Validation of the North America expert consensus statement on reporting CT findings for COVID-19 in individuals with lung cancer.

The aim of our study was to validate the use of the standardized Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) reporting system in individuals with known lung cancer who presented to the emergency department with suspected COVID-19. We included patients aged 18 years or older from the Cancer Institute of the State of São Paulo (ICESP) with a confirmed diagnosis of lung cancer, admitted to the emergency department and undergoing chest computed tomography (CT) for suspicion of COVID-19. Comparison between SARS-CoV2 RT-PCR across RSNA categories was performed in all patients and further stratified by diagnosis of lung cancer progression. Among 58 individuals included in the analysis (65±9 years, 43% men), 20 had positive RT-PCR. Less than a half (43%) had no new lung findings in the CT. Positive RT-PCR was present in 75% of those with typical findings according to RSNA and in only 9% when these findings were classified as atypical or negative (P<0.001). Diagnostic accuracy was even higher when stratified by the presence or absence of progressive disease (PD). Extent of pulmonary inflammatory changes was strongly associated with higher mortality, reaching a lethality of 83% in patients with >25% of lung involvement and 100% when there was >50% of lung involvement. The lung involvement score was also highly predictive of prognosis in this population as was reported for non-lung cancer individuals. Collectively, our results demonstrated that diagnostic and prognostic values of chest CT findings in COVID-19 are robust to the presence of lung abnormalities related to lung cancer.

3D printed devices to avoid hand contact with commonly shared surfaces

In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, public spaces had to be quickly adapted to the new circumstances especially under the uncertainty of the pandemic development. Door handles are some of the most touched surfaces and so, this point of contagion was chosen to be tackled and two solutions were developed that would prevent direct touch with the handle: a portable and a fixed device. The portable device (HYHOOK + HYTIP) is a hook-like device holding a finger cover, which permits to open doors and push buttons safely. The fixed device (HANDGENIC) is meant to be assembled in door handles to equip buildings, such as universities or schools. With the fixed device, the user can open the door using their forearm which makes them less likely to transfer any particles to eyes, nose or mouth. The 3D printing Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF) process was selected as manufacturing technique, which allows the fast production of prototypes. This work portrays the development process and design iterations taking into consideration the concerns about the functioning of the devices and possible failures or alternative uses. To assure structural integrity of the parts, finite element (FE) analysis was used to verify its mechanical response. As conclusion, it was found that FE analysis indicate that the devices are structurally sound to be used in public spaces and that 3D printing is a useful way to rapidly develop devices while testing several design possibilities.