title: Scholia about the pandemia urbi et orbi et orbe generate by de COVID-19 disease./ Escolios sobre la planetaria pandemia urbi et orbi provocada por la enfermedad debida al COVID-19

text: The Goddess of Health had two daughters, Panacea and Higinia, the fruit of the first is diagnosis, prognosis and treatment, and the fruit of the second is health management, prevention, and statistics Humanbeings are unexpectedly subjected to:1 Happenings: they belong to the plane of the personality, crisis, the Age of the virus appears that had already been announced The ideological support is not sustained, causing a bankruptcy in the system of our life The subject acts unconsciously, does not believe in the advent of the catastrophe, does not follow logical rules, isunable to transcend, fear-anguish appears and this requires a lot of protection Those who remain free from personal decomposition skewer him and put a project called "person" with his sense of life, his lifestyle and life project, which is the conjunction of body and spirit, which with the agony struggles against life itself 2 Events: they belong to the plane of nature, catastrophes The use of the word catastrophe is not synonymou swith unavoidable natural disaster, accident, although it is used by the health authorities this can have a great impact on those affected by the virus This word has the final nuance of Greek tragedies False arrogance appears, true madness In the case of the Covid-19 there is something else, a dialectical position with oneself They lived and we lived on a volcano The example of the Apocalypse and its three plagues, epidemics and post-war neuroses, etc The most striking neuropsychiatricsymptomatology is the appearance of "ageusia" and "anosmia", abruptly and totally, which disappears slowly, as well as sleep disturbances with ignagogic images post-traumatic stress charts appear La Diosa salud tenia dos hijas, Panaceae Higinia, fruto de la primera es el diagnostico, el pronostico y tratamiento y fruto de la segunda es la gestion sanitaria, la prevencion y la estadistica Los seres humanos estan sometidos inesperadamente a:1 Acontecimientos: pertenecen al plano de la personalidad, crisis, aparece la Edad del virus que ya se venia anunciada El soporte ideologico no se sostiene, provocando una quiebra en el sistema de nuestra vida El sujeto actua inconscientemente, no cree en el advenimiento de la catastrofe, no sigue normas logicas es incapaz de transcender, aparece el miedo-angustia y esto exige mucho amparo Los que se mantienen libres de la descomposicion personal lo ensartan y le ponen un proyecto que se llama persona con su sentido de vida, su estilo de vida y proyecto de vida, que es la conjuncion del cuerpo y el espiritu, que con la agonia lucha contra la vida misma 2 Sucesos: pertenecen al plano de la naturaleza, catastrofes El uso de la palabra catastrofe no es sinonimo de desastre natural inevitable, accidente, aunque se utilice por las autoridades sanitarias esto puede tener una gran repercusion en los damnificados por el virus Esta palabra tiene el matiz final de las tragedias griegas Aparece la falsa arrogancia, la locura verdadera En el caso del Covid-19 hay algo mas, una posicion dialectica con uno mismo Vivieron y vivimos en un volcan El ejemplo del Apocalipsis y sus tres plagas, epidemias y neurosis de la post guerra, etc La sintomatologia neuropsiquiatrica mas llamativa es la aparicion de la ageusia y anosmia, de forma brusca y total que desaparece lentamente, asi como las alteraciones del sueno con imagenes ignagogicas, aparecen cuadros de estres post traumatico


title: [Scholia about the pandemia urbi et orbi et orbe generate by de COVID-19 disease.]

text: The Goddess of Health had two daughters, Panacea and Higinia, the fruit of the first is diagnosis, prognosis and treatment, and the fruit of the second is health management, prevention, and statistics Humanbeings are unexpectedly subjected to:1 Happenings: they belong to the plane of the personality, crisis, the Age of the virus appears that had already been announced The ideological support is not sustained, causing a bankruptcy in the system of our life The subject acts unconsciously, does not believe in the advent of the catastrophe, does not follow logical rules, is unable to transcend, fear-anguish appears and this requires a lot of protection Those who remain free from personal decomposition skewer him and put a project called "person" with his sense of life, his lifestyle and life project, which is the conjunction of body and spirit, which with the agony struggles against life itself 2 Events: they belong to the plane of nature, catastrophes The use of the word catastrophe is not synonymou swith unavoidable natural disaster, accident, although it is used by the health authorities this can have a great impact on those affected by the virus This word has the final nuance of Greek tragedies False arrogance appears, true madness In the case of the Covid-19 there is something else, a dialectical position with oneself They lived and we lived on a volcano The example of the Apocalypse and its three plagues, epidemics and post-war neuroses, etc The most striking neuropsychiatricsymptomatology is the appearance of "ageusia" and "anosmia", abruptly and totally, which disappears slowly, as well as sleep disturbances with ignagogic images post-traumatic stress charts appear


title: Acute Type A Aortic Dissection Complicated by COVID-19 Infection

text: A patient underwent surgery for acute type A aortic dissection. SARS- CoV-2 was positive. The postoperative course was complicated by a mixed viral/bacterial pneumonia with bilateral infiltration, treated with antibiotics and hydroxychloroquine, without any need for reintubation. The patient recovered and finally could be dismissed. This report shows feasibility for surgical treatment of acute aortic disease in patients with COVID-19.


[Kronisk syge og udsatte gruppers situation under COVID-19-pandemien]


Telemedicine for management of paediatric infectious diseases during COVID-19 outbreak


title: COVID-19 from the nephrologist's point of view/ Vue sur le COVID-19 depuis la nephrologie

text: During the actual pandemic of COVID-19, it has become clear that the virus causing this devastating disease, SARS-CoV2, targets not only the lungs but also other organs In this article, we discuss the known or suspected interactions between the virus and the kidneys, as well as their clinical presentations We also discuss how the pandemic has altered the activities of nephrologists and the logistics of a Swiss dialysis center Au cours de la pandemie de COVID-19, nombre de specialistes se questionnent sur les interactions du virus avec differents tissus et organes au-dela de latteinte pulmonaire Pour diverses raisons, leffervescence a aussi gagne le nephrologue Ce bref article presente les differents aspects de linteraction virus-rein, limpact de la pandemie sur les activites nephrologiques et tente de repondre a quelques questions dactualite


title: [COVID-19 from the nephrologist's point of view]

text: During the actual pandemic of COVID-19, it has become clear that the virus causing this devastating disease, SARS-CoV2, targets not only the lungs but also other organs In this article, we discuss the known or suspected interactions between the virus and the kidneys, as well as their clinical presentations We also discuss how the pandemic has altered the activities of nephrologists and the logistics of a Swiss dialysis center


COVID-19 and management of neuroimmunological disorders


title: What every orthopaedic surgeon should know about COVID-19: A review of the current literature

text: The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has severely affected the medical community and stopped the world in its tracks. This review aims to provide the basic information necessary for us, orthopaedic surgeons to prepare ourselves to face this pandemic together. Herein, we cover the background of COVID-19, presentation, investigations, transmission, infection control and touch upon emerging treatments. It is of paramount importance that we should stay vigilant for our patients, our families and ourselves. Adequate infection control measures are necessary during day-to-day clinical work.


Change in surgical practice amidst COVID 19; example from a tertiary care centre in Pakistan


title: The procoagulant pattern of patients with COVID-19 acute respiratory distress syndrome

text: BACKGROUND: Few observations exist with respect to the pro-coagulant profile of patients with COVID-19 acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Reports of thromboembolic complications are scarce but suggestive for a clinical relevance of the problem. OBJECTIVES: Prospective observational study aimed to characterize the coagulation profile of COVID-19 ARDS patients with standard and viscoelastic coagulation tests and to evaluate their changes after establishment of an aggressive thromboprophylaxis. METHODS: Sixteen patients with COVID-19 ARDS received a complete coagulation profile at the admission in the intensive care unit. Ten patients were followed in the subsequent 7 days, after increasing the dose of low molecular weight heparin, antithrombin levels correction, and clopidogrel in selected cases. RESULTS: At baseline, the patients showed a pro-coagulant profile characterized by an increased clot strength (CS, median 55 hPa, 95% interquartile range 35-63), platelet contribution to CS (PCS, 43 hPa; interquartile range 24-45), fibrinogen contribution to CS (FCS, 12 hPa; interquartile range 6-13.5) elevated D-dimer levels (5.5 µg/mL, interquartile range 2.5-6.5), and hyperfibrinogenemia (794 mg/dL, interquartile range 583-933). Fibrinogen levels were associated (R2 = .506, P = .003) with interleukin-6 values. After increasing the thromboprophylaxis, there was a significant (P = .001) time-related decrease of fibrinogen levels, D-dimers (P = .017), CS (P = .013), PCS (P = .035), and FCS (P = .038). CONCLUSION: The pro-coagulant pattern of these patients may justify the clinical reports of thromboembolic complications (pulmonary embolism) during the course of the disease. Further studies are needed to assess the best prophylaxis and treatment of this condition.


Alternative strategies for CT unit management during the COVID-19 pandemic: a single center experience


Foot Manifestations in a COVID-19 Positive Patient: A Case Study


title: Acute complicated type B aortic dissection during the New York City COVID-19 surge

text: The impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic in New York City (NYC) is dramatic. COVID-19 cases surged, hospitals expanded to meet capacity, and NYC remains the global epicenter of this pandemic. During this unprecedented time, a young woman with known Marfan syndrome presented with an acute complicated type B aortic dissection to our Aortic Center. Using the provisional extension to induce a complete attachment technique, we treated this patient and quickly discharged her the next day to decrease the risk of COVID-19 infection. Her progress was monitored using frequent phone calls and one office visit at two weeks.


