Result for
Topic: Testing and Treatment
June 26, 2020
Antibody Tests for Identification of Current and Past Infection with SARS-CoV-2
A literature review and meta-analysis (n=57 studies; 15,976 samples) compared 25 commercial antibody tests and numerous in-house assays. Pooled results across the 38 studies, stratified by time since symptom onset, found sensitivity was low during the first week (less than 30.1% across IgG, IgM, IgA, IgM/IgG, and total antibodies) and peaked in the third week…
Evaluation of Rapid Antigen Test for Detection of SARS-CoV-2 Virus
Mak et al. found that the rapid BIOCREDIT COVID-19 Ag test for SARS-CoV-2 antigen, which can provide results within 30 minutes and without specialized equipment, had a markedly lower sensitivity than viral culture or RT-PCR (29% to 82% compared to RT-PCR positive samples). These results indicate that testing of patients suspected of SARS-CoV-2 infection with antigen-based assay may produce more false negative results in clinical…
Incidence and Severity of COVID-19 in HIV-Positive Persons Receiving Antiretroviral Therapy
Among people living with HIV, those who were one an anti-retroviral therapy (ART) regimen that included the medications tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) with emtricitabine (FTC) had lower risk for COVID-19 and related hospitalization compared to HIV-infected individuals on other ART regimens. del Amo et al. (June 26, 2020). Incidence and Severity of COVID-19 in HIV-Positive Persons Receiving Antiretroviral Therapy. Annals of Internal…
June 25, 2020
Tocilizumab in Patients with Severe COVID-19: A Retrospective Cohort Study
Tocilizumab treatment among patients with severe COVID-19, whether administered intravenously or subcutaneously, was associated with a reduced risk of invasive mechanical ventilation or death (adjusted HR = 0.61, 95% CI: 0.40-0.92) in a retrospective study (n=544). However, a significantly larger proportion of tocilizumab recipients were diagnosed with new infections compared with patients treated with standard of care (13% vs…
Effect of Colchicine vs Standard Care on Cardiac and Inflammatory Biomarkers and Clinical Outcomes in Patients Hospitalized With Coronavirus Disease 2019
A randomized trial (n=105) evaluated the effect of treatment with the anti-inflammatory agent colchicine in patients with COVID-19. The group receiving colchicine had a lower rate of clinical deterioration (defined as a 2-grade increase on a 7-grade clinical status scale) (OR = 0.11, 95% CI: 0.01-0.96). There were no significant differences between treatment and control groups for cardiac outcomes and inflammatory biomarkers. Deftereos et…
June 24, 2020
Clinical Predictors of Donor Antibody Titer and Correlation with Recipient Antibody Response in a COVID-19 Convalescent Plasma Clinical Trial
[pre-print, not peer reviewed] Madariaga et al. investigated predictors of convalescent antibody production in 103 convalescent plasma donors with confirmed COVID-19 disease and found that age, fever, absence of myalgia, fatigue, AB blood type, and hospitalization were all associated with higher convalescent antibody titer to COVID-19. Most (8/10) convalescent plasma recipients had significant increases in antibody levels post-transfusion. Anti-receptor binding domain antibody titer increased on average 31% per…
Impact of Glucocorticoid Treatment In SARS-CoV-2 Infection Mortality: A Retrospective Controlled Cohort Study
In a retrospective analysis of 463 hospitalized COVID-19 patients, Fernandez-Cruz et al. found that in-hospital mortality was lower among patients treated with steroids (14%; 55/396) than in those who were not (24%; 16/67). Glucocorticoids steroid treatment was associated with a 42% reduction in mortality. Fernández Cruz et al. (June 22, 2020). Impact of Glucocorticoid Treatment In SARS-CoV-2 Infection Mortality:…
Simulation of Pool Testing to Identify Patients With Coronavirus Disease 2019 Under Conditions of Limited Test Availability
Using mathematical simulations, Cherif et al. suggest that a pooled testing strategy (testing a pooled sample from several patients) was more efficient than individual testing when prevalence was below 30%. The optimal pool size was inversely related to the prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 positive specimens and the sensitivity of the assay. Cherif et al. (June 23, 2020). Simulation of Pool Testing to Identify Patients With Coronavirus Disease 2019…
Development and Potential Usefulness of the COVID-19 Ag Respi-Strip Diagnostic Assay in a Pandemic Context
Respi-Strip is an immunochromatographic (ICT) assay for the rapid detection of SARS-CoV-2 antigen on nasopharyngeal specimens that provides diagnostic results within 15 minutes. When validated against RT-PCR tests (n=328), the assay had low sensitivity (57.6%) and high specificity (99.5%). Mertens et al. (May 8, 2020). Development and Potential Usefulness of the COVID-19 Ag Respi-Strip Diagnostic Assay in a Pandemic Context. Frontiers…
June 23, 2020
Effectiveness and Safety of Glucocorticoids to Treat COVID-19: A Rapid Review and Meta-Analysis
A meta-analysis (n=23 studies, 1 RCT and 22 cohort studies; 13,815 patients) found the use of glucocorticoid steroids was associated with a non-significant increase in mortality (RR=2.00, 95%CI 0.69, 5.75) and duration of hospitalization (increase of 2.4 days, 95%CI 1.4, 3.4) but significantly lower duration of fever (-3.23 days, 95%CI -3.56, -2.90). Heterogeneity was high across the included studies…
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