Articles: coronavirus.
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Eur. J. Clin. Invest. · Jun 2020
EditorialChallenges in COVID-19 medical response: a nephrology perspective.
The new coronavirus disease, named by World Health Organization (WHO) as COVID-19 brought great challenges to patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD). In general, ESRD patients have higher number of comorbidities and are at age-risk for severe pulmonary presentation of this disease. Another important issue is that hemodialysis (HD) clinics are usually not located in small towns, and these frail patients often travel to their dialysis center in groups and also cannot keep the 6-feet safe distance during their HD session.1.
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Background and objective COVID-19 is a highly disseminating viral disease imparted by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-COV-2), which was declared a global pandemic by the World Health Organization. In our study, we aimed to describe the clinical characteristics of the first 100 hospitalized patients of confirmed COVID-19 in a developing country. Materials and methods The study included all the admitted patients (n = 100) having COVID-19 polymerase chain reaction (PCR) positive, and evaluated clinical profiles and characteristics of the patients linking to disease severity. Results Out of the 100 patients, 67 were in the ward, 33 were in ICU, 78 of them recovered, while 22 deaths reported. ⋯ Amongst the patients admitted in ICU, there were significant differences in the total leukocyte count (P = 0.001), neutrophils and lymphocytes (P =< 0.001), monocytes (P = 0.027), urea (P =< 0.001), creatinine (P = 0.002), neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) increasing with disease severity, lymphocyte-to-monocyte ratio (LMR) and lymphocyte-to-C-reactive protein ratio (LCR) decreasing with mortalities. Gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT) followed by aspartate aminotransferase (AST) are frequent hepatic derangements, while C-reactive protein (CRP) levels predicting ICU admission with area under the curve (AUC): 0.806, positive predictive value (PPV): 85.1% and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) predicting mortality with AUC: 0.877, PPV: 97.3%, while NLR (AUC: 0.806, PPV: 95.8%) for mortality and neutrophils (AUC: 0.773, PPV: 87.5%) for ICU patients. Conclusion A number of factors are linked with disease severity and mortality along with dynamic changes of the laboratory investigations during hospital stay affecting prognosis.
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Review
COVID-19: The Potential Treatment of Pulmonary Fibrosis Associated with SARS-CoV-2 Infection.
In December 2019, a novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, appeared, causing a wide range of symptoms, mainly respiratory infection. In March 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) a pandemic, therefore the efforts of scientists around the world are focused on finding the right treatment and vaccine for the novel disease. COVID-19 has spread rapidly over several months, affecting patients across all age groups and geographic areas. ⋯ One possible complication of pulmonary involvement in COVID-19 is pulmonary fibrosis, which leads to chronic breathing difficulties, long-term disability and affects patients' quality of life. There are no specific mechanisms that lead to this phenomenon in COVID-19, but some information arises from previous severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) or Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) epidemics. The aim of this narrative review is to present the possible causes and pathophysiology of pulmonary fibrosis associated with COVID-19 based on the mechanisms of the immune response, to suggest possible ways of prevention and treatment.
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Ann Agric Environ Med · Jun 2020
ReviewCoronaviruses fusion with the membrane and entry to the host cell.
Coronaviruses (CoVs) are positive-strand RNA viruses with the largest genome among all RNA viruses. They are able to infect many host, such as mammals or birds. Whereas CoVs were identified 1930s, they became known again in 2003 as the agents of the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS). ⋯ The development of host-directed antiviral therapy seems to be a promising way to treat infections with SARS-CoV or other pathogenic coronaviruses. There is still much to be discovered in the inventory of pro- and anti-viral host factors relevant for CoVs replication. The latest pandemic danger, originating from China, has given our previously prepared work even more of topicality.