International journal of infectious diseases : IJID : official publication of the International Society for Infectious Diseases
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Int. J. Infect. Dis. · Aug 2020
Importation of SARS-CoV-2 infection leads to major COVID-19 epidemic in Taiwan.
COVID-19 has recently become a pandemic affecting many countries worldwide. This study aims to evaluate the current status of COVID-19 in Taiwan and analyze the source of infection. ⋯ This study suggests that the importation of SARS-CoV-2 infection was the primary risk-factor resulting in the COVID-19 epidemic in Taiwan.
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Int. J. Infect. Dis. · Aug 2020
Linking key intervention timing to rapid decline of the COVID-19 effective reproductive number to quantify lessons from mainland China.
Effective reproductive numbers (Rt) were calculated from data on the COVID-19 outbreak in China and linked to dates in 2020 when different interventions were enacted. From a maximum of 3.98 before the lockdown in Wuhan City, the values of Rt declined to below 1 by the second week of February, after the construction of hospitals dedicated to COVID-19 patients. The Rt continued to decline following additional measures in line with the policy of "early detection, early report, early quarantine, and early treatment." The results provide quantitative evaluations of how intervention measures and their timings succeeded, from which lessons can be learned by other countries dealing with future outbreaks.
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Int. J. Infect. Dis. · Aug 2020
Presence of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in isolation ward environment 28 days after exposure.
Recent studies have reported that surfaces and objects in the rooms of infected patients that are frequently touched by both medical staff and patients could be contaminated with SARS-CoV-2. In December 2019, Wuhan China suffered the earliest from this COVID-19 pandemic, and we took that opportunity to investigate whether the SARS-CoV-2 RNA exists in the ward environment after a long time from exposure. ⋯ Thorough disinfection of the ward environment was subsequently performed, after which these surfaces in the isolation wards tested negative for the presence of SARS-CoV-2 RNA. The findings remind us that the contaminated environment in the wards may become potential infectious resources and that despite a long time from exposure, the thorough disinfection in the COVID-10 units after is still necessary.
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Int. J. Infect. Dis. · Aug 2020
Case ReportsCombination of thrombolytic and immunosuppressive therapy for coronavirus disease 2019: A case report.
In a proportion of patients, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) causes a multisystem syndrome characterized by hyperinflammation, acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), and hypercoagulability. A 68-year-old man with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) was admitted to the intensive care unit with respiratory failure, cytokine release syndrome (CRS), and skin ischemia - microthrombosis. ⋯ No major complications associated with rt-PA or tocilizumab occurred. The combination of rt-PA with targeted anti-inflammatory treatment could be a new therapeutic option for patients with COVID-19, ARDS, hyperinflammation, and increased blood viscosity.