JAMA network open
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Compared with seasonal influenza, the clinical features and epidemiologic characteristics of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) in US children remain largely unknown. ⋯ In this cohort study of US children with COVID-19 or seasonal influenza, there was no difference in hospitalization rates, intensive care unit admission rates, and mechanical ventilator use between the 2 groups. More patients hospitalized with COVID-19 than with seasonal influenza reported clinical symptoms at the time of diagnosis.
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A stay-at-home social distancing mandate is a key nonpharmacological measure to reduce the transmission rate of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2), but a high rate of adherence is needed. ⋯ These findings suggest that stay-at-home social distancing mandates, when they were followed by measurable mobility changes, were associated with reduction in COVID-19 spread. These results come at a particularly critical period when US states are beginning to relax social distancing policies and reopen their economies. These findings support the efficacy of social distancing and could help inform future implementation of social distancing policies should they need to be reinstated during later periods of COVID-19 reemergence.
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Initial public health data show that Black race may be a risk factor for worse outcomes of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). ⋯ In this cross-sectional study of adults tested for COVID-19 in a large midwestern academic health system, COVID-19 positivity was associated with Black race. Among patients with COVID-19, both race and poverty were associated with higher risk of hospitalization, but only poverty was associated with higher risk of intensive care unit admission. These findings can be helpful in targeting mitigation strategies for racial disparities in the incidence and outcomes of COVID-19.
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As of May 11, 2020, there have been more than 290 000 deaths worldwide from severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), which causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Risk-adjusted differences in outcomes among patients of differing ethnicity and race categories are not well characterized. ⋯ In this cohort study of patients with COVID-19 who presented for care at the same urban medical center, non-Hispanic Black and Hispanic patients did not experience worse risk-adjusted outcomes compared with their White counterparts. This finding is important for understanding the observed population differences in mortality by race/ethnicity reported elsewhere.
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National efforts to improve safe opioid prescribing focus on preventing misuse, overdose, and opioid use disorder. This approach overlooks opportunities to better prevent other serious opioid-related harms in complex populations, such as older adult survivors of cancer. Little is known about the rates and risk factors for comprehensive opioid-related harms in this population. ⋯ These findings suggest that among older adults who survived breast cancer, continued prescription opioid use in the year after completing active cancer treatment was associated with an immediate increased risk of a broad range of serious adverse drug events related to substance misuse and other adverse drug events associated with opioid use. Clinicians should consider the comprehensive risks of managing cancer pain with long-term opioid therapy.