CFR Meeting 新型ウイルスの脅威 : 封じ込めはできるのか、政府の対応は適切か、経済はどうなるか (新型ウイルスの封じ込め・管理はできるのか)


Opioid Use Disorder Treatment and Potential Interactions With Novel COVID-19 Medications: A Clinical Perspective


title: COVID-19: clinical course and outcomes of 36 hemodialysis patients in Spain

text: Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pneumonia emerged in Wuhan, China in December 2019. Unfortunately, there is a lack of evidence about the optimal management of novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), and even less is available in patients on maintenance hemodialysis therapy than in the general population. In this retrospective, observational, single-center study, we analyzed the clinical course and outcomes of all maintenance hemodialysis patients hospitalized with COVID-19 from March 12th to April 10th, 2020 as confirmed by real-time polymerase chain reaction. Baseline features, clinical course, laboratory data, and different therapies were compared between survivors and nonsurvivors to identify risk factors associated with mortality. Among the 36 patients, 11 (30.5%) died, and 7 were able to be discharged within the observation period. Clinical and radiological evolution during the first week of admission were predictive of mortality. Among the 36 patients, 18 had worsening of their clinical status, as defined by severe hypoxia with oxygen therapy requirements greater than 4 L/min and radiological worsening. Significantly, 11 of those 18 patients (61.1%) died. None of the classical cardiovascular risk factors in the general population were associated with higher mortality. Compared to survivors, nonsurvivors had significantly longer dialysis vintage, increased lactate dehydrogenase (490 U/l ± 120 U/l vs. 281 U/l ± 151 U/l, P = 0.008) and C-reactive protein levels (18.3 mg/dl ± 13.7 mg/dl vs. 8.1 mg/dl ± 8.1 mg/dl, P = 0.021), and a lower lymphocyte count (0.38 ×103/µl ± 0.14 ×103/µl vs. 0.76 ×103/µl ± 0.48 ×103/µl, P = 0.04) 1 week after clinical onset. Thus, the mortality among hospitalized hemodialysis patients diagnosed with COVID-19 is high. Certain laboratory tests can be used to predict a worsening clinical course.


Primary Care Providers: Discuss COVID-19-Related Goals of Care with Your Vulnerable Patients Now


title: Current situation and trend of coronavirus diseases 2019 (COVID-2019) in foreign countries/ 上海预防医学

text: Objective To learn about the current situation and trends of novel coronavirus diseases 2019 (COVID-2019) in foreign countries. Methods The data on confirmed COVID-2019 cases were collected between January 20, 2020 and February 18, 2020 and by age, sex, nationality, contact history, region, and country were performed stratified analysis and onset time analysis. Results From January 20th to February 18th, the cumulative number of confirmed cases of COVI D-2019 abroad was 804. Excluding the 454 cases on the 'Diamond Princess' cruise ship in Japan, the daily number of new cases fluctuated, showed a trend of rising first and then maintaining a steady trend. The peak date for new cases was on February 1, with the number of cases reaching 26. The confirmed cases were mainly concentrated in Asian countries, but also distributed in Europe, North America, Oceania and Africa. As of February 15, there was no more increase reported in the number of countries where confirmed cases occurred after reaching 25. Among these countries, Singapore, Japan, and Thailand were with the highest number of cases, with 77, 65, and 35 cases, respectively. In accordamce to available information on confirmed cases, the cases with history of exposure to confirmed cases were more than those with history of living or traveling in Hubei. And more cases were non-Chinese nationalities, 40 years old and above, and males . Conclusion The novel coronavirus has transmitted abroad, and produced second-generation cases. Although the incidence is low abroad , its trend fluctuates greatly, so sufficient attention must be paid to the possibility of further transmission.


Neurological manifestations in COVID-19 caused by SARS-CoV-2


Changes to legal forensic inspections in Sicily during Covid-19


title: Clinical nursing care guidance for management of patient with COVID-19

text: COVID-19 is a highly contagious disease, which has human-to-human transmission through droplet and contact. It is commonly manifested as fever, dry cough, myalgia, and dyspnoea; the severity of this disease may range from mild, severe to a critical-illness. Currently, there is no definitive treatment or vaccine for COVID-19. The only proven form of management is isolation and supportive care. Therefore, nurses have a pivotal role to play in its management. This evidence-based comprehensive literature review provides the role of nurses in the management of patients with COVID-19, which starts from the initial assessment and triaging, sample collection, care of patients with mild-to-moderate symptoms, care of the critically-ill patient, and care of the dead body.


Management of Upper Airway Bleeding in COVID-19 Patients on Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation


title: The legal extension of the role of pharmacists in light of the COVID-19 global pandemic

text: BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 epidemic has affected every area of life. The greatest challenge has been to adapt the functioning of the health service to prevent the spread of the epidemic and to help infected patients. This has required the involvement of not only doctors and nurses, but also pharmacists. In the face of this pandemic, governments in many countries have granted pharmacists greater authority. OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this paper is to review the legal extension of the role of pharmacists in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. The review considers recent changes in European countries, Canada, and the United States. METHODS: A literature review was performed to summarise knowledge about the extension of the role of pharmacists during the pandemic period. Key articles were retrieved mainly from PubMed and Google Scholar, using the terms "COVID-19", "2019-nCoV", "coronavirus", and "pandemic" in combination with "pharmacist" as keywords for our search. We included scientific publications from February 1, 2019 to May 15, 2020. RESULTS: Pharmacists have been given numerous opportunities so that they can actively join in the fight against the virus. Some of the novel legal extensions aimed at aiding overloaded healthcare systems are as follows: authorisation to prepare hand and surface disinfectants, eligibility to renew chronic treatment prescriptions, as well as filling pro auctore and pro familia prescriptions by pharmacists, performing COVID-19, influenza, and Group A Streptococcus screening tests, and vaccine administration. Moreover, many countries have facilitated Internet services, such as virtual medical consultations, e-prescriptions, and home drug delivery - to promote social distancing among patients. To mitigate drug shortages, the following strategies have been implemented: alternative sourcing, strength, generic, or therapeutic substitution, and preparing compounded formulations at the pharmacy. CONCLUSIONS: Novel legal extensions have allowed exploitation of the full potential ofpharmacists worldwide, aiding the limited resources of overloaded healthcare systems.


title: Lights and shadows of COVID-19, Technology and Industry 4.0

text: Scientific discoveries and technologies played a significant role in the digital revolution that occurred over the last years. But what is their role in the turmoil brought by the current pandemic? The aim of this paper is to show how digital technologies are operating during this first phase of the spreading of COVID-19. The study analyses and debates the current and potential role of digital technologies, focusing on their influence in the industrial and social fields. More specifically we used the blogging platform"Medium", which has seen an exponential growth in its production of articles over the last couple of months. Even if different from esteemed scientific sources, this platform provides a structure that suits our analysis. We searched how many times digital technologies are mentioned in articles regarding Coronavirus and, after collecting these articles, we collected page tags (comparable to"keywords"in scientific articles) and classified them (technology tags and non-technology tags), to create a graph showing the relation between them. This network allowed us to acknowledge and picture how technologies are currently debated. This was the starting point to discuss the key implications for an imminent future, and question about the impact on industry, society and labour market. What are the opportunities or threats of using technologies of Industry 4.0? Which are the needs rising because of the pandemic and how can technologies help in their fulfillment? How will the industrial scenario change after this pandemic? How will the labour market be affected? How can technologies be advantageous in the emerging social challenges?


title: Coronavirus Contact Tracing: Evaluating The Potential Of Using Bluetooth Received Signal Strength For Proximity Detection

text: We report on measurements of Bluetooth Low Energy (LE) received signal strength taken on mobile handsets in a variety of common, real-world settings. We note that a key difficulty is obtaining the ground truth as to when people are in close proximity to one another. Knowledge of this ground truth is important for accurately evaluating the accuracy with which contact events are detected by Bluetooth LE. We approach this by adopting a scenario-based approach. In summary, we find that the Bluetooth LE received signal strength can vary substantially depending on the relative orientation of handsets, on absorption by the human body, reflection/absorption of radio signals in buildings and trains. Indeed we observe that the received signal strength need not decrease with increasing distance. This suggests that the development of accurate methods for proximity detection based on Bluetooth LE received signal strength is likely to be challenging. Our measurements also suggest that combining use of Bluetooth LE contact tracing apps with adoption of new social protocols may yield benefits but this requires further investigation. For example, placing phones on the table during meetings is likely to simplify proximity detection using received signal strength. Similarly, carrying handbags with phones placed close to the outside surface. In locations where the complexity of signal propagation makes proximity detection using received signal strength problematic entry/exit from the location might instead be logged in an app by e.g. scanning a time-varying QR code or the like.


title: High resolution CT features of novel coronavirus pneumonia in children/ 中华放射学杂志

text: Objective@#To investigate the high resolution CT (HRCT) features of novel coronavirus pneumonia (NCP) in children .@*Methods@#A retrospective analysis was performed on the chest HRCT findings of 22 children diagnosed with 2019-nCov pneumonia by clinical and nucleic acid testing in Wuhan Children's Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology from January 25, 2020 to February 5, 2020. There were 12 boys and 10 girls, aged from 2 months to 14 years old, with a median age of 4 years, and 14 patients were under 5 years old. The characteristics of lung lesions on HRCT imaging such as distribution, shape, density, etc. and whether there were hilar and mediastinal lymph node enlargement and pleural changes were observed by 2 radiologists.@* Results@#In all of the 22 patients, 3 patients (3/22) had normal chest CT, and 19 patients (19/22) had infiltrated lesions in lung. Among them, 7 patients had unilateral lung involvement, 12 patients had bilateral involvement. The HRCT manifestations were as follows. Six patients showed ground glass shadow, including 4 cases showed light ground glass shadow and 2 had typical crazy paving sign. Four patients showed lung consolidation, with localized strip shadow and patchy high-density shadow. Six patients showed patchy lesions with surrounding ground glass shadow, including 1 case with white lung in the right. The bronchopneumonia-like changes in 3 cases, showed scattered spot-like or patchy uneven high-density shadows. The lesions in the lower lobe were more serious than those in the upper lobe, and the lesions in the lateroposterior zone of the lung were more common than those in the apical and central area of the lung. No enlarged lymph nodes and pleural effusion were seen in all patients, and 1 case had thickened interlobar pleura.@*Conclusions@#The HRCT manifestations of NCP in children are diversified, comprehensive judgments need to be made in combination with epidemiological data, clinical manifestations, and laboratory tests, but the chest HRCT can be used as an important basis for early clinical diagnosis and prevention and control interventions.


