SARS-CoV-2 infection among preterm deliveries: frequency, determinants, effects. A retrospective cohort study in 2022.

OBJECTIVE: Pregnant women infected with SARS-CoV-2 are more likely to have obstetric complications, particularly preterm births, increasing the likelihood of maternal and neonatal morbidity and mortality. We tested the hypothesis by using a multivariable logistic regression analysis to take into account the effects of known confounding variables. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A retrospective cohort study targeted a random sample of 89 preterm deliveries at the Obstetrics and Gynecology Department, Zagazig University Hospital, from January 2022 to April 2022, who fulfilled the selection criteria using a pretested, well-structured questionnaire that was composed of three main parts. The collected data were coded and analyzed using appropriate statistical methods. RESULTS: This retrospective cohort study included 89 participants with a mean age of 26.6 years, 44.9% were middle-educated, 73% were not working, and the majority were not smoking or abusing substances. Regarding the frequency of COVID-19, dividing the studied participants into two groups, 22.5% had been infected, and there was no statistically significant difference between the two groups as regards the demographic characteristics, but smoking statistically increased the smoking (p-value = 0.034). Regarding the relationship between the history of COVID-19 and the past and present obstetric histories, there was no statistically significant difference between them. Even though the SARS-CoV-2 infection is significant (p-value = 0.037), pregnant women who are COVID-19 positive are more likely to have a cesarean section (16/80) than pregnant women who test positive. CONCLUSIONS: Pregnant and preterm women were more likely to get SARS-CoV-2 if they smoked, had comorbidities, or were overweight or obese. Among COVID-19 preterm pregnancies, substance misuse and comorbidity were risk factors for a poor neonatal outcome, while women who had a previous history of PPH, were smokers, or had comorbid illnesses had a significantly increased risk of having a poor maternal outcome.

Fear of covid-19, stress and coping strategies among nurses during the covid-19 pandemic's second wave: A quasi-intervention study

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic and its related consequences caused a higher risk of mental health problems for nurses. Hence, this study aims to reduce the level of fear and stress related to the COVID-19 pandemic and promote active coping among Egyptian nurses. Method(s): This quasi-intervention study was conducted on 125 nurses working at Benha's University hospitals, who were selected by a systematic random sampling technique within the time interval of March 2021 to July 2021. The study was conducted using the fear of COVID-19 scale, the stress scale of depression, anxiety and stress scales, and the Brief (COPE) inventory scale. Result(s): The mean ages of the studied nurses were 36.70 +/- 9.50. Almost half of the studied nurses were males and married. Before the intervention, 47.2% of nurses had severe stress levels while 82.4% had a high level of fear of COVID-19. Experience years, type of department, and worries about vaccine side effects were the predictors of the fear of COVID-19. A significant difference (p =.000) was found between both mean stress and fear scores pre-intervention (15.27 +/- 5.47 and 25.56 +/- 6.13) and post-intervention (4.87 +/- 2.14 and 11.92 +/- 2.43). The most prevalent coping strategies among nurses before the intervention were self-distraction (5.03 +/- 1.53), followed by behavioral disengagement and self-blaming. However, after the intervention, religion was found to be the utmost coping mechanism (6.12 +/- 1.17), followed by positive reframing and acceptance. Conclusion(s): The majority of the nurses in the study reported a significant fear of COVID-19, and around half of the nurses had severe stress as a result. After the intervention, the stress and fear scores were reduced by half or even less. Age, longer work experience, and worries about the vaccine were the predictors of fear of COVID-19. The coping strategies used after the intervention shifted toward active coping strategies.Copyright © 2023 Omar et al.

Egyptian public’s knowledge, attitudes, perceptions, and practices toward covid-19 infection and their determinants. A cross-sectional study, 2020

BACKGROUND: The outbreak of coronavirus pandemic in Wuhan, China, since December 2019 has been the major public health concern. With the absence of an effective vaccine or treatment for the disease, current control measures are directed toward preventive measures to lessen disease burden and to curb the spread of the virus. AIM: The aim of the study was to assess knowledge, attitudes, perceptions, and practices (KAPP) of adult Egyptians toward COVID-19 and to study their determinants. METHODS: A community-based cross-sectional survey of a random sample of 999 Egyptian residence aged 16 years and above, it was conducted between April and June 2020 using self-administrated online questionnaire. It consisted of 15, five, and eight questions pertaining to knowledge, attitude, and practices toward COVID-19, respectively, in addition to demographic data. Data were analyzed using SPSS Statistics 23.0 at a level of significant at p ≤ 0.05. RESULTS: Out of the 999 participants, 628 (62.8%) were aged (20-<40y), 666 (66.7%) were females 576 (57.6) from urban residence, 665 (66.7%) were married with university educated or higher 605 (60.5%), and only 105 (10.5%) had chronic diseases. The total knowledge score was significantly higher among highly educated, females, in rural areas, married, and governmental workers, while higher educational status, females, married, smokers, and being without chronic diseases and governmental workers were significantly associated with higher practice scores. CONCLUSIONS: Egyptian participates had good level of knowledge, positive attitude about COVID-19 infection and, poor practice;however, community educational campaigns are necessary to ensure to improve on practice campaigns. © 2021 Doaa I. Omar, Samar A. Amer.

Variants within over a hundred complete covid-19 genomes and the impact on health security

102 complete COVID-19 genomes have been collected from the viral genomes database to track and characterize novel variants. The data were treated bioinformatically so that 172 variants, with 127 unique and 45 polymorphic variants were found. The 127 unique variants consist of 76 missense, 39 synonymous, 6 non-coding, 5 deletions and 1 insertion. The 45 polymorphic variants consist of 25 missense, 15 synonymous, 4 non-coding and 1 in-frame-deletion. Most common variants are 28144T>C (33 missense), 8782C>T (31 synonymous), followed by missense 11083G>T (11 samples), 18060C>T (9 samples) and 26144G>T (7 samples). L3606F, S5932F and L84S are the amino acid changes in the last three common variants. Most variants were found in ORF1ab gene within the region encoded for domains (nsp4 and nsp6) and in the coding ORF8 gene. The variant 28144T>C could be among the main enhancers of viral transmission. There is a tendency for a national specificity of the most recorded variants. The virus outbreak could be between countries or dependent on the place of origin. Reasonable evidence of Chinese origin of the virus could be possible and thus more genomes should be collected and analyzed to understand the origin and the reason for its outbreak. This could support human health security by either finding out suitable vaccines or managing health precautionary measures. © 2021 Sayed A.M. Amer.