Article Summary
March 10, 2020
Diagnostic Testing for the Novel Coronavirus
Sharfstein et al discuss the race against time to discover new and better diagnostic tools and the technical challenges of the tests developed by CDC for diagnosis of COVID-19. They discuss the regulatory structures for diagnostic tests and draw distinction between testing capacity for public surveillance and clinical care. Some of the challenges encountered by…
Repurposing of clinically approved drugs for treatment of coronavirus disease 2019 in a 2019-novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) related coronavirus model
Fan et al repurposed clinically approved drugs for the treatment of COVID-19, reporting that cepharanthine (CEP), selamectin, and mefloquine hydrochloride exhibited complete inhibition of cytopathic effects in cell culture at 10 μmol/L and should be considered potential drugs for treating SARS-CoV-2 infection. Clinical trials are needed. Fan et al. (Mar 6, 2020). Repurposing of clinically…
A confirmed asymptomatic carrier of SARS-CoV-2
Luo et al report evidence of asymptomatic transmission of COVID-19. They discuss challenges in identifying asymptomatic carriers and patients during their asymptomatic phase and advocate for new preventive strategies to include this epidemiological evidence. Luo et al. (Mar 9, 2020). A confirmed asymptomatic carrier of SARS-CoV-2. Pre-print downloaded Mar 10 from https://doi.org/ 10.1097/CM9.0000000000000798
The Incubation Period of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) From Publicly Reported Confirmed Cases: Estimation and Application
Lauer et al report that the median incubation period for COVID-19 is 5 days and 97.5% of those who develop symptoms will do so within 11.5 days (CI, 8.2 to 15.6 days) of infection. This means that, 101 out of every 10,000 cases will develop symptoms after monitoring or quarantine. The public health implications of…
March 9, 2020
Estimating the generation interval for COVID-19 based on symptom onset data
Tapiwa et al and Tindale et al used outbreak data from clusters in Singapore and Tianjin, China to estimate the generation interval from symptom onset data, and estimated incubation periods and serial intervals, respectively. Tapiwa team examined patterns of pre-symptomatic transmission and reproduction number. Tindale et al determined the incubation period and serial interval distribution…
Effect of non-pharmaceutical interventions for containing the COVID-19 outbreak: an observational and modelling study
Lai et al used the SEIR model to estimate effectiveness of non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPI) for containing the COVID-19 outbreak in China. Their estimates were highly correlated with the reported incidence, and the authors report that without the NPI, the number of COVID-19 cases would likely have been around 67 times higher. The effectiveness of early…
Managing neonates with respiratory failure due to SARS-CoV-2
De Luca provides a timely reflection and criticism of a suggested plan by Wang et al (Feb 7, 2020) to handle neonates with SARS-CoV-2 infections and outbreaks in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs). She proposes alternative plans to the limitations identified. De Luca (Mar 6, 2020). Managing neonates with respiratory failure due to SARS-CoV-2. Lancet…
Coronavirus in pregnancy and delivery: Rapid review and expert consensus
There are limited case series reporting impact of women affected by SARS-COV2. A few reports on SARS and MERS show a higher case fatality rate in pregnant women than COVID-19. Mullins et al, report on rapid review and expert consensus to guide management of women affected by COVID-19 during pregnancy. Mullins et al. (Mar 8,…
The effect of human mobility and control measures on the COVID-19 epidemic in China
Kraemer and team used real-time human mobility data from Wuhan and detailed case data including travel history to predict the spread and growth rate of epidemics in China. They state that the spread of COVID-19 in China was driven by human mobility out of Wuhan early on and mitigated substantially by drastic control measures implemented…
Preliminary epidemiological analysis on children and adolescents with novel coronavirus disease 2019 outside Hubei Province, China: an observational study utilizing crowdsourced data
Henry et al used crowdsourced data to perform a preliminary epidemiologic analysis of pediatric patients with COVID-19. They reported higher incidence in males (52.4%) than females (32.9%). They present a descriptive analysis of pediatric cases, presenting symptom onset, time to medical care and clinical symptoms, ages most affected, and percentage noted to have infected a…
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