International journal of infectious diseases : IJID : official publication of the International Society for Infectious Diseases
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Int. J. Infect. Dis. · Oct 2020
Early identification of COVID-19 cytokine storm and treatment with anakinra or tocilizumab.
To examine outcomes among patients who were treated with the targeted anti-cytokine agents, anakinra or tocilizumab, for COVID-19 -related cytokine storm (COVID19-CS). ⋯ Prompt identification and treatment of COVID19-CS before intubation may be more important than the specific type of anti-inflammatory treatment. Randomized controlled trials of targeted anti-cytokine treatments and corticosteroids should report the duration of cytokine storm in addition to clinical severity at randomization.
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Int. J. Infect. Dis. · Oct 2020
Silent hypoxia in patients with SARS CoV-2 infection before hospital discharge.
To assess the degree of hypoxia and subjective dyspnea elicited by a 6-minute walking test (6MWT) in COVID-19 patients prior to discharge. ⋯ The 6MWT is a potential tool in the diagnosis of asymptomatic exercise-induced hypoxia in hospitalized COVID-19 patients prior to discharge. Due to important methodological limitations, further studies are needed to confirm our findings and to investigate their clinical consequences.
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Int. J. Infect. Dis. · Oct 2020
Impact of tocilizumab on mortality and/or invasive mechanical ventilation requirement in a cohort of 206 COVID-19 patients.
No therapy has proven to be effective yet to reduce mortality and/or invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV) requirement in COVID-19. Tocilizumab (TCZ) in patients with severe COVID-19 could be an effective treatment. ⋯ Despite the small sample size in the TCZ group, this result suggests that TCZ reduces mortality and/or IMV requirement in patients with severe SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia. This notion needs to be confirmed and spread in the medical community.
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This study aimed to describe the effectiveness and optimum use of tocilizumab (TCZ) treatment by the support of clinical, laboratory and radiologic observations. ⋯ Earlier use of TCZ in COVID-19 infection was beneficial for survival, length of hospitalization and duration of oxygen support. The recommendation for administration of TCZ was based on an increase in requirement of oxygen support, progression in thoracic CT, and elevation of inflammation markers, including IL-6, CRP, ferritin, and d-dimer, and decrease in % lymphocytes.
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Int. J. Infect. Dis. · Oct 2020
Asymptomatic infection by SARS-CoV-2 in healthcare workers: A study in a large teaching hospital in Wuhan, China.
To investigate the proportion and characteristics of asymptomatic infection among healthcare workers (HCWs). ⋯ The findings demonstrated that a high rate of asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 carriers existed among healthcare worker close contacts during the outbreak of COVID-19.