions During the COVID-19 Pandemic
A study of pediatric emergency department (ED) mental health (MH) visits found that although the mean number of monthly visits significantly decreased during the COVID-19 pandemic (from 339 to 261 visits per month), the proportion of ED visits for MH conditions significantly increased (from 4.0% to 5.7%). Data were collected from electronic medical records of…
US Case Reports of Cerebral Venous Sinus Thrombosis With Thrombocytopenia After Ad26.COV2.S Vaccination, March 2 to April 21, 2021
A case series of 12 patients in the US who experienced cerebral venous sinus thrombosis (CVST) with thrombocytopenia following the Johnson & Johnson/Janssen vaccine found that all patients were women under the age of 60 who began experiencing symptoms that required hospitalization between 6 and 15 days after vaccination. Seven patients had at least 1…
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