title: Incidence of Deep Vein Thrombosis among non-ICU Patients Hospitalized for COVID-19 Despite Pharmacological Thromboprophylaxis

text: BACKGROUND: A remarkably high incidence of VTE has been reported among critically ill patients with COVID-19 assisted in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). However, VTE burden among non-ICU patients hospitalized for COVID-19 that receive guideline-recommended thromboprophylaxis is unknown. OBJECTIVES: To determine the incidence of VTE among non-ICU patients hospitalized for COVID-19 that receive pharmacological thromboprophylaxis. METHODS: We performed a systematic screening for the diagnosis of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) by lower limb vein compression ultrasonography (CUS) in consecutive non-ICU patients hospitalized for COVID-19, independently of the presence of signs or symptoms of DVT. All patients were receiving pharmacological thromboprophylaxis with either enoxaparin or fondaparinux. RESULTS: The population that we screened consisted of 84 consecutive patients, with a mean age of 67.6±13.5 years and a mean Padua Prediction Score of 5.1±1.6. Seventy-two patients (85.7%) had respiratory insufficiency, required oxygen supplementation, and had reduced mobility or were bedridden. In this cohort, we found 10 cases of DVT, with an incidence of 11.9% (95% CI 4.98-18.82). Of these, 2 were proximal DVT (incidence rate 2.4%, 95% CI -0.87-5.67) and 8 were distal DVT (incidence rate 9.5%, 95% CI 3.23-5.77). Significant differences between subjects with and without DVT were D-dimer >3,000 µg/L (P<0.05), current or previous cancer (P<0.05), and need of high flow nasal oxygen therapy and/or non-invasive ventilation (P<0.01). CONCLUSIONS: DVT may occur among non-ICU patients hospitalized for COVID-19, despite guideline-recommended thromboprophylaxis.


title: Using Remote Medical Care Services to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus

text: UNSTRUCTURED: This manuscript is in the category of Letters to editor, and there is no abstract.


Right-to-left interatrial shunt in COVID-19 patients with pulmonary embolism


title: Opportunities and Challenges for Biosensors and Nanoscale Analytical Tools for Pandemics: COVID-19

text: Biosensors and nanoscale analytical tools have shown huge growth in literature in the past 20 years, with a large number of reports on the topic of 'ultrasensitive', 'cost-effective', and 'early detection' tools with a potential of 'mass-production' cited on the web of science. Yet none of these tools are commercially available in the market or practically viable for mass production and use in pandemic diseases such as coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). In this context, we review the technological challenges and opportunities of current bio/chemical sensors and analytical tools by critically analyzing the bottlenecks which have hindered the implementation of advanced sensing technologies in pandemic diseases. We also describe in brief COVID-19 by comparing it with other pandemic strains such as that of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) for the identification of features that enable biosensing. Moreover, we discuss visualization and characterization tools that can potentially be used not only for sensing applications but also to assist in speeding up the drug discovery and vaccine development process. Furthermore, we discuss the emerging monitoring mechanism, namely wastewater-based epidemiology, for early warning of the outbreak, focusing on sensors for rapid and on-site analysis of SARS-CoV2 in sewage. To conclude, we provide holistic insights into challenges associated with the quick translation of sensing technologies, policies, ethical issues, technology adoption, and an overall outlook of the role of the sensing technologies in pandemics.


title: Health workers' safety during tracheostomy in COVID-19 patients: Homemade protective screen

text: As an aerosol and droplets generating procedure, tracheostomy increases contamination risks for health workers in the coronavirus disease context. To preserve the health care system capacity and to limit virus cross-transmission, protecting caregivers against coronavirus infection is of critical importance. We report the use of external fixator equipment to set up a physical interface between the patient's neck and the caregiver performing a tracheostomy in COVID-19 patients. Once the metal frame set in place, it is wrapped with a single-use clear and sterile cover for surgical C-arm. This installation is simple, easy, and fast to achieve and can be carried out with inexpensive material available in every hospital. This physical interface is an additional safety measure that prevents the direct projection of secretions or droplets. It should, of course, only be considered as a complement to strict compliance with barrier precautions and personal protective equipment.


Case 21-2020: A 66-Year-Old Homeless Man with Covid-19


title: Prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 specific neutralising antibodies in blood donors from the Lodi Red Zone in Lombardy, Italy, as at 06 April 2020

text: We evaluated SARS-CoV-2 RNA and neutralising antibodies in blood donors (BD) residing in the Lodi Red Zone, Italy. Of 390 BDs recruited after 20 February 2020 - when the first COVID-19 case in Lombardy was identified, 91 (23%) aged 19-70 years were antibody positive. Viral RNA was detected in an additional 17 (4.3%) BDs, yielding ca 28% (108/390) with evidence of virus exposure. Five stored samples collected as early as 12 February were seropositive.


title: Rapid implementation of mobile technology for real-time epidemiology of COVID-19

text: The rapid pace of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) presents challenges to the robust collection of population-scale data to address this global health crisis. We established the COronavirus Pandemic Epidemiology (COPE) Consortium to unite scientists with expertise in big data research and epidemiology to develop the COVID Symptom Study, previously known as the COVID Symptom Tracker, mobile application. This application-which offers data on risk factors, predictive symptoms, clinical outcomes, and geographical hotspots-was launched in the United Kingdom on 24 March 2020 and the United States on 29 March 2020 and has garnered more than 2.8 million users as of 2 May 2020. Our initiative offers a proof of concept for the repurposing of existing approaches to enable rapidly scalable epidemiologic data collection and analysis, which is critical for a data-driven response to this public health challenge.


Regarding: Lui RN, Wong SH, Sánchez-Luna SA, et al. Overview of guidance for endoscopy during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic. J. Gastroenterol. Hepatol. 2020;35(5):749-759. https://doi.org/10.1111/jgh.15053


title: Quantum computing with neutral atoms

text: The manipulation of neutral atoms by light is at the heart of countless scientific discoveries in the field of quantum physics in the last three decades. The level of control that has been achieved at the single particle level within 2D and 3D arrays of optical traps, while preserving the fundamental properties of quantum matter (coherence, entanglement, superposition), makes these technologies prime candidates to implement disruptive computation paradigms. In this paper we discuss the technological strategy of Pasqal, a startup developing such quantum processors to tackle some of the world's most challenging problems. We present the full quantum stack, from atoms qubits to application interfaces, and propose a classification of a wide variety of tasks that can already be addressed in a computationally efficient manner in the Noisy Intermediate State Quantum era we are in. We illustrate how applications ranging from optimization challenges to simulation of quantum systems can be explored either at the digital level (programming gate-based circuits) or at the analog level (programming Hamiltonian sequences). We give evidence of the intrinsic scalability of Pasqal's technology in the 100-1,000 qubits range and introduce prospects for universal fault tolerant quantum computing and applications beyond quantum computing.


title: A Novel Bat Coronavirus Closely Related to SARS-CoV-2 Contains Natural Insertions at the S1/S2 Cleavage Site of the Spike Protein

text: The unprecedented pandemic of pneumonia caused by a novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, in China and beyond has had major public health impacts on a global scale [1, 2]. Although bats are regarded as the most likely natural hosts for SARS-CoV-2 [3], the origins of the virus remain unclear. Here, we report a novel bat-derived coronavirus, denoted RmYN02, identified from a metagenomic analysis of samples from 227 bats collected from Yunnan Province in China between May and October 2019. Notably, RmYN02 shares 93.3% nucleotide identity with SARS-CoV-2 at the scale of the complete virus genome and 97.2% identity in the 1ab gene, in which it is the closest relative of SARS-CoV-2 reported to date. In contrast, RmYN02 showed low sequence identity (61.3%) to SARS-CoV-2 in the receptor-binding domain (RBD) and might not bind to angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2). Critically, and in a similar manner to SARS-CoV-2, RmYN02 was characterized by the insertion of multiple amino acids at the junction site of the S1 and S2 subunits of the spike (S) protein. This provides strong evidence that such insertion events can occur naturally in animal betacoronaviruses.


Older adults and COVID-19 pandemic: Resilience matters


All India Ophthalmological Society: Stance on COVID-19 pandemic


Palliative Care for Patients With Cancer in the COVID-19 Era


Covid-19: Concerns rise as cases expand rapidly in South America


title: Effect of COVID-19 on Hip and Knee Arthroplasty Surgical Volume in the United States

text: BACKGROUND: In an effort to help combat the COVID-19 pandemic and preserve essential health care resources, starting in mid-March 2020, surgeons have been instructed to only perform essential surgical procedures. The vast majority of hip and knee arthroplasty surgery does not meet the definition of essential surgery. This study estimated the number of arthroplasty procedures that would be canceled because of these important restrictions. METHODS: The US hip and knee arthroplasty procedure volume projections for 2020 were estimated from four recently published studies. Data from the American Joint Replacement Registry were utilized to determine what percentage of these cases would be considered nonessential surgery. Monthly and weekly estimates of nonessential hip and knee arthroplasty procedures that would have occurred had there not been any restrictions due to COVID-19 were calculated. RESULTS: After excluding essential procedures, it was estimated that approximately 30,000 primary and 3000 revision hip and knee arthroplasty procedures will be canceled each week while COVID-19 restrictions regarding nonessential surgery are in place. If only 50% of nonessential cases were actually canceled across the United States, that would still result in the cancellation of 15,001 primary and 1435 revision hip and knee arthroplasty procedures per week while restrictions are in place. CONCLUSION: This study highlights the profound impact COVID-19 is having on our current hip and knee arthroplasty volume. The large number of cases canceled because of COVID-19 translates into major financial losses for health care institutions and may have a profound impact on our patients.


title: COVID-19-Related Stroke

text: The COVID-19 pandemic is associated with neurological symptoms and complications including stroke. There is hypercoagulability associated with COVID-19 that is likely a "sepsis-induced coagulopathy" and may predispose to stroke. The SARS-CoV-2 virus binds to angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) present on brain endothelial and smooth muscle cells. ACE2 is a key part of the renin angiotensin system (RAS) and a counterbalance to angiotensin-converting enzyme 1 (ACE1) and angiotensin II. Angiotensin II is proinflammatory, is vasoconstrictive, and promotes organ damage. Depletion of ACE2 by SARS-CoV-2 may tip the balance in favor of the "harmful" ACE1/angiotensin II axis and promote tissue injury including stroke. There is a rationale to continue to treat with tissue plasminogen activator for COVID-19-related stroke and low molecular weight heparinoids may reduce thrombosis and mortality in sepsis-induced coagulopathy.


