Plos One
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Meta Analysis
Rate of Intensive Care Unit admission and outcomes among patients with coronavirus: A systematic review and Meta-analysis.
The rate of ICU admission among patients with coronavirus varied from 3% to 100% and the mortality was as high as 86% of admitted patients. The objective of the systematic review was to investigate the rate of ICU admission, mortality, morbidity, and complications among patients with coronavirus. ⋯ This Systematic review and Meta-Analysis was registered in Prospero international prospective register of systemic reviews (CRD42020177095) on April 9/2020.
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During the current SARS-CoV-2 pandemic there is unprecedented demand for personal protective equipment (PPE), especially N95 respirators and surgical masks. The ability of SARS-CoV-2 to be transmitted via respiratory droplets from asymptomatic individuals has necessitated increased usage of both N95 respirators in the healthcare setting and masks (both surgical and homemade) in public spaces. These precautions rely on two fundamental principles of transmission prevention: particle filtration and droplet containment. ⋯ These materials demonstrate significant variability in filtration characteristics, even for visually similar materials. We demonstrate a FE of 96.49% and pressure drop of 25.4 mmH20 for a double-layer of sterilization wrap used in surgical suites and a FE of 90.37% for a combination of consumer-grade materials. The excellent filtration characteristics of the former demonstrate potential utility for emergent situations when N95 respirators are not available, while those of the latter demonstrate that a high FE can be achieved using publicly available materials.
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Recent social movements have highlighted fatal police violence as an enduring public health problem in the United States. To solve it, the public requires basic information, such as understanding where rates of fatal police violence are particularly high, and for which groups. Existing mapping efforts, though critically important, often use inappropriate statistical methods and can produce misleading, unstable rates when denominators are small. To fill this gap, we use inverse-variance-weighted multilevel models to estimate overall and race-stratified rates of fatal police violence for all Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) in the U.S. (2013-2017), as well as racial inequities in these rates. We analyzed the most recent, reliable data from Fatal Encounters, a citizen science initiative that aggregates and verifies media reports. ⋯ Preventing fatal police violence in different areas of the country will likely require unique solutions. Estimates of the severity of these problems (overall rates, racial inequities, specific causes of death) in any given MSA are quite sensitive to which types of deaths are analyzed, and whether race and cause of death are attributed correctly. Monitoring and mapping these rates using appropriate methods is critical for government accountability and successful prevention.
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Multicenter Study Observational Study
Tacrolimus trough levels higher than 6 ng/mL might not be required after a year in stable kidney transplant recipients.
Little is known regarding optimal tacrolimus (TAC) trough levels after 1 year post-transplant in stable kidney transplant recipients (KTRs) who have not experienced renal or cardiovascular outcomes. This study aimed to investigate the effect of 1-year post-transplant TAC trough levels on long-term renal and cardiovascular outcomes and opportunistic infections in stable KTRs. ⋯ TAC trough levels after 1 year post-transplant remained at a similar level until the fifth year after kidney transplantation and were not directly associated with long-term outcomes in stable Korean KTRs who did not experience renal or cardiovascular outcomes. Therefore, in Asian KTRs with a stable clinical course, TAC trough levels higher than approximately 6 ng/mL might not be required after a year of kidney transplantation.
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Multicenter Study Clinical Trial
High levels of maternal total tri-iodothyronine, and low levels of fetal free L-thyroxine and total tri-iodothyronine, are associated with altered deiodinase expression and activity in placenta with gestational diabetes mellitus.
Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM) is characterized by abnormal maternal D-glucose metabolism and altered insulin signaling. Dysregulation of thyroid hormones (TH) tri-iodethyronine (T3) and L-thyroxine (T4) Hormones had been associated with GDM, but the physiopathological meaning of these alterations is still unclear. Maternal TH cross the placenta through TH Transporters and their Deiodinases metabolize them to regulate fetal TH levels. ⋯ Mothers with GDM showed higher levels of TT3 during all pregnancy, and an increased in TSH during second and third trimester, while lower concentrations of neonatal TT4, FT4, and TT3; and an increased TSH level in umbilical cord blood from GDM. Placentae from GDM mothers have a higher expression and activity of Deiodinase 3, but lower Deiodinase 2, than NGT mothers. In conclusion, GDM favors high levels of TT3 during all gestation in the mother, low levels in TT4, FT4 and TT3 at the delivery in neonates, and increases deiodinase 3, but reduce deiodinase 2 expression and activity in the placenta.