The Journal of infectious diseases
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SARS-CoV-2 viral particles can travel large distances, detected at up to 4 meters, and remaining in air up to 3 hours after aerosolisation, although with uncertain infective viability.
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Early in the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, there was a concern over possible increase in antibiotic use due to coinfections among COVID-19 patients in the community. Here, we evaluate the changes in nationwide use of broad-spectrum antibiotics during the COVID-19 epidemic in South Korea. ⋯ Our study found that broad-spectrum antibiotic use was substantially reduced during the COVID-19 epidemic in South Korea. This reduction can be in part due to reduced ARTIs as a result of stringent public health interventions including social distancing measures.
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With multiple coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccines available, understanding the epidemiologic, clinical, and economic value of increasing coverage levels and expediting vaccination is important. ⋯ Our study quantifies the potential value of decreasing vaccine hesitancy and increasing vaccination coverage and how this value may decrease with the time it takes to achieve coverage, emphasizing the need to reach high coverage levels as soon as possible, especially before the fall/winter.
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We investigated frequency of reinfection with seasonal human coronaviruses (HCoVs) and serum antibody response following infection over 8 years in the Household Influenza Vaccine Evaluation (HIVE) cohort. ⋯ Reinfection with seasonal HCoVs is frequent. Binding anti-spike protein antibodies do not correlate with protection from seasonal HCoV infection.
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Observational Study
BNT162b2 mRNA Covid-19 vaccine effectiveness in the prevention of SARS-CoV-2 infection: a preliminary report.
In the preregistration trial, data on efficacy of BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine against SARS-CoV-2 infection were not collected. This study aimed to evaluate vaccine effectiveness (VE) against documented infection. ⋯ VE for documented infection was 61.9% (95% confidence interval [CI], 19.2%-82.0%) 14-20 days after first dose, 87.9% (95% CI, 51.7%-97.0%) 21-27 days after first dose, and 96.0% (95% CI, 82.2%-99.1%) 7 or more days after second dose. Unvaccinated HCWs remain a concern in the context of the pandemic emergency.