The Covid-19 Hotel for Healthcare Workers: an Italian Best Practice


Abortion in the context of COVID-19: a human rights imperative


Global Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Endoscopy: An International Survey of 252 Centers from 55 Countries


Determining risk factors for mortality in liver transplant patients with COVID-19


title: Race/Ethnicity, Underlying Medical Conditions, Homelessness, and Hospitalization Status of Adult Patients with COVID-19 at an Urban Safety-Net Medical Center - Boston, Massachusetts, 2020

text: As of July 5, 2020, approximately 2.8 million coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases and 130,000 COVID-19-associated deaths had been reported in the United States (1). Populations historically affected by health disparities, including certain racial and ethnic minority populations, have been disproportionally affected by and hospitalized with COVID-19 (2-4). Data also suggest a higher prevalence of infection with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, among persons experiencing homelessness (5). Safety-net hospitals, such as Boston Medical Center (BMC), which provide health care to persons regardless of their insurance status or ability to pay, treat higher proportions of these populations and might experience challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic. This report describes the characteristics and clinical outcomes of adult patients with laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 treated at BMC during March 1-May 18, 2020. During this time, 2,729 patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection were treated at BMC and categorized into one of the following mutually exclusive clinical severity designations: exclusive outpatient management (1,543; 56.5%), non-intensive care unit (ICU) hospitalization (900; 33.0%), ICU hospitalization without invasive mechanical ventilation (69; 2.5%), ICU hospitalization with mechanical ventilation (119; 4.4%), and death (98; 3.6%). The cohort comprised 44.6% non-Hispanic black (black) patients and 30.1% Hispanic or Latino (Hispanic) patients. Persons experiencing homelessness accounted for 16.4% of patients. Most patients who died were aged ≥60 years (81.6%). Clinical severity differed by age, race/ethnicity, underlying medical conditions, and homelessness. A higher proportion of Hispanic patients were hospitalized (46.5%) than were black (39.5%) or non-Hispanic white (white) (34.4%) patients, a finding most pronounced among those aged <60 years. A higher proportion of non-ICU inpatients were experiencing homelessness (24.3%), compared with homeless patients who were admitted to the ICU without mechanical ventilation (15.9%), with mechanical ventilation (15.1%), or who died (15.3%). Patient characteristics associated with illness and clinical severity, such as age, race/ethnicity, homelessness, and underlying medical conditions can inform tailored strategies that might improve outcomes and mitigate strain on the health care system from COVID-19.


title: Anti-SARS-CoV-2 virus antibody levels in convalescent plasma of six donors who have recovered from COVID-19

text: BACKGROUND: Anti-SARS-CoV-2 virus antibody levels in convalescent plasma (CP), which may be useful in severe Anti-SARS-CoV-2 virus infections, have been rarely reported. RESULTS: A total of eight donors were considered for enrollment; two of them were excluded because of ineligible routine check. Of the six remaining participants, five samples were tested weakly positive by the IgM ELISA. Meanwhile, high titers of IgG were observed in five samples. The patient treated with CP did not require mechanical ventilation 11 days after plasma transfusion, and was then transferred to a general ward. CONCLUSIONS: Our serological findings in convalescent plasma from recovered patients may help facilitate understanding of the SARS-CoV-2 infection and establish CP donor screening protocol in COVID-19 outbreak. METHODS: Anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies including IgM and IgG were measured by two enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA) in convalescent plasma from six donors who have recovered from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Nanjing, China. CP was also utilized for the treatment of one severe COVID-19 patient.


Focus on Depression and Suicide in the Era of COVID-19


title: The effects of allium sativum on immunity within the scope of COVID-19 infection

text: The severity of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection is quite variable and the manifestations varies from asymptomatic disease to severe acute respiratory infection. Fever, dry cough, dyspnea, myalgia, fatigue, loss of appetite, olfactory and gustatory dysfunctions are the most prevalent general symptoms. Decreased immune system cells such as suppressed regulatory T cells, cytotoxic and helper T cells, natural killer cells, monocytes/macrophages and increased proinflammatory cytokines are the characteristic features. Compounds derived from Allium sativum (garlic) have the potential to decrease the expression of proinflammatory cytokines and to reverse the immunological abnormalities to more acceptable levels. Allium sativum is suggested as a beneficial preventive measure before being infected with SARS-CoV-2 virus. Allium sativum is a functional food well-known for its immunomodulatory, antimicrobial, antiinflammatory, antimutagenic, antitumor properties. Its antiviral efficiency was also demonstrated. Some constituents of this plant were found to be active against protozoan parasites. Within this context, it appears to reverse most immune system dysfunctions observed in patients with COVID-19 infection. The relations among immune system parameters, leptin, leptin receptor, adenosin mono phosphate-activated protein kinase, peroxisome proliferator activated receptor-gamma have also been interpreted. Leptin's role in boosting proinflammatory cytokines and in appetite decreasing suggest the possible beneficial effect of decreasing the concentration of this proinflammatory adipose tissue hormone in relieving some symptoms detected during COVID-19 infection. In conclusion, Allium sativum may be an acceptable preventive measure against COVID-19 infection to boost immune system cells and to repress the production and secretion of proinflammatory cytokines as well as an adipose tissue derived hormone leptin having the proinflammatory nature.


COVID-19, allergic disease and asthma: Extraordinary challenges for the allergist/immunologist


title: Causal Network Models of SARS-CoV-2 Expression and Aging to Identify Candidates for Drug Repurposing

text: Given the severity of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, a major challenge is to rapidly repurpose existing approved drugs for clinical interventions. While a number of data-driven and experimental approaches have been suggested in the context of drug repurposing, a platform that systematically integrates available transcriptomic, proteomic and structural data is missing. More importantly, given that SARS-CoV-2 pathogenicity is highly age-dependent, it is critical to integrate aging signatures into drug discovery platforms. We here take advantage of large-scale transcriptional drug screens combined with RNA-seq data of the lung epithelium with SARS-CoV-2 infection as well as the aging lung. To identify robust druggable protein targets, we propose a principled causal framework that makes use of multiple data modalities. Our analysis highlights the importance of serine/threonine and tyrosine kinases as potential targets that intersect the SARS-CoV-2 and aging pathways. By integrating transcriptomic, proteomic and structural data that is available for many diseases, our drug discovery platform is broadly applicable. Rigorous in vitro experiments as well as clinical trials are needed to validate the identified candidate drugs.


Early thromboembolic events in hospitalized COVID-19 patients


A dermatologic manifestation of COVID-19: Transient livedo reticularis


title: COVID-19 Chest CT Image Segmentation -- A Deep Convolutional Neural Network Solution

text: A novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) was detected and has spread rapidly across various countries around the world since the end of the year 2019, Computed Tomography (CT) images have been used as a crucial alternative to the time-consuming RT-PCR test. However, pure manual segmentation of CT images faces a serious challenge with the increase of suspected cases, resulting in urgent requirements for accurate and automatic segmentation of COVID-19 infections. Unfortunately, since the imaging characteristics of the COVID-19 infection are diverse and similar to the backgrounds, existing medical image segmentation methods cannot achieve satisfactory performance. In this work, we try to establish a new deep convolutional neural network tailored for segmenting the chest CT images with COVID-19 infections. We firstly maintain a large and new chest CT image dataset consisting of 165,667 annotated chest CT images from 861 patients with confirmed COVID-19. Inspired by the observation that the boundary of the infected lung can be enhanced by adjusting the global intensity, in the proposed deep CNN, we introduce a feature variation block which adaptively adjusts the global properties of the features for segmenting COVID-19 infection. The proposed FV block can enhance the capability of feature representation effectively and adaptively for diverse cases. We fuse features at different scales by proposing Progressive Atrous Spatial Pyramid Pooling to handle the sophisticated infection areas with diverse appearance and shapes. We conducted experiments on the data collected in China and Germany and show that the proposed deep CNN can produce impressive performance effectively.


title: How Often Should People be Tested for Corona to Avoid a Shutdown?

text: Based on the well known SIR model, this paper develops a model for predicting the number of necessary testings of asymptomatic persons in order to push Reff below 1, thus suppressing an outbreak. The model considers R0, time for obtaining a test result, and effect of population discipline. The outcome are closed form expressions for the number of daily tests.


Perforin and resistance to SARS coronavirus 2


title: SARS-CoV-2 Inflammatory Syndrome. Clinical Features and Rationale for Immunological Treatment

text: The current pandemic coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, is a global health emergency because of its highly contagious nature, the great number of patients requiring intensive care therapy, and the high fatality rate. In the absence of specific antiviral drugs, passive prophylaxis, or a vaccine, the treatment aim in these patients is to prevent the potent virus-induced inflammatory stimuli from leading to the acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), which has a severe prognosis. Here, the mechanism of action and the rationale for employing immunological strategies, which range from traditional chemically synthesized drugs, anti-cytokine antibodies, human immunoglobulin for intravenous use, to vaccines, are reviewed.


