South African medical journal = Suid-Afrikaanse tydskrif vir geneeskunde
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Spinal deformities are common in people with cerebral palsy (CP), and there is a concern of an increase during the adult ageing period. There is especially a worry about the increase of scoliosis, thoracic hyperkyphosis, lumbar hyperlordosis, spondylolysis and spondylolisthesis incidence, though supporting literature is lacking. Therefore, the aim of this narrative review is to provide a scientific overview of how spinal curvatures should be measured, what the norm values are and the incidence in people with CP, as well as a description of the risk factors and the treatment regimens for these spinal abnormalities. This review can be used as a guideline relevant for a range of clinicians, including orthopaedic and neurosurgeons, radiologists, physiotherapists, and biokineticists, as well as academics.
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The potential role for serological tests in the current COVID-19 pandemic has generated very considerable recent interest across many sectors worldwide, inter alia pathologists seeking additional weapons for their armoury of diagnostic tests; epidemiologists seeking tools to gain seroprevalence data that will inform improved models of the spread of disease; research scientists seeking tools to study the natural history of COVID-19 disease; vaccine developers seeking tools to assess vaccine efficacy in clinical trials; and companies and governments seeking tools to aid return-to-work decision-making. However, much of the local debate to date has centred on questions surrounding whether regulatory approval processes are limiting access to serological tests, and has not paused to consider the intrinsically limiting impact of underlying fundamental biology and immunology on where and how different COVID-19 serological tests can usefully be deployed in the response to the current pandemic. ⋯ We interpret this scientific evidence in terms of mooted clinical applications for current COVID-19 antibody tests in identifying acute infections, in confirming recent or past infections at the individual and population level, and in detecting re-infection and protective immunity. We conclude with guidance on where current COVID-19 antibody tests can make a genuine impact in the pandemic.