Postgraduate medical journal
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The novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 is responsible for the devastating pandemic which has caused more than 5 million deaths across the world until today. Apart from causing acute respiratory illness and multiorgan dysfunction, there can be long-term multiorgan sequalae after recovery, which is termed 'long COVID-19' or 'post-acute COVID-19 syndrome'. ⋯ In this review, we put forth the various mechanisms which may lead to this entity and possible ways to diagnose and manage this disorder. Hence, making physicians aware of this spectrum of disease is of utmost importance in the present pandemic and this review will help clinicians understand and suspect the occurrence of functional GI disease post recovery from COVID-19 and manage it accordingly, avoiding unnecessary misconceptions and delay in treatment.
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The rapid spread of arboviral infections in recent years has continually established arthropod-borne encephalitis to be a pressing global health concern. Causing a wide range of clinical presentations ranging from asymptomatic infection to fulminant neurological disease, the hallmark features of arboviral infection are important to clinically recognise. ⋯ While the pathogenesis of arboviral infections is still being investigated, shared neuroanatomical pathways among these viruses may give insight into future therapeutic targets. The shifting infection transmission patterns and evolving distribution of arboviral vectors are heavily influenced by global climate change and human environmental disruption, therefore it is of utmost importance to consider this potential aetiology when assessing patients with encephalitic presentations.
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This study aims to develop an accurate and simplified scoring system based on the national early warning score (NEWS) to predict the mortality of intensive care unit (ICU) patients. ⋯ MNEWS is a simple and accurate scoring system for evaluating the severity and predicting the outcomes of ICU patients.
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There are limited Foundation Programme posts with rotations in paediatrics. Many junior paediatric trainees therefore start their neonatal jobs, including a mandatory 6-month tertiary neonatal placement during Level 1 training, without prior experience. The aim of this project was to improve trainees' confidence in the practical aspects of neonatal medicine prior to their first neonatal jobs. A virtual course was delivered to paediatric trainees, on the core principles of neonatal intensive care medicine. Trainees' confidence levels in different domains of neonatology were assessed with pre- and postcourse questionnaires, showing a significant improvement in confidence following the course. Trainees' qualitative feedback was also overwhelmingly positive. Overall, there is evidently a desire for supplemental neonatal education for paediatric trainees. The long-term plan to address this is to build upon this course with a transition to face-to-face lectures paired with skills workshops for paediatric trainees in London. ⋯ What is already known on this topic: What this study adds: How this study might affect research, practice, or policy.