The QT interval in patients with COVID-19 treated with hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin


title: Telemedicine: Patient-Provider Clinical Engagement During the COVID-19 Pandemic and Beyond

text: BACKGROUND: The novel coronavirus pandemic has drastically affected healthcare organizations across the globe. METHODS: We sought to summarize the current telemedicine environment in order to highlight the important changes triggered by the novel coronavirus pandemic, as well as highlight how the current crisis may inform the future of telemedicine. RESULTS: At many institutions, the number of telemedicine visits dramatically increased within days following the institution of novel coronavirus pandemic restrictions on in-person clinical encounters. Prior to the pandemic, telemedicine utilization was weak throughout surgical specialties due to regulatory and reimbursement barriers. As part of the pandemic response, the USA government temporarily relaxed various telemedicine restrictions and provided additional telemedicine funding. DISCUSSION: The post-pandemic role of telemedicine is dependent on permanent regulatory solutions. In the coming decade, telemedicine and telesurgery are anticipated to mature due to the proliferation of interconnected consumer health devices and high-speed 5G data connectivity.


title: Coronavirus disease (COVID-19): a scoping review

text: BackgroundIn December 2019, a pneumonia caused by a novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) emerged in Wuhan, China and has rapidly spread around the world since then.AimThis study aims to understand the research gaps related to COVID-19 and propose recommendations for future research.MethodsWe undertook a scoping review of COVID-19, comprehensively searching databases and other sources to identify literature on COVID-19 between 1 December 2019 and 6 February 2020. We analysed the sources, publication date, type and topic of the retrieved articles/studies.ResultsWe included 249 articles in this scoping review. More than half (59.0%) were conducted in China. Guidance/guidelines and consensuses statements (nâ¯=â¯56; 22.5%) were the most common. Most (nâ¯=â¯192; 77.1%) articles were published in peer-reviewed journals, 35 (14.1%) on preprint servers and 22 (8.8%) posted online. Ten genetic studies (4.0%) focused on the origin of SARS-CoV-2 while the topics of molecular studies varied. Nine of 22 epidemiological studies focused on estimating the basic reproduction number of COVID-19 infection (R0). Of all identified guidance/guidelines (nâ¯=â¯35), only ten fulfilled the strict principles of evidence-based practice. The number of articles published per day increased rapidly until the end of January.ConclusionThe number of articles on COVID-19 steadily increased before 6 February 2020. However, they lack diversity and are almost non-existent in some study fields, such as clinical research. The findings suggest that evidence for the development of clinical practice guidelines and public health policies will be improved when more results from clinical research becomes available.


Airborne Transmission of COVID-19


title: Exposure to coronavirus news on mainstream media: The role of risk perceptions and depression

text: OBJECTIVE: The mainstream media tend to rely on news content that will increase risk perceptions of pandemic outbreaks to stimulate public response and persuade people to comply with preventive behaviours. The objective of this study was to examine associations between exposure to coronavirus disease (COVID-19) news, risk perceptions, and depressive symptoms. METHODS: Cross-sectional data were collected from 501 participants who were ≥18 years. Exposure to COVID-19 news was assessed as our exposure variable. We screened for depression (outcome variable) with the Patient Health Questionnaire and examined the roles of risk perceptions. Multiple linear regressions and mediation analysis with 1000 bootstrap resamples were conducted. RESULTS: Participants were 55.29% female, 67.86% White with mean age 32.44 ± 11.94 years. After controlling for sociodemographic and socio-economic factors, news exposure was positively associated with depressive symptoms ß = .11; 95% confidence interval (95%CI) = 0.02-0.20. Mediation analysis showed that perceived vulnerability to COVID-19 mediated 34.4% of this relationship (ß = .04; 95%CI = 0.01-0.06). CONCLUSION: Perceived vulnerability to COVID-19 can serve as a pathway through which exposure to COVID-19 news on mainstream media may be associated with depressive symptoms. Based on our findings, we offered recommendations for media-health partnership, practice, and research.


title: Changing the editorial process at JCI and JCI Insight in response to the COVID-19 pandemic

text: The editors of JCI and JCI Insight are revisiting our editorial processes in light of the strain that the COVID-19 pandemic places on the worldwide scientific community. Here, we discuss adjustments to our decision framework in light of restrictions placed on laboratory working conditions for many of our authors.


title: The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on marginalized populations in the United States: A research agenda

text: International and national crises often highlight inequalities in the labor market that disproportionately affect individuals from marginalized backgrounds. The COVID-19 pandemic, and the resulting changes in society due to social distancing measures, has showcased inequities in access to decent work and experiences of discrimination resulting in many of the vulnerable populations in the United States experiencing a much harsher impact on economic and work-related factors. The purpose of this essay is to describe how the COVID-19 pandemic may differentially affect workers of color, individuals from low-income backgrounds, and women in complex ways. First, this essay will discuss disproportionate representation of workers from low-income and racial/ethnic minority backgrounds in sectors most affected by COVID-19. Second, it will discuss the lack of decent work for low-income workers who perform "essential" tasks. Third, this essay will highlight economic and work-related implications of increased discrimination Asian Americans are experiencing in society. Finally, role conflict and stress for women who are managing additional unpaid work, including caretaking responsibilities, while needing to continue to engage in paid work will be examined. A research agenda will be set forth throughout the essay, calling for vocational psychologists to engage in research that fully examines how the COVID-19 pandemic is affecting vulnerable communities.


Which are the "emergent" dermatologic practices during COVID-19 pandemic? Report from the lockdown in Milan, Italy


A late-onset widespread skin rash in a previous COVID-19-infected patient: viral or multidrug effect?


title: Scarcity in the Covid-19 Pandemic

text: As we write, U.S. cities and states with extensive community transmission of Covid-19 are in harm's way-not only because of the disease itself but also because of prior and current failures to act. During the 2009 influenza pandemic, public health agencies and hospitals developed but never adequately implemented preparedness plans. Focused on efficiency in a competitive market, health systems had few incentives to maintain stockpiles of essential medical equipment. Just-in-time economic models resulted in storage of only those supplies needed then. At the same time, global purchasing in search of lower prices reduced the number of U.S. suppliers, with hospitals dependent on foreign companies. There is still a possibility that the pandemic will be manageably bad rather than unmanageably catastrophic in this country. Immediate, powerful, and sustained federal action could make the difference.


title: Coronavirus disease 2019: Knowledge, attitude, and practice of pregnant women in a tertiary hospital in Abakaliki, southeast Nigeria

text: OBJECTIVE: To determine the knowledge, attitude, and practice of antenatal attendees towards COVID-19 in Alex Ekwueme Federal University Teaching Hospital, Abakaliki, Nigeria. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey was carried out among 430 consenting pregnant women attending antenatal clinics between March 1 and May 30, 2020, using pretested questionnaires. RESULTS: The mean age and mean gestational age of the respondents were 30.04 years (95% confidence interval [CI] 28.9-31.1) and 26.3 weeks (95% CI 23.3-29.3), respectively. More than four-fifths (82%) of the women believed that COVID-19 is real and their main source of information was mass media. The majority had adequate knowledge of COVID-19. More than half of the respondents said COVID-19 is a curable disease and that chloroquine can be used. The majority showed a good attitude and preventice practice of COVID-19 disease; however, one-fourth (24%) thought that infected individuals should be killed to prevent the spread of the virus. CONCLUSION: The study population has good knowledge, attitude, and practice of COVID-19 disease. However, it is worrisome that some respondents thought that infected individuals should be killed. Proper education must be given to the populace to avert these negative attitudes while promoting a positive preventive attitude.


Self-reported olfactory and taste disorders in SARS-CoV-2 patients: a cross-sectional study


The COVID-19 Pandemic: Public Health and Epidemiology


Extubation barrier drape to minimise droplet spread


'Age and ageism in COVID-19': Elderly mental health-care vulnerabilities and needs


Haddon matrix for kidney transplantation during COVID-19 pandemic: A problem solving framework for present and future


title: Haddon Matrix for Kidney Transplantation during COVID-19 Pandemic: A Problem Solving Framework for Present and Future

text: Novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is a public health emergency with several million worldwide and a quarter of a million and soon half a million deaths including a third in the United States alone (as of May 10, 2020).1 It affects kidney transplantation and has caused mortality in waitlist dialysis and transplant patients.2,3 This inevitably raises questions about the practicality and direction of transplant surgeries during this critical period.


title: Evaluation of rapid diagnosis of novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) using loop-mediated isothermal amplification

text: With the rapid spread of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), there is an urgent need for more rapid and simple detection technologies at the forefront of medical care worldwide. In this study, we evaluated the effectiveness of the Loopamp® 2019-SARSCoV-2 Detection Reagent Kit, which uses loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) technology. In this protocol, cDNA is synthesized from SARS-CoV-2 RNA using reverse transcriptase, followed by DNA amplification under isothermal conditions in one step. The RT-LAMP test kit amplified the targeted RNA of a SARS-CoV-2 isolate with a detection limit of 1.0 × 101 copies/µL, which was comparable to the detection sensitivity of quantitative reverse transcription PCR (RT-qPCR). Comparison with the results of RT-qPCR for 76 nasopharyngeal swab samples from patients with suspected COVID-19 showed a sensitivity of 100 % and a specificity of 97.6 %. In the 24 RNA specimens derived from febrile Japanese patients with or without influenza A, no amplification was observed using RT-LAMP. RT-LAMP could be a simple and easy-to-use diagnostic tool for the detection of SARS-CoV-2.


Coronavirus disease 2019: The harms of exaggerated information and non-evidence-based measures


Neuropsychiatric and cognitive effects of the COVID-19 outbreak on multiple sclerosis patients


title: [CT imaging features of patients with different clinical types of COVID-19]

text: OBJECTIVE: To investigate the CT findings of patients with different clinical types of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). METHODS: A total of 67 patients diagnosed as COVID-19 by nucleic acid testing were collected and divided into 4 groups according to the clinical stages based on Diagnosis and treatment of novel coronavirus pneumonia (trial version 6). The CT imaging characteristics were analyzed among patients with different clinical types. RESULTS: Among 67 patients, 3(4.5%) were mild, 35 (52.2%) were moderate, 22 (32.8%) were severe, and 7(10.4%) were critical ill. No significant abnormality in chest CT imaging in mild patients. The 35 cases of moderate type included 3 (8.6%) single lesions, the 22 cases of severe cases included 1 (4.5%) single lesion and the rest cases were with multiple lesions. CT images of moderate patients were mainly manifested by solid plaque shadow and halo sign (18/35, 51.4%); while fibrous strip shadow with ground glass shadow was more frequent in severe cases (7/22, 31.8%). Consolidation shadow as the main lesion was observed in 7 cases, and all of them were severe or critical ill patients. CONCLUSIONS: CT images of patients with different clinical types of COVID-19 have characteristic manifestations, and solid shadow may predict severe and critical illness.


