Articles: coronavirus.
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Observational Study
Hyposmia in COVID-19: Temporal Recovery of Smell: A Preliminary Study.
Background and Objectives: Hypo/anosmia is a characteristic symptom of COVID-19 infection. The aim of this study is to investigate the time of smell recovery and to identify a possible order of perception recovery of different odors in COVID-19 patients. Materials and Methods: A prospective observational study was conducted on not hospitalized COVID-19 patients, selected according to eligible criteria. ⋯ The most frequent odor recovery sequence was: (1) phenyl ethyl alcohol; (2) eucalyptol; (3) vanillin; and (4) eugenol. In COVID-19 patients, hypo/anosmia occurs more often in women and at a young age. Conclusions: This preliminary investigation highlighted novel data: there is a chronological order in perception recovery of different olfactory substances and, therefore, in the restoration of the various sensitive nerve pathways involved in the sense of smell.
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Point-of-care tests for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) antigen detection have been widely used for rapid diagnosis in various settings. However, research on the diagnostic performance of the COVID-19 antigen test performed by non-laboratory personnel is limited. In this study, we aimed to elucidate the diagnostic performance of GenBody COVID-19 rapid antigen between laboratory professionals and non-laboratory staff. ⋯ The diagnostic performance of GenBody COVID-19 rapid antigen performed by non-laboratory staff was comparable to that of laboratory professionals. However, it should be noted that the sensitivity of the antigen tests decreased when the PCR Ct value exceeded 25. Overall, the GenBody COVID-19 antigen test is a viable option for non-laboratory staff during an epidemic.
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Cochrane Db Syst Rev · Aug 2023
Review Meta AnalysisProphylactic anticoagulants for non-hospitalised people with COVID-19.
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has impacted healthcare systems worldwide. Multiple reports on thromboembolic complications related to COVID-19 have been published, and researchers have described that people with COVID-19 are at high risk for developing venous thromboembolism (VTE). Anticoagulants have been used as pharmacological interventions to prevent arterial and venous thrombosis, and their use in the outpatient setting could potentially reduce the prevalence of vascular thrombosis and associated mortality in people with COVID-19. However, even lower doses used for a prophylactic purpose may result in adverse events such as bleeding. It is important to consider the evidence for anticoagulant use in non-hospitalised people with COVID-19. ⋯ We found low- to moderate-certainty evidence from five RCTs that prophylactic anticoagulants result in little or no difference in major bleeding, DVT, need for hospitalisation, or adverse events when compared with placebo or no treatment in non-hospitalised people with COVID-19. Low-certainty evidence indicates that prophylactic anticoagulants may result in little or no difference in all-cause mortality when compared with placebo or no treatment, but moderate-certainty evidence indicates that prophylactic anticoagulants probably reduce the incidence of VTE and PE. Low-certainty evidence suggests that comparing different doses of the same prophylactic anticoagulant may result in little or no difference in need for hospitalisation or adverse events. Prophylactic anticoagulants may result in little or no difference in risk of VTE, hospitalisation, or adverse events when compared with antiplatelet agents (low-certainty evidence). Given that there were only short-term data from one study, these results should be interpreted with caution. Additional trials of sufficient duration are needed to clearly determine any effect on clinical outcomes.
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Multicenter Study
Co-infections in critically ill adults with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection. An italian multi-centre prospective study.
To date, few studies have described Hospital-acquired infections (HAIs) during COVID-19 outbreak. To examine the incidence of HAIs in critically ill adult patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection and to observe risk factors, and the impact on outcome of HAI. ⋯ Associated factors for HAI acquisition and mortality in ICU patients were identified and cause for revision of existing infection control policies.