International journal of infectious diseases : IJID : official publication of the International Society for Infectious Diseases
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Int. J. Infect. Dis. · Nov 2020
Observational StudyRisk factors for non-invasive/invasive ventilatory support in patients with COVID-19 pneumonia: A retrospective study within a multidisciplinary approach.
To investigate risk factors for non-invasive/invasive ventilatory support (NI/I-VS) in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). ⋯ Temperature >38 °C, LDH > 250 U/l, and d-dimer >1000 ng/mL were found to be independent risk factors for NI/I-VS in COVID-19 patients. In order to quickly identify patients likely at risk of developing a critical illness, inflammatory markers should be assessed upon hospital admission.
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Int. J. Infect. Dis. · Nov 2020
ReviewSafeguarding gains in the sexual and reproductive health and AIDS response amidst COVID-19: The role of African civil society.
This article outlines the role of African civil society in safeguarding gains registered to date in sexual and reproductive health and the response to HIV. The case is made for why civil society organizations (CSOs) must be engaged vigilantly in the COVID-19 response in Africa. ⋯ Compounded by pre-existing inequalities faced by vulnerable populations, the poor SRH outcomes amid COVID-19 call for CSOs to intensify demand for the accountability of governments. CSOs should also continue to persevere in their aim to rapidly close community-health facility gaps and provide safety nets to mitigate the gendered impact of COVID-19.
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Int. J. Infect. Dis. · Nov 2020
The effect of ultraviolet C radiation against different N95 respirators inoculated with SARS-CoV-2.
There are currently no studies that have examined whether one dosage can be uniformly applied to different respirator types to effectively decontaminate SARS-CoV-2 on N95 filtering facepiece respirators (FFRs). Health care workers have been using this disinfection method during the pandemic. Our objective was to determine the effect of UVC on SARS-CoV-2 inoculated N95 respirators and whether this was respirator material/model type dependent. ⋯ This dose is an appropriate decontamination method to facilitate the reuse of respirators for healthcare personnel when applied to specific models/materials. Also, some straps may require additional disinfection to maximize the safety of frontline workers. Implementation of widespread UVC decontamination methods requires careful consideration of model, material type, design, and fit-testing following irradiation.
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The outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), which began in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China, has rapidly spread to produce a global pandemic. It is now clear that person-to-person transmission of SARS-CoV-2 has been occurring and that the virus has been dramatically growing in recent months. ⋯ However, the sensitivity and specificity of these methods are quite different, with the sample source and detection limit varying greatly. This study reviewed all types and characteristics of the currently available laboratory diagnostic assays for detecting SARS-CoV-2 infection and summarized the selection strategies of testing and sampling sites at different disease stages to improve the diagnostic accuracy of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19).
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Int. J. Infect. Dis. · Nov 2020
Estimating the impact of physical distancing measures in containing COVID-19: an empirical analysis.
Epidemic modelling studies predict that physical distancing is critical in containing COVID-19. However, few empirical studies have validated this finding. Our study evaluates the effectiveness of different physical distancing measures in controlling viral transmission. ⋯ A combination of physical distancing measures, if implemented early, can be effective in containing COVID-19-tight border controls to limit importation of cases, encouraging physical distancing, moderately stringent measures such as working from home, and a full lockdown in the case of a probable uncontrolled outbreak.