Mild COVID-19 symptoms despite treatment with teriflunomide and high-dose methylprednisolone due to multiple sclerosis relapse


How deadly is the coronavirus? Scientists are close to an answer


Covid-19: The challenges facing endocrinology


SARS-CoV-2, the Virus that Causes COVID-19: Cytometry and the New Challenge for Global Health


COVID-19-White matter and globus pallidum lesions: Demyelination or small-vessel vasculitis?


title: A New Algorithm for Tessellated Kernel Learning

text: The accuracy and complexity of machine learning algorithms based on kernel optimization are limited by the set of kernels over which they are able to optimize. An ideal set of kernels should: admit a linear parameterization (for tractability); be dense in the set of all kernels (for robustness); be universal (for accuracy). The recently proposed Tesselated Kernels (TKs) is currently the only known class which meets all three criteria. However, previous algorithms for optimizing TKs were limited to classification and relied on Semidefinite Programming (SDP) - limiting them to relatively small datasets. By contrast, the 2-step algorithm proposed here scales to 10,000 data points and extends to the regression problem. Furthermore, when applied to benchmark data, the algorithm demonstrates significant improvement in performance over Neural Nets and SimpleMKL with similar computation time.


title: Association between renin-angiotensin system inhibitors and COVID-19 complications

text: AIMS: To describe the characteristics of patients hospitalized with COVID-19 (including their long-term at-home medication use), and compare them with regard to the course of the disease. To assess the association between renin-angiotensin system inhibitors (RASIs) and disease progression and critical outcomes. METHODS AND RESULTS: All consecutive hospitalized patients with laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 in a university hospital in Amiens (France) were included in this study. The primary composite endpoint was admission to an intensive care unit (ICU) or death before ICU admission. Univariable and multivariable logistic regression models were used to identify factors associated with the composite endpoint. Between 28 February 2020 and 30 March 2020, a total of 499 local patients tested positive for SARS-CoV-2. Of these, 231 were not hospitalized {males 33%; median [interquartile range (IQR)] age: 44 (32-54)}, and 268 were hospitalized [males 58%; median (IQR) age: 73 (61-84)]. A total of 116 patients met the primary endpoint: 47 died before ICU admission, and 69 were admitted to the ICU. Patients meeting the primary endpoint were more likely than patients not meeting the primary endpoint to have coronary heart disease and to have been taking RASIs; however, the two subsets of patients did not differ with regard to median age. After adjustment for other associated variables, the risk of meeting the composite endpoint was 1.73 times higher (odds ratio 1.73, 95% confidence interval 1.02-2.93) in patients treated at baseline with a RASI than in patients not treated with this drug class. This association was confirmed when the analysis was restricted to patients treated with antihypertensive agents. CONCLUSIONS: We highlighted a potential safety signal for RASIs, the long-term use of which was independently associated with a higher risk of severe COVID-19 and a poor outcome. Due to the widespread use of this important drug class, formal proof based on clinical trials is needed to better understand the association between RASIs and complications of COVID-19.


Understanding SARS-CoV-2-related multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children


title: Estimation of COVID-19 dynamics "on a back-of-envelope": Does the simplest SIR model provide quantitative parameters and predictions?

text: Basing on existence of the mathematically sequential reduction of the three-compartmental (Susceptible-Infected-Recovered/Removed) model to the Verhulst (logistic) equation with the parameters determined by the basic characteristic of epidemic process, this model is tested in application to the recent data on COVID-19 outbreak reported by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control. It is shown that such a simple model adequately reproduces the epidemic dynamics not only qualitatively but for a number of countries quantitatively with a high degree of correlation that allows to use it for predictive estimations. In addition, some features of SIR model are discussed in the context, how its parameters and conditions reflect measures attempted for the disease growth prevention that is also clearly indicated by deviations from such model solutions.


title: Off-label use of tocilizumab for the treatment of SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia in Milan, Italy

text: BACKGROUND: Tocilizumab, a humanized monoclonal antibody, targets IL-6 receptors blocking downstream pro-inflammatory effects of IL-6. In preliminary reports it was suggested to be beneficial in patients with severe COVID-19. METHODS: In this open-label prospective study we describe clinical characteristics and outcome of 51 patients hospitalized with confirmed and severe COVID-19 pneumonia treated with tocilizumab intravenously. All patients had elevated IL-6 plasma level (>40 pg/mL) and oxygen saturation <93% in ambient air. Clinical outcomes, oxygen support, laboratory data and adverse events were collected over a follow-up of 30 days. RESULTS: Forty-five patients (88%) were on high-flow oxygen supplementation, six of whom with invasive ventilation. From baseline to day 7 after tocilizumab we observed a dramatic drop of body temperature and CRP value with a significant increase in lymphocyte count (p<0.001). Over a median follow-up time of 34 days from tocilizumab, 34 patients (67%) showed an improvement in their clinical severity class; 31 were discharged; 17 (33%) showed a worsening of their clinical status, of these 14 died (27%). The mortality rate was significantly associated with mechanical ventilation at baseline (83.3% vs 20% of patients on non-invasive oxygen support; p=0.0001). The most frequent side effects were an increase of hepatic enzymes (29%), thrombocytopenia (14%), and serious bacterial and fungal infections (27%). CONCLUSION: Tocilizumab exerts a rapidly beneficial effect on fever and inflammatory markers, although no significant impact on the clinical outcome can be inferred by our results. Critically ill patients seem to have a high risk of serious infections with this drug.


How environmental racism is fuelling the coronavirus pandemic


Medical students' perspective. A letter to the editor on "Impact of coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic on surgical practice - Part 1"


title: Brain uptake and accumulation of new levofloxacin-doxycycline combination through the use of solid lipid nanoparticles: Formulation; Optimization and in-vivo evaluation

text: The objective of this study is to investigate the feasibility of delivery of novel levofloxacin/ doxycycline (LEVO/DOX) combination to the brain by intranasal route to achieve a significant local concentration in the brain and a direct nose-to-brain pathway. Solid lipid nanoparticles (SLN) were selected as a drug carrier and employed Box-Behnken design for optimizing LEVO/DOX-SLN to achieve minimum particle size and maximum apparent entrapment efficiency (EE). SLNs were prepared by hot emulsification and characterized. In vitro release of optimized formulations showed prolonged drug release from the optimized formulation. The results of pharmacokinetic study of the optimized SLN-HPMC gel in plasma and brain revealed significant increase in the brain peak concentration (420, 315â¯ng/g), the AUC 0-360 min (57130 and 48693.13â¯ng. min/g) in comparison to intranasal LEVO/DOX free solution with the values of (160, 120) ng/g, (36850, 27637.5 ngâ min/g) for LEVO and DOX, respectively. The optimized LD-SLN-HPMC gel gave a drug-targeting efficiency (DTE %) of 149.815 and 161.969 for LEVO and DOX, respectively, in comparison to the intravenous route. Moreover, the optimized formulation had a direct transport percentage (DTP %) of 33.285 and 40.236 for LEVO and DOX, respectively, which indicates a significant contribution of direct nose-to-brain pathway in brain drug delivery.


title: Analysis of clinical characteristics and laboratory findings of 95 cases of 2019 novel coronavirus pneumonia in Wuhan, China: a retrospective analysis

text: BACKGROUND: Since December 2019, 2019 novel coronavirus pneumonia emerged in Wuhan city and rapidly spread throughout China and even the world. We sought to analyse the clinical characteristics and laboratory findings of some cases with 2019 novel coronavirus pneumonia . METHODS: In this retrospective study, we extracted the data on 95 patients with laboratory-confirmed 2019 novel coronavirus pneumonia in Wuhan Xinzhou District People's Hospital from January 16th to February 25th, 2020. Cases were confirmed by real-time RT-PCR and abnormal radiologic findings. Outcomes were followed up until March 2th, 2020. RESULTS: Higher temperature, blood leukocyte count, neutrophil count, neutrophil percentage, C-reactive protein level, D-dimer level, alanine aminotransferase activity, aspartate aminotransferase activity, α - hydroxybutyrate dehydrogenase activity, lactate dehydrogenase activity and creatine kinase activity were related to severe 2019 novel coronavirus pneumonia and composite endpoint, and so were lower lymphocyte count, lymphocyte percentage and total protein level. Age below 40 or above 60 years old, male, higher Creatinine level, and lower platelet count also seemed related to severe 2019 novel coronavirus pneumonia and composite endpoint, however the P values were greater than 0.05, which mean under the same condition studies of larger samples are needed in the future. CONCLUSION: Multiple factors were related to severe 2019 novel coronavirus pneumonia and composite endpoint, and more related studies are needed in the future.


title: Covid-19: 10 lessons from young farm vets

text: The Covid-19 pandemic has been a challenging time for farm vets and their practices across the world, but how has the pandemic been seen by younger vets? Annie Kerr discusses.


Covid-19: PHE review has failed ethnic minorities, leaders tell BMJ


title: Spiralian Genomes Reveal Gene Family Expansions Associated with Adaptation to Freshwater

text: The colonization of freshwater habitats by marine-adapted organisms represents a major transition that has only occurred a few times in the evolution of animals. Only around half of the extant animal phyla have representatives in both marine and freshwater environments and even within those phyla some major clades are restricted to marine environments. Moving from marine to freshwater environments can create severe osmotic and ionic stresses and the mechanisms that animals have used to adapt to those stresses are still not well understood. In this study, we downloaded amino acid sequence data from 11 spiralian animal genomes (four freshwater taxa representing four different phyla as well as 7 marine taxa) and identified a number of gene family expansions that have occurred exclusively in the freshwater lineages. Further investigation of these gene families and the timing and nature of their expansions will illuminate one of the major evolutionary transitions in the history of life on Earth.


Celebrating the struggle against homophobia, transphobia and biphobia as central to ending HIV transmission by 2030


title: Is DPP4 inhibition a comrade or adversary in COVID-19 infection

text: Hypertension and Diabetes are the most common comorbid conditions in patients with COVID-19 and has been shown to adversely impact prognosis globally. It has been shown that hyperglycemia is one of the factors that increases the risk of poor outcomes in these patients. These patients are usually on multiple medications and recently a series of discussion on how Dipeptidyl peptidase 4 inhibitors (DPP4i) may be beneficial in these patients has been presented. This commentary presents a nuanced debateon why the DPP4i may not bebeneficial in COVID-19 and that caution needs to be addressed in making any judgementsuntil real world data is available.


