Prevention of Scarring of Lung Parenchyma in COVID-19 Patients through Glucocorticoid Treatment.

Objective: The objective of this research was to determine the impact of glucocorticoid treatment on preventing scarring of lung parenchyma in COVID-19 patients by considering their health behavior. Methods: A sample of 65 Turkish patients who had pneumonia and were hospitalized between March/December 2020 were included in this research. The data for this research was collected after the consent of the hospital. The structural equation model approach was used in data analysis and empirical findings. Results: The research identified that the patients with appropriate health behavior were satisfied with their clinical treatment of scarring of lung parenchyma by the method of glucocorticoid treatment. The research also identified that the patient's health behavior was a significant indicator to improve their perception of the clinical treatment. Conclusion: This study has reliable theoretical implications that are significantly important in the literature because of the nature and uniqueness of the findings. However, this research also has some practical implications related to the patient's lungs mostly infected by COVID-19. Furthermore, the findings of this research can be generalized in a significant way because the respondents of this research belonged to a diverse population.

Comparison of the Effects of Nasopharyngeal Swab Methods on Anxiety Score During COVID-19 PCR Test

Objective: Coronavirus disease-19 pandemic affected the whole world in 2020 and so far caused nearly 2 million deaths. The most commonly used method in the diagnosis of coronavirus disease-19 is to take swabs from specific areas in the upper respiratory tract, especially the nasopharynx. In this article, it was aimed to compare the effects of transoral/transnasal nasopharyngeal swab methods on anxiety score before and after the procedure. Method(s): This study was designed as a prospective randomized clinical trial. Hundred and four volunteers between the ages of 18-65 were included in the study, and volunteers were divided into 2 groups. Transoral method was applied to group-1 and transnasal method was applied to group-2. Visual Analog Scale scoring was performed to measure the anxiety/pain/general discomfort levels of the participants before and after the procedure. Result(s): In this study, 50 volunteers from the transoral group and the rest 54 volunteers from the transnasal group, a total of 104 individuals were included. Before the procedure, no statistically significant difference in anxiety levels was observed between the groups. However, anxiety, pain, and general discomfort levels during the procedure were found to be lower in group 1. Conclusion(s): In the light of the results of our trial, we suggest that the transoral nasopharyngeal swab method can be a better alternative in selected patient groups. The prime advantage of this procedure is that it causes less pain and general discomfort. We think that many complications encountered in the transnasal method can be overcome by the transoral method. Copyright © 2022 B-ENT. All rights reserved.

No association of anti-osteoporosis drugs with COVID-19-related outcomes in women: a nationwide cohort study.

This study was performed to evaluate whether the use of drugs in the treatment of osteoporosis in women is associated with COVID-19 outcomes. The results showed that the risk of hospitalization, intensive care unit admission, and mortality was not altered in individuals taking anti-osteoporosis drugs, suggesting no safety issues during a COVID-19 infection. INTRODUCTION: Whether patients with COVID-19 receiving anti-osteoporosis drugs have lower risk of worse outcomes has not been reported yet. The aim of this study was to evaluate the association of anti-osteoporosis drug use with COVID-19 outcomes in women. METHODS: Data obtained from a nationwide, multicenter, retrospective cohort of patients diagnosed with COVID-19 from March 11th to May 30th, 2020 was retrieved from the Turkish Ministry of Health Database. Women 50 years or older with confirmed COVID-19 who were receiving anti-osteoporosis drugs were compared with a 1:1 propensity score-matched COVID-19 positive women who were not receiving these drugs. The primary outcomes were hospitalization, ICU (intensive care unit) admission, and mortality. RESULTS: A total of 1997 women on anti-osteoporosis drugs and 1997 control patients were analyzed. In the treatment group, 1787 (89.5%) women were receiving bisphosphonates, 197 (9.9%) denosumab, and 17 (0.9%) teriparatide for the last 12 months. Hospitalization and mortality rates were similar between the treatment and control groups. ICU admission rate was lower in the treatment group (23.0% vs 27.0%, p = 0.013). However, multivariate analysis showed that anti-osteoporosis drug use was not an independent associate of any outcome. Hospitalization, ICU admission, and mortality rates were similar among bisphosphonate, denosumab, or teriparatide users. CONCLUSION: Results of this nationwide study showed that preexisting use of anti-osteoporosis drugs in women did not alter the COVID-19-related risk of hospitalization, ICU admission, and mortality. These results do not suggest discontinuation of these drugs during a COVID-19 infection.