Plos One
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The COVID-19 pandemic has intensely changed the everyday lives of people worldwide. This study explores the forms and outcomes of coronavirus and COVID-19-related social stigma and the experiences of people who were home quarantined or isolated in Finland during the spring 2020. The findings of this study can be used to improve support for those quarantined or isolated and to develop strategies to reduce the stigma associated with coronavirus and COVID-19. ⋯ This study shed light on the lives of those quarantined or isolated at home and provided a set of operational recommendations to minimize coronavirus and COVID-19-associated stigma and to reduce challenges faced by those in quarantine or isolation.
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The COVID-19 pandemic remains a significant global threat. However, despite urgent need, there remains uncertainty surrounding best practices for pharmaceutical interventions to treat COVID-19. In particular, conflicting evidence has emerged surrounding the use of hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin, alone or in combination, for COVID-19. The COVID-19 Evidence Accelerator convened by the Reagan-Udall Foundation for the FDA, in collaboration with Friends of Cancer Research, assembled experts from the health systems research, regulatory science, data science, and epidemiology to participate in a large parallel analysis of different data sets to further explore the effectiveness of these treatments. ⋯ Administration of hydroxychloroquine, azithromycin, and their combination appeared to have no effect on time to mortality in hospitalized COVID-19 patients. Continued research is needed to clarify best practices surrounding treatment of COVID-19.
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Recently, several single center studies have suggested a protective effect of the influenza vaccine against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2). This study utilizes a continuously updated Electronic Medical Record (EMR) network to assess the possible benefits of influenza vaccination mitigating critical adverse outcomes in SARS-CoV-2 positive patients from 56 healthcare organizations (HCOs). ⋯ Our analysis outlines the potential protective effect of influenza vaccination in SARS-CoV-2-positive patients against adverse outcomes within 30, 60, 90, and 120 days of a positive diagnosis. Significant findings favoring influenza vaccination mitigating the risks of sepsis, stroke, deep vein thrombosis (DVT), emergency department (ED) & Intensive Care Unit (ICU) admissions suggest a potential protective effect that could benefit populations without readily available access to SARS-CoV-2 vaccination. Thus further investigation with future prospective studies is warranted.
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Novel coronavirus-2019 (COVID-19) is a highly infectious disease that has caused a global pandemic. As of July 2020, there were 8,475 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Ethiopia, and a total of 52 cases and 1 death were reported in Debre Berhan where this study was conducted. Under these conditions, we sought to assess what undergraduate students at Debre Berhan University knew about COVID-19 and how it shaped their attitudes and practices regarding this disease. ⋯ The undergraduate students at Debre Berhan University were moderately knowledgeable about COVID-19 and had an optimistic attitude towards its resolution. However, this optimism may lead to poor public health practices within this community. Therefore, greater efforts need to be made through more comprehensive and directed actions and awareness campaigns to increase the knowledge, attitude and practice of the students.
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The aim of this study was to describe the clinical characteristics and outcome of patients with coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pneumonia admitted to an intensive care unit (ICU) of a tertiary care center in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and to identify early risk factors for in-hospital mortality in these patients. ⋯ In this cohort of patients admitted to the ICU of a tertiary hospital in the UAE, COVID-19 pneumonia was associated with high morbidity and mortality rates. Identifying patients at high risk of death may help detect future therapeutic targets.