[Clinical features of respiratory coronavirus infections and relationship to otolaryngology]


The case for continuing elective cataract surgery during the COVID-19 pandemic


title: Preventive measures against COVID-19 for the residents of the Seijo School evacuation center in Shinjuku-ku, International City

text: At the Seijyo School Evacuation Center, regardless of whether the government's registration system for those who need assistance in times of disaster is used or not, we are working to identify residents and problems that may actually need assistance in times of disaster, and to create evacuation centers that focus on the physically and socially vulnerable As part of our efforts to deal with COVID-19, we made an announcement at the end of January, more than two weeks earlier than the ward's publicity, to alert the community, elderly care facilities, and schools In addition, as an emergency response to the growing damage in Japan, the company has been distributing its own stockpile of masks to high-risk populations, such as patients with chronic diseases and the elderly, since March 3 Translated with www DeepL com/Translator (free version)


TeleHealth utilization in Gastroenterology (GI) clinics amid Coronavirus-19 (COVID-19) pandemic: Impact on clinical practice & GI training


COVID-19 serologic testing: FAQs and caveats


The Impact of COVID-19 in Psychiatry


Our Lane in the COVID-19 Pandemic


title: Crowdsourcing a crisis response for COVID-19 in oncology

text: Crowdsourcing efforts are currently underway to collect and analyze data from patients with cancer who are affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. These community-led initiatives will fill key knowledge gaps to tackle crucial clinical questions on the complexities of infection with the causative coronavirus SARS-Cov-2 in the large, heterogeneous group of vulnerable patients with cancer.


The continuum of SARS-CoV-2's neurotropism and the potential for immune-mediated neuronal injury


title: Global Sentiments Surrounding the COVID-19 Pandemic on Twitter: Analysis of Twitter Trends

text: BACKGROUND: With the World Health Organization's pandemic declaration and government-initiated actions against coronavirus disease (COVID-19), sentiments surrounding COVID-19 have evolved rapidly. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to examine worldwide trends of four emotions-fear, anger, sadness, and joy-and the narratives underlying those emotions during the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: Over 20 million social media twitter posts made during the early phases of the COVID-19 outbreak from January 28 to April 9, 2020, were collected using "wuhan," "corona," "nCov," and "covid" as search keywords. RESULTS: Public emotions shifted strongly from fear to anger over the course of the pandemic, while sadness and joy also surfaced. Findings from word clouds suggest that fears around shortages of COVID-19 tests and medical supplies became increasingly widespread discussion points. Anger shifted from xenophobia at the beginning of the pandemic to discourse around the stay-at-home notices. Sadness was highlighted by the topics of losing friends and family members, while topics related to joy included words of gratitude and good health. CONCLUSIONS: Overall, global COVID-19 sentiments have shown rapid evolutions within just the span of a few weeks. Findings suggest that emotion-driven collective issues around shared public distress experiences of the COVID-19 pandemic are developing and include large-scale social isolation and the loss of human lives. The steady rise of societal concerns indicated by negative emotions needs to be monitored and controlled by complementing regular crisis communication with strategic public health communication that aims to balance public psychological wellbeing.


title: TeleVital: Enhancing the quality of contactless health assessment

text: In the midst of rising positive cases of COVID-19, the hospitals face a newfound difficulty to prioritize on their patients and accommodate them. Moreover, crowding of patients at hospitals pose a threat to the healthcare workers and other patients at the hospital. With that in mind, a non-contact method of measuring the necessary vitals such as heart rate, respiratory rate and SPO$_2$ will prove highly beneficial for the hospitals to tackle this issue. This paper discusses our approach in achieving the non-contact measurement of vitals with the sole help of a webcam and further our design of an e-hospital platform for doctors and patients to attend appointments virtually. The platform also provides the doctor with an option to provide with voice-based prescriptions or digital prescriptions, to simplify the daily, exhausting routine of a doctor.


In reply: Spinal anesthesia for Cesarean delivery in women with COVID-19 infection: questions regarding the cause of hypotension


Laser-assisted head and neck surgery in the COVID-19 pandemic: Controversial evidence and precautions


title: Developing a risk assessment score for patients with cancer during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic

text: The novel coronavirus (CoV) pandemic is a serious threat for patients with cancer, who have an immunocompromised status and are considered at high risk of infections. Data on the novel CoV respiratory disease (coronavirus disease 2019 [COVID-19]) in patients with cancer are still limited. Unlike other common viruses, CoVs have not been shown to cause a more severe disease in immunocompromised subjects. Along with direct viral pathogenicity, in some individuals, CoV infection triggers an uncontrolled aberrant inflammatory response, leading to lung tissue damage. In patients with cancer treated with immunotherapy (e.g. immune checkpoint inhibitors), COVID-19 may therefore represent a serious threat. After a thorough review of the literature on CoV pathogenesis and cancer, we selected several shared features to define which patients can be considered at higher risk of COVID-19. We combined these clinical and laboratory variables, with the aim of developing a score to weight the risk of COVID-19 in patients with cancer.


title: Global Analysis of Multi-Host and Multi-Vector Epidemic Models

text: We formulate a multi-group and multi-vector epidemic model in which hosts' dynamics is captured by staged-progression $SEIR$ framework and the dynamics of vectors is captured by an $SI$ framework. The proposed model describes the evolution of a class of zoonotic infections where the pathogen is shared by $m$ host species and transmitted by $p$ arthropod vector species. In each host, the infectious period is structured into $n$ stages with a corresponding infectiousness parameter to each vector species. We determine the basic reproduction number $\mathcal{R}_0^2(m,n,p)$ and investigate the dynamics of the systems when this threshold is less or greater than one. We show that the dynamics of the multi-host, multi-stage, and multi-vector system is completely determined by the basic reproduction number and the structure of the host-vector network configuration. Particularly, we prove that the disease-free \mbox{equilibrium} is globally asymptotically stable (GAS) whenever $\mathcal{R}_0^2(m,n,p)<1$, and a unique strongly endemic equilibrium exists and is GAS if $\mathcal{R}_0^2(m,n,p)>1$ and the host-vector configuration is irreducible. That is, either the disease dies out or persists in all hosts and all vector species.


Association between ABO blood groups and risk of SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia


title: Exploring the nuances of R0: Eight estimates and application to 2009 pandemic influenza

text: For nearly a century, the initial reproduction number (R0) has been used as a one number summary to compare outbreaks of infectious disease, yet there is no `standard' estimator for R0. Difficulties in estimating R0 arise both from how a disease transmits through a population as well as from differences in statistical estimation method. We describe eight methods used to estimate R0 and provide a thorough simulation study of how these estimates change in the presence of different disease parameters. As motivation, we analyze the 2009 outbreak of the H1N1 pandemic influenza in the USA and compare the results from our eight methods to a previous study. We discuss the most important aspects from our results which effect the estimation of R0, which include the population size, time period used, and the initial percent of infectious individuals. Additionally, we discuss how pre-processing incidence counts may effect estimates of R0. Finally, we provide guidelines for estimating point estimates and confidence intervals to create reliable, comparable estimates of R0.


Editorial: Frailty and Seasonality


title: COVID-19: Catastrophic Cause of Acute Lung Injury

text: The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) outbreak that began in 2019 and spread rapidly across the globe has been observed to cause acute lung injury and multiorgan system failure While common symptoms are flu-like, this population has been observed to decompensate at an alarmingly rapid rate to severe hypoxia SARS-CoV-2 infects host cells by targeting the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor, which is present on endothelial cells in the lung, heart, kidney, and gastrointestinal tissue The pathophysiology of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) in SARS-CoV-2 infection has a component of lung perfusion dysregulation and is described as a "cytokine storm" that causes increased vascular permeability and disease severity Older adults and those with comorbid conditions, particularly hypertension, diabetes, and history of ischemic heart disease, are especially vulnerable These high-risk populations are often on angiotensin-modulating therapies, which are theorized to increase ACE2 expressivity, but current evidence for or against discontinuation is equivocal The standard for SARS-CoV-2 testing is through reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction, which has presented problems due to low sensitivity and possible co-infection with other pathogens Treatment for ARDS in the setting of SARS-CoV-2 should follow pre-established goals of care and the wishes of the patient and family members or caregivers and consider the high risk for polypharmacy, cognitive decline, malnutrition, and depression, particularly in older adults Treatment recommendations have outlined ventilation goals to minimize further lung injury Compassionate use of pharmacologic therapies such as remdesivir has shown promise, and further clinical trials of anticytokine agents are underway


Survivors' burden


England's new covid-19 monitoring outfit: the Joint Biosecurity Centre


title: Perinatal novel coronavirus infection: a case report

text: We hereby reported the diagnosis, treatment process and perinatal outcome of a patient with novel coronavirus infection in perinatal period The pregnant woman delivered a boy by cesarean section at 37 +2 gestational weeks due to severe liver dysfunction She subsequently had a high fever 2 days later, and novel coronavirus infection was confirmed by nucleic acid test in a throat swab After a 12-day isolation and support treatment, her two consecutive throat swab results for novel coronavirus turned negative and she was discharged The novel coronavirus was tested in the patient's blood, urine, breast milk as well as the neonatal throat swab, and the results were all negative The neonate had an elevated myocardial enzyme, but was otherwise well and was discharged after 14-day isolation with normal myocardial enzyme


title: Primary care management of the coronavirus (COVID-19)

text: South Africa is in the grip of a novel coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19). Primary care providers are in the frontline. COVID-19 is spread primarily by respiratory droplets contaminating surfaces and hands that then transmit the virus to another person's respiratory system. The incubation period is 2-9 days and the majority of cases are mild. The most common symptoms are fever, cough and shortness of breath. Older people and those with cardiopulmonary co-morbidities or immunological deficiency will be more at risk of severe disease. If people meet the case definition, the primary care provider should immediately adopt infection prevention and control measures. Diagnosis is made by a RT-PCR test using respiratory secretions, usually nasopharyngeal and oropharyngeal swabs. Mild cases can be managed at home with self-isolation, symptomatic treatment and follow-up if the disease worsens. Contact tracing is very important. Observed case fatality is between 0.5% and 4%, but may be overestimated as mild cases are not always counted. Primary care providers must give clear, accurate and consistent messages on infection prevention and control in communities and homes.


