Articles: covid-19.
-
Frontiers in immunology · Jan 2020
Reduction and Functional Exhaustion of T Cells in Patients With Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19).
Background: The outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has posed great threat to human health. T cells play a critical role in antiviral immunity but their numbers and functional state in COVID-19 patients remain largely unclear. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the counts of T cells and serum cytokine concentration from data of 522 patients with laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 and 40 healthy controls. ⋯ Increasing PD-1 and Tim-3 expression on T cells was seen as patients progressed from prodromal to overtly symptomatic stages. Conclusions: T cell counts are reduced significantly in COVID-19 patients, and the surviving T cells appear functionally exhausted. Non-ICU patients with total T cells counts lower than 800/μL may still require urgent intervention, even in the immediate absence of more severe symptoms due to a high risk for further deterioration in condition.
-
Frontiers in oncology · Jan 2020
Results of Multilevel Containment Measures to Better Protect Lung Cancer Patients From COVID-19: The IEO Model.
A novel coronavirus causing severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), named SARS-CoV-2, was identified at the end of 2019. The spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has progressively expanded from China, involving several countries throughout the world, leading to the classification of the disease as a pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO). According to published reports, COVID-19 severity and mortality are higher in elderly patients and those with active comorbidities. ⋯ Potential risks associated with COVID-19 infection should be considered, considering tumor histology and natural course, disease setting, clinical conditions, and disease burden, together with the expected benefit, toxicities (e.g., myelosuppression or interstitial lung disease), and response obtained from the planned or ongoing treatment. In this study, we report the results of proactive measures including social media, telemedicine, and telephone triage for screening patients with lung cancer during the COVID-19 outbreak in the European Institute of Oncology (Milan, Italy). Proactive management and containment measures, applied in a structured and daily way, has significantly aided the identification of advance patients with suspected symptoms related to COVID-19, limiting their admission to our cancer center; we have thus been more able to protect other patients from possible contamination and at the same time guarantee to the suspected patients the immediate treatment and evaluation in referral hospitals for COVID-19.
-
The intense global efforts are directed towards development of vaccines to halt the COVID-19 virus pandemic. There are 160 candidate vaccines under clinical trials across the world using different molecular targets and techniques. ⋯ We feel that the fundamental principles of ethics: autonomy, beneficence, non-maleficence and justice should not be violated in this hastened vaccine development process. We recommend constitute a Consortium on a global platform to formulate, provide and monitor a comprehensive ethical umbrella to the process of vaccine development.
-
There are increasing reports of a drastic drop in consultations and cardiovascular procedures (including urgencies and emergencies) in regions affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, with a consequent marked increase in total mortality that is not fully explained by COVID-19. Cardiovascular disease leads the ranking in deaths in adults in Argentina with 280 deaths per day, and in recent decades we have reduced its mortality by 20-30% through various evidence-based interventions. Herein we conducted predictive analyses to understand what could be the consequences of a worse implementation of those interventions. ⋯ A marginal 10% to 15% increase in relative risk of cardiovascular death would be equivalent to an excess of 6000 to 9000 preventable deaths. In conclusion, given the high prevalence and fatality of cardiovascular disease, even a small negative impact on the efficacy of its care will translate into large numbers of people affected in Argentina. It is necessary to inform the authorities and educate the public so cardiovascular diseases and their risk factors remain a health priority, as long as resources exist and minimizing the risk of contagion and spread of the virus.
-
Frontiers in psychology · Jan 2020
Investigating the Psychology of Financial Markets During COVID-19 Era: A Case Study of the US and European Markets.
The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) has imperatively shaken the behavior of the global financial markets. This study estimated the impact of COVID-19 on the behavior of the financial markets of Europe and the US. The results revealed that the returns of the S&P 500 index have been greatly affected by a lockdown in the US owing to COVID-19. ⋯ The UK stock markets witnessed that in the short-run, deficiency of health management systems imperatively damaged the stock returns of the London Stock Exchange. The investigation revealed that deficiency of health systems and lockdown conditions have imperatively damaged the structure of financial markets, inferring that sustainable development of these nations is at risk due to COVID-19. The study suggested that governments should allocate more of their budget to the health sector to overcome a health crisis in the future.