Journal of infection in developing countries
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J Infect Dev Ctries · Jul 2020
ReviewContainment of COVID-19: the unprecedented response of Saudi Arabia.
The emergence of a novel coronavirus, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-COV-2), from Wuhan, China, in December 2019 has challenged many countries. The current pandemic caused by this coronavirus has already negatively affected millions of people and the economies of countries worldwide. However, the challenges faced by Saudi Arabia during the Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) epidemic that began in 2012 led to marked improvements in the government's response to the current pandemic. ⋯ Since the global risk of the virus was declared by the World Health Organization (WHO), Saudi Arabia has taken substantial public health measures to control the spread of the infection. This review reports on the transmission of SARS-COV-2 in Saudi Arabia and the proactive responses taken by the government, comparing the Saudi government's actions and their effects with those of other countries. Although Saudi Arabia is currently experiencing the peak of the pandemic, their early precautionary responses have shortened the period of individual/family isolation, reduced the number of confirmed infections and infection-related fatality rates, and decreased the economic burden of the people and the country compared with other countries in the Middle East and elsewhere.
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J Infect Dev Ctries · Jul 2020
Comparative StudyComparison between two types of control strategies for the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic.
Different countries have employed various strategies for controlling the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic because there is no consensus regarding effective control measures in the literature. Epidemic control strategies can be classified into two types based on their characteristics. ⋯ The second type is the "influenza pandemic-like epidemic control strategy" (flu pandemic-like strategy), i.e., mitigation. This paper presents a comparative analysis on the prevention and control strategies for COVID-19 in different countries to provide a reference to control the further spread of the pandemic.
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J Infect Dev Ctries · Jul 2020
Observational StudyClinical, Radiological Features and Outcome of COVID-19 patients in a Secondary Hospital in Jakarta, Indonesia.
The numbers of people infected with SARS-CoV-2 in Indonesia especially in Jakarta as the epicenter continue to rise. Limited published clinical data, scarcity and long turn over time of diagnostic testing put clinician in dilemma to make diagnosis. ⋯ Based on our findings, most cases of COVID-19 admitted in secondary referral hospital were already in moderate to severe stages. This is most likely due to late referral from primary care and unspecific clinical features resemblance of other infectious diseases. Inflammation marker and CXR are cost effective findings and can be used as marker to determine further referral.
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The novel coronavirus severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is responsible for the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). First COVID-19 case was detected in March, 10, 2020 in Turkey and as of May, 18, 2020 148,067 cases have been identified and 4096 citizens have died. Tuberculosis (TB) is a worldwide public health concern, incidence of tuberculosis (per 100,000 people) in Turkey was reported at 14, 1 in 2018. During pandemic COVID-19 was the main concern in every clinic and as we discuss here overlapping respiratory diseases may result in delaying of the diagnosis and treatment. ⋯ We want to emphasize that while considering COVID-19 primarily during these pandemic days, we should not forget one of the "great imitators", tuberculosis within differential diagnoses.
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J Infect Dev Ctries · Jul 2020
A practical approach for the compassionate use of convalescent plasma in patients with severe COVID-19 in developing countries.
The COVID-19 pandemic has affected 187 countries, representing a global public health problem. The increasing number of critically ill patients and deaths have fueled a desperate search for treatments that can halt the course of the disease. Currently, there are several experimental therapies with demonstrated in vitro activity against COVID-19 used in clinical practice, including hydroxychloroquine, remdesivir, interleukin-6 pathway inhibitors, and convalescent plasma; however, to date no agent has proven efficacy against COVID-19. ⋯ However, there are still unmet needs regarding the safety profile, tolerability, dosage, and timing this therapy should be given. Based on this, the objective of our study was to develop and propose a practical approach for the compassionate use of convalescent plasma for the treatment of patients with severe COVID-19, given the constrains and limitations of developing countries. We encourage health professionals in developing countries to use the current evidence and approaches to experimental treatments for patients with COVID-19, adapting them to their conditions, and always based on a thorough risk-benefit evaluation for each patient, and whenever possible to design and promote the much needed research in this field.