title: Will there be a silver lining in the end? Lessons from and reflections on the COVID-19 pandemic in Hong Kong and beyond

text: This article provides an analysis of the psychological and moral transformations as people confront the risk of infection, using Hong Kong as a case example. In the face of an unfamiliar threat, the need for uncertainty reduction gives rise to hasty, uncritical, and oversimplified assumptions about risk reduction, while prejudice against people and nations who do not share similar practices, as well as those symptomatic or at risk of catching the virus, ensue. The pandemic is eroding basic human decency and our compassion for one another while the human race battles a common threat to our destiny. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).


title: The Potency of an Anti-MERS Coronavirus Subunit Vaccine Depends on a Unique Combinatorial Adjuvant Formulation

text: Vaccination is one of the most successful strategies to prevent human infectious diseases. Combinatorial adjuvants have gained increasing interest as they can stimulate multiple immune pathways and enhance the vaccine efficacy of subunit vaccines. We investigated the adjuvanticity of Aluminum (alum) in combination with rASP-1, a protein adjuvant, using the Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus MERS-CoV receptor-binding-domain (RBD) vaccine antigen. A highly enhanced anti-MERS-CoV neutralizing antibody response was induced when mice were immunized with rASP-1 and the alum-adjuvanted RBD vaccine in two separate injection sites as compared to mice immunized with RBD + rASP-1 + alum formulated into a single inoculum. The antibodies produced also significantly inhibited the binding of RBD to its cell-associated receptor. Moreover, immunization with rASP-1 co-administered with the alum-adjuvanted RBD vaccine in separate sites resulted in an enhanced frequency of TfH and GC B cells within the draining lymph nodes, both of which were positively associated with the titers of the neutralizing antibody response related to anti-MERS-CoV protective immunity. Our findings not only indicate that this unique combinatorial adjuvanted RBD vaccine regimen improved the immunogenicity of RBD, but also point to the importance of utilizing combinatorial adjuvants for the induction of synergistic protective immune responses.


Known SARS-CoV-2 infections: The tip of an important iceberg


title: Estimation of the Excess COVID-19 Cases in Seoul, South Korea by the Students Arriving from China

text: Background: In March 2020, overall, 37,000 international students from China, a country at risk of the 2019-novel coronavirus (COVID-19) infection has arrived in Seoul, South Korea. Individuals from the country at risk of COVID-19 infection have been included in the Korean home-quarantine program, but the efficacy of the program is uncertain. Methods: To estimate the possible number of infected individuals within the large influx of international students from China, we used a deterministic compartmental model for epidemic and performed a simulation-based search of different rates of compliance with home-quarantine. Results: Under the home-quarantine program, the number of the infected individuals would reach 40-72 from 12 March-24 March with the arrival of 0.2% of pre-infectious individuals. Furthermore, the number of isolated individuals would peak at 40-64 from 13 March-27 March in Seoul, South Korea. Our findings indicated when incoming international students showed strict compliance with quarantine, epidemics by the international student from China were less likely to occur in Seoul, South Korea. Conclusions: To mitigate possible epidemics, additional efforts to improve the compliance of home-quarantine of the individuals from countries with the virus risk are warranted along with other containment policies.


title: Six feet apart or six feet under: The impact of COVID-19 on the Black community

text: To date, 110,000+ people in the United States have died from the COVID-19 pandemic. In this paper, the authors will discuss COVID-19 relative to Black people and their overrepresentation among those who are infected and died from the disease. Their dying, death, and grief experiences are explored through a cultural and spiritual lens. The physical distancing, social isolation, misinformation, and restrictive burials and cremations now elicited by this unprecedented pandemic have had diminished familial, cultural, emotional, and economic impacts on the Black community. Implications for public health and Black peoples' involvement in the political process are also addressed.


Cardiac troponins predict mortality in patients with COVID-19: A meta-analysis of adjusted risk estimates


Virtual Conferences of dermatology during the COVID-19 Pandemic


After the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Next Wave of Health Challenges for Older Adults


title: EmotionGIF-Yankee: A Sentiment Classifier with Robust Model Based Ensemble Methods

text: This paper provides a method to classify sentiment with robust model based ensemble methods. We preprocess tweet data to enhance coverage of tokenizer. To reduce domain bias, we first train tweet dataset for pre-trained language model. Besides, each classifier has its strengths and weakness, we leverage different types of models with ensemble methods: average and power weighted sum. From the experiments, we show that our approach has achieved positive effect for sentiment classification. Our system reached third place among 26 teams from the evaluation in SocialNLP 2020 EmotionGIF competition.


Hyperreninemia and low total body water may contribute to acute kidney injury in corona virus disease 2019 patients in intensive care


title: Environmental Detection of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) from Medical Equipment in Long-Term Care Facilities undergoing COVID-19 Outbreaks

text: We conducted environmental sampling at long-term care facilities to determine the extent of surface contamination with SARS-CoV-2 virus. Medical equipment used throughout the facility was determined to be contaminated.


Protect Pregnant and Lactating Women with COVID-19 Through Research, Not from Research


title: The role of cardiovascular imaging for myocardial injury in hospitalized COVID-19 patients

text: Recent EACVI recommendations described the importance of limiting cardiovascular imaging during the COVID-19 pandemic in order to reduce virus transmission, protect healthcare professionals from contamination, and reduce consumption of personal protective equipment. However, an elevated troponin remains a frequent request for cardiac imaging in COVID-19 patients, partly because it signifies cardiac injury due to a variety of causes and partly because it is known to convey a worse prognosis. The present paper aims to provide guidance to clinicians regarding the appropriateness of cardiac imaging in the context of troponin elevation and myocardial injury, how best to decipher the mechanism of myocardial injury, and how to guide patient management.


title: US Physicians Trained in Cuba Battle COVID-19 at Home:A Personal Account from the New York City Epicenter

text: Speaking remotely with US graduates of Havana's Latin American School of Medicine (ELAM), I found them at work on hospital floors, in ICUs and health centers across the United States, putting their professional and personal commitment to the test against COVID-19. Nowhere was that more evident than in New York City, the disease's epicenter, where one grad told me virtually every hospital has at least one MD from the Cuban school, which has provided free 6-year medical training for some 30,000 doctors since the school's founding in 1999. The student body comes primarily from low- and middle-income countries worldwide, but Cuba also provided 200 US students with scholarships. One of them is Dr Joaquín Morante (ELAM Class of 2012), who did his medical residency in internal medicine, followed by fellowships in pulmonary disease and critical care medicine. Triple-licensed in internal medicine, pulmonary and critical care medicine, he is now an attending physician on staff at Jacobi Medical Center in The Bronx, one of New York City's public hospitals, and considered a 'hot spot' due to its COVID-19 caseload. I spoke with him during a break at home in mid-April.Dr Joaquín Morante, ELAM Class of 2012: Pulmonologist, critical care attending physician at Jacobi Medical Center, New York City.


title: Preparing for emerging respiratory pathogens such as SARS-CoV, MERS-CoV, and SARS-CoV-2

text: Preparing for emerging respiratory pathogens is a fundamental requirement for enhancements of the safeguard in healthcare settings We are facing an increasing pressure to be prepared more than before Healthcare organizations should be ready to deal with such emerging infectious disease Here, we share some points that are essential to be considered while we prepare our institutions to prevent the transmission of emerging respiratory pathogens such as MERS-CoV and the recently emerging pandemic of SARS-CoV-2, the causative agent of COVID-19


title: Lithium and coronaviral infections. A scoping review

text: The current rapid spread of the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) originating from Wuhan, China, calls for a rapid response from the research community. Lithium is widely used to treat bipolar disorder, but has been shown to exhibit antiviral activity. This brief review took a systematic approach to identify five in vitro studies reporting on the influence of lithium on coronaviral infections. We propose that in the case of urgent need, lithium be explored as a potential treatment or prophylaxis for the novel Wuhan coronavirus (2019-nCoV).


Repurposing the mucolytic cough suppressant and TMPRSS2 protease inhibitor bromhexine for the prevention and management of SARS-CoV-2 infection


title: Flexibility Is Key in Organizing a Global Professional Conference Online: The ICPE 2020 Experience in the COVID-19 Era

text: Organizing professional conferences online has never been more timely. Responding to the new challenges raised by COVID-19, the organizers of the ACM/SPEC International Conference on Performance Engineering 2020 had to address the question: How should we organize these conferences online? This article summarizes their successful answer.


COVID-19 pneumonia: different respiratory treatments for different phenotypes?


title: The Nonoperative Instability Severity Index Score (NISIS): A Simple Tool to Guide Operative Versus Nonoperative Treatment of the Unstable Shoulder

text: BACKGROUND: The management of the adolescent athlete after initial shoulder instability remains controversial. HYPOTHESIS: Individual risk factors in athletes with shoulder instability who are managed nonoperatively can be integrated into a scoring system that can predict successful return to sport. STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level 4. METHODS: A total of 57 scholastic athletes with primary anterior shoulder instability who were managed nonoperatively were reviewed. Success was defined as a return to index sport at the same level and playing at least 1 subsequent season without missed time as a result of the shoulder. Patient-specific risk factors were individually evaluated, and odds ratios were calculated. A 10-point Nonoperative Injury Severity Index Score (NISIS) incorporated the risk factors for failure. This score was then retrospectively applied with regression analysis and a chi-square analysis to determine the overall optimal score that predicted failure of nonoperative management. RESULTS: In total, 6 risk factors for failure were included in the NISIS: age (>15 years), bone loss, type of instability, type of sport (contact vs noncontact), male sex, and arm dominance. Overall, 79% of patients treated nonoperatively were able to successfully return to sport. Nearly all (97%) low-risk patients (NISIS <7) successfully returned to sport, while only 59% of high-risk patients returned to sport, a relative risk of 12.2 (P = 0.001). High-risk patients with unipolar bone loss successfully returned (100%), but 67% of high-risk patients with bipolar bone loss failed. CONCLUSION: The NISIS is a simple and effective clinical tool to determine successful nonoperative management following anterior shoulder instability and may be helpful in guiding decision making when presented with the unstable shoulder in the scholastic athlete.