Articles: pandemics.
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The COVID-19 pandemic is changing clinical practice in neurology, after the governments decided the introduction of social distancing and interruption of medical non-emergency services in many countries. Teleneurology is an effective tool for the remote evaluation of patients but its adoption for frontotemporal lobar dementia (FTD) is in a preliminary stage. ⋯ The study was conducted in Italy, one of the countries hit particularly hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, with interruption of all non-emergency medical services. Our study indicates that telemedicine is a valid tool to triage patients with FTD to increase practice outreach and efficiency.
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Many different countries have been under lockdown or extreme social distancing measures to control the spread of COVID-19. The potentially far-reaching side effects of these measures have not yet been fully understood. In this study we analyse the results of a multi-country survey conducted in Italy (N = 3,504), Spain (N = 3,524) and the United Kingdom (N = 3,523), with two separate analyses. ⋯ To quantify the size of this affected population, we compare its magnitude with the number of people affected by COVID-19 using measures of susceptibility, vulnerability and behavioural change collected in the same questionnaire. We find that the concern for the economy and for "the way out" of the lockdown is diffuse and there is evidence of minor underreporting. Additionally, we estimate that around 42.8% of the populations in the three countries are at high risk of stress, anxiety, and depression, based on their level of economic vulnerability and their exposure to a negative economic shock.
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Over the past half century, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), a low-income and post-conflict country, has experienced several Ebola Virus Disease outbreaks, with different fatality rates. The DRC is currently experiencing the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. ⋯ Results of this analysis revealed the perceptions, enablers, and nurturers that impacted public trust in the government and its health agencies among the Congolese population. Future interventions designed to address the COVID-19 in the DRC should account for these socio-cultural factors.
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The risk of infection and death from COVID-19 is higher among older prisoners with pre-existing health conditions especially in sub-Saharan African. Hawks L et al. raise four concerns that need to be considered when developing public health and clinical responses to COVID-19 to protect prisoners. ⋯ These focus areas include 1) challenges of social distancing; 2) higher risk of severe infection and death; 3) difficulties health care systems may face in the case of COVID-19 surge; and 4) recommended solutions to prevent harm and preventing a public health catastrophe. Prisoners are more vulnerable and the time to take immediate actions to minimize an imminent COVID-19 outbreak and its impacts is now.