Articles: sars-cov-2.
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J. Korean Med. Sci. · May 2022
Positivity of Rapid Antigen Testing for SARS-CoV-2 With Serial Followed-up Nasopharyngeal Swabs in Hospitalized Patients due to COVID-19.
Despite the accuracy of nucleic acid amplification tests (NAATs), rapid antigen tests (RATs) for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 are widely used as point-of-care tests. A total of 282 pairs of reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction and Standard Q COVID-19 Ag tests were serially conducted for 68 patients every 3-4 days until their discharge. ⋯ The sensitivity of RAT was 48.4% after the onset of symptoms, which was not sufficient. RAT positivity gradually decreased with increased time after symptom onset and had continuously lower sensitivity than NAATs.
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J. Korean Med. Sci. · May 2022
Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Patient Delay and Clinical Outcomes for Patients With Acute Myocardial Infarction.
It has been known that the fear of contagion during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) creates time delays with subsequent impact on mortality in patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI). However, difference of time delay and clinical outcome in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) or non-STEMI between the COVID-19 pandemic and pre-pandemic era has not been fully investigated yet in Korea. The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on time delays and clinical outcome in patients with STEMI or non-STEMI compared to the same period years prior. ⋯ During the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a considerable reduction in hospital admissions for AMI, time delay, and underuse of ACE-I/ARBs for the management of AMI, and this might be closely associated with the excess death in Korea.
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Primary care manages a significant proportion of healthcare in the United Kingdom and should be a key part of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic response. ⋯ Guidance to support general practice clinicians to manage future waves of Covid-19 or other health emergencies must be tailored to general practice from the outset, to support clinicians to manage competing health demands, and mitigate impacts on primary care providers' wellbeing.