Articles: pandemics.
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Multicenter Study
Characteristics and outcomes of hospitalised patients with acute kidney injury and COVID-19.
COVID-19 has spread globally to now be considered a pandemic by the World Health Organisation. Initially patients appeared to have a respiratory limited disease but there are now increasing reports of multiple organ involvement including renal disease in association with COVID-19. We studied the development and outcomes of acute kidney injury (AKI) in patients with COVID-19, in a large multicultural city hospital trust in the UK, to better understand the role renal disease has in the disease process. ⋯ We have shown that the development of AKI is associated with dramatically worse outcomes for patients, in both mortality and the requirement for critical care. Patients with COVID-19 presenting with, or at risk of AKI should be closely monitored and appropriately managed to prevent any decline in renal function, given the significant risk of deterioration and death.
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To study the U.S. public's attitudes toward surveillance measures aimed at curbing the spread of COVID-19, particularly smartphone applications (apps) that supplement traditional contact tracing. ⋯ Support for public health surveillance policies to curb the spread of COVID-19 is relatively low in the U.S. Contact tracing apps that use decentralized data storage, compared with those that use centralized data storage, are more accepted by the public. While respondents' support for expanding traditional contact tracing is greater than their support for the government encouraging the public to download and use contact tracing apps, there are smaller partisan differences in support for the latter policy.
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Epidemiol Mikrobiol Imunol · Jan 2020
The duration of SARS-CoV-2 shedding in patients recovering from COVID-19.
The knowledge of SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2) shedding is highly relevant to the diagnosis, treatment and follow-up of patients with COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019). Deep nasopharyngeal swabs repeatedly collected from a cohort of one hundred patients with COVID-19 were tested for SARS-CoV-2 RNA using RT-PCR (real-time polymerase chain reaction). ⋯ Furthermore, the authors tested the hypothesis on the relationship between the severity of COVID-19 and the period in which the viral genome is detectable. They did not find any statistically significant difference in the duration of viral clearance between patients with asymptomatic to mild disease or severe disease.
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Frontiers in immunology · Jan 2020
ReviewViral Evasion of the Complement System and Its Importance for Vaccines and Therapeutics.
The complement system is a key component of innate immunity which readily responds to invading microorganisms. Activation of the complement system typically occurs via three main pathways and can induce various antimicrobial effects, including: neutralization of pathogens, regulation of inflammatory responses, promotion of chemotaxis, and enhancement of the adaptive immune response. These can be vital host responses to protect against acute, chronic, and recurrent viral infections. ⋯ A better understanding of this virus-host interplay and its contribution to pathogenesis has previously led to: the identification of genetic factors which influence viral infection and disease outcome, the development of novel antivirals, and the production of safer, more effective vaccines. This review will discuss the antiviral effects of the complement system against numerous viruses, the mechanisms employed by these viruses to then evade or manipulate this system, and how these interactions have informed vaccine/therapeutic development. Where relevant, conflicting findings and current research gaps are highlighted to aid future developments in virology and immunology, with potential applications to the current COVID-19 pandemic.
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Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being. The outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in the area of Wuhan, China, has evolved rapidly into a public health crisis and has spread exponentially to other parts of the world. There is strong evidence that this novel coronavirus is similar to coronavirus species found in bats and potentially pangolins, confirming the zoonotic nature of this new cross-species virus-mediated disease. ⋯ They proceed in accordance with the current guidelines of the government of each country as well as with the valid standards and preventive, diagnostic and therapeutic procedures for COVID-19. This article mainly focuses on the recommended methods in dental medicine designed to protect patients and healthcare professionals (Tab. 2, Ref. 29). Keywords: coronavirus, COVID-19, dental strategies, dental treatment recommendations.