Mayo Clinic proceedings
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Mayo Clinic proceedings · Oct 2020
ReviewForgotten Technology in the COVID-19 Pandemic: Filtration Properties of Cloth and Cloth Masks-A Narrative Review.
Management of the global crisis of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic requires detailed appraisal of evidence to support clear, actionable, and consistent public health messaging. The use of cloth masks for general public use is being debated, and is in flux. We searched the MEDLINE and EMBASE databases and Google for articles reporting the filtration properties of flat cloth or cloth masks. ⋯ Although this is not a systematic review, we included all the articles that we identified in an unbiased way. We did not include gray literature or preprints. A plain language summary of these data and recommendations, as well as information on making, wearing and cleaning cloth masks is available at www.clothmasks.ca.
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Men are consistently overrepresented in severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection, and coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) severe outcomes, including higher fatality rates. These differences are likely due to gender-specific behaviors, genetic and hormonal factors, and sex differences in biological pathways related to SARS-CoV-2 infection. Several social, behavioral, and comorbid factors are implicated in the generally worse outcomes in men compared with women. ⋯ Such biomarkers may offer plausible explanations for the worse COVID-19 outcomes seen in men. There is the need for larger studies with sex-specific reporting and robust analyses to elucidate how sex modifies cellular and molecular pathways associated with SARS-CoV-2. This will improve interpretation of biomarkers and clinical management of COVID-19 patients by facilitating a personalized medical approach to risk stratification, prevention, and treatment.
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In the midst of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 pandemic and its attendant morbidity and mortality, safe and efficacious vaccines are needed that induce protective and long-lived immune responses. More than 120 vaccine candidates worldwide are in various preclinical and phase 1 to 3 clinical trials that include inactivated, live-attenuated, viral-vectored replicating and nonreplicating, protein- and peptide-based, and nucleic acid approaches. Vaccines will be necessary both for individual protection and for the safe development of population-level herd immunity. ⋯ We also did a Web search for these same terms. In addition, we examined the World Health Organization, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and other public health authority websites. We excluded abstracts and all articles that were not written in English.
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Mayo Clinic proceedings · Oct 2020
Cardiac and Respiratory Complications of Necrotizing Autoimmune Myopathy.
To characterize the cardiorespiratory abnormalities in patients with necrotizing autoimmune myopathy (NAM). ⋯ Most patients with NAM exhibited cardiac and respiratory muscle dysfunction. Immunotherapy can improve echocardiographic abnormalities. Interstitial lung disease was rarely identified. Formal evaluation of cardiac and respiratory status should be integral in assessment of patients with NAM.
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Mayo Clinic proceedings · Oct 2020
ReviewRemaining Challenges With Transcatheter Left Atrial Appendage Closure.
Left atrial appendage closure has emerged as a feasible stroke prevention strategy in selected patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation. Since its commercial approval in the United States in 2015, the use of percutaneous left atrial appendage closure has witnessed a substantial growth. However, certain issues remain unresolved with the technology. Knowledge of these issues, their significance, and the current and future efforts to resolve them is key for proper informed decision making by physicians and patients.