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Introduction: Uncertain situation of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has led to fear, stigma, and discrimination across all strata of society in varying proportions. Stigmatization increases the suffering of people or those who are at risk of getting the disease and make it harder for public health authorities to control the disease. Material and Methods: The present study is a questionnaire-based cross-sectional survey conducted over a period of four weeks in the month of July 2021 in a food industry in rural region of western Maharashtra among COVID-19 positive patients. A total of 152 participants were included in the study. The data was analyzed using SPSS software (version 20). Descriptive statistics were used which included frequencies and percentages. Results: 64.5% of the participants were males and 35.5% were females. Approx. 85% of the participants were in age group 15-58 years. 100% of them reported to have faced fear on being tested COVID-19 positive. However, only approx. 2-5% individuals hid their illness from family and friends and 7.9% of them were afraid of getting hospitalized. Conclusion: It was found that fear was prevalent among all survivors but stigma was found to be minimal which is likely due to widespread awareness through media, IEC campaigns, and active involvement of administration in implementing policies.
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Background: The change in serological status of community may be used as input for guiding the public health policy. Hence, the present study was conducted to determine change in seroprevalence of COVID-19 among healthcare workers (HCWs). Methods: From the baseline multicentric study sample, a subsample was followed up, and a seroepidemiological study was conducted among them between 6 and 22 weeks after the second dose of the vaccination. Multistage population proportion to size sampling was performed for the selection of subsample of HCWs. The serosurvey was conducted using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay-based IgG antibody test (COVID KAVACH). Results: Follow-up serological testing was done in subsample of 1122 participants of original 3253 participants. The mean age of the participants was 34.6 (8.13) years. A total of 300 (26.7%) participants were females. The seroprevalence was 78.52, (95%CI:76-80.1). Among those who were seronegative at initial test, 708 (77.04%) were seroconverted. Those who were not seroconverted (241 (21.5%)) have longer duration from the second dose of the vaccination (93 (31.4) vs. 56 (38.4); p value < 0.001). The COVID-19 infection was significantly associated with seropositive status and being a medical staff was associated with remaining seronegative on follow-up. The higher age (≥50 years) was found to be significantly associated with seroreversion. Conclusion: Four in five HCWs had detectable antibodies. Seroepidemiological studies carry vital information to control the public health response in the course of the pandemic. The study can also further help as a platform to study the seroconversion and effect of vaccination among HCWs for newer variants of SARS-CoV-2.
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Background: Despite having an effective COVID-19 vaccine, the COVID-19 pandemic is far from over and the delta variant continues to cause havoc across several continents. The present study was conducted to analyze and describe the occurrence of COVID-19 cases among completely vaccinated individuals. Methods: In an educational institute in Western Maharashtra, we analyzed a cluster of RTPCR positive COVID-19 cases among fully vaccinated students which occurred in 12 days. The cases were linked to a series of curricular and co-curricular events in the institute. A detailed epidemiological investigation and genome sequencing of cases were conducted. IgG antibodies against S1 protein of novel SARS-CoV-2 were estimated for cases and age, sex, and vaccination status matched controls. Results: All 37 identified cases were mild COVID. 188 high risk (HR) contacts of the cases were identified. The overall secondary attack was 9.5%. Out of 31 cases and 50 controls, 09 (29%) cases and 08 (16%) controls were found to have IgG antibodies against S1 protein of novel SARS-CoV-2 titer of more than 60 U/ml. Whole-genome sequencing of 15 samples of the cluster showed the presence of the Delta variant of SARS-CoV-2. No correlation was observed between Ct value and IgG S1 antibody titers. Conclusion: The study provides significant evidence that only vaccination alone does not completely protect against SARS-CoV-2 B.1.617.2 (Delta) variant infection. An all-encompassing multicomponent strategy involving implementation of NPIs, robust contact tracing, early identification and isolation of cases, and high vaccination coverage is the way forward for the prevention of COVID-19.
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INTRODUCTION: Obesity may contribute to the initiation, progression, transmission, and deterioration of COVID-19. However, there was lack of such studies carried out by Indian workers. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Data of cumulative cases of COVID-19 of various countries as on the day the peak incidence were reported in each country during the first and second waves of the pandemic was obtained from the internet. Data on prevalence of overweight were obtained by doing a thorough search of existing literature. The data so collected were tabulated and analyzed using SPSS version 20 to establish a correlation coefficient between overweight and COVID-19. Data pertaining to overweight status and age profile and COVID-19 status as on 28 Feb 2021 was collated as part of routine surveillance from the Health Department in an urban area. The total population for which the above data was obtained was 1107. The data so collected were subject to statistical analysis using SPSS version 20, to find out the odds ratio of overweight as a risk factor for COVID-19 after adjusting for age. RESULTS: Correlation coefficient between overweight and COVID-19 for data pertaining to the first wave and the second wave 0.95 and 0.94, respectively. Odds ratio of overweight as a risk factor for COVID-19 after adjusting for age works out to 2.95 (95% confidence interval 2.30- 3.78). Mean age of the study subjects was 32.61 years (median 32 years, minimum 19 years, maximum 54 years, standard deviation 6.62). LIMITATIONS: The limitation of the present study is that the workers could only obtain retrospective data, carry out a case-control study and calculate odd ratio for overweight as a risk factor for COVID-19.
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BACKGROUND: The immune response after SARS-CoV-2 is complex and may be affected by severity of the disease, race, etc. The present study was conducted to assess the serial antibody response among the COVID-19 patients admitted in the hospital. METHODS: The study was conducted between July and October 2020 in a dedicated COVID-19 hospital. All consented patients underwent serial testing of antibodies using a rapid chromatographic immunoassay-based qualitative IgG/IgM kit every third day until their discharge or death. The data about age, sex, severity of disease, length of stay, onset of symptoms, date of molecular testing were also collected. Appropriate statistical tests were used. RESULTS: The mean age of 1000 COVID-19 patients was 47.5 ± 17.9 years. Out of the total, 687 (68.7%) were males. With respect to severity, 682 (68.2%) were asymptomatic/mild, 200 (20%) were moderate and 118 (11.8%) were severe cases. The seroconversion percentage increased from 12.8% to 97.9% and 16.3% to 80.9% for IgG and IgM respectively in 21 days. The median time for seroconversion was 10 days (IQR:6-12 days) for IgG and eight days (IQR: 6-11 days) for IgM. At the time of discharge (median nine days), detectable IgG and IgM antibodies were present in 502 (52.46%) and 414 (43.26%) participants respectively. Seroconversion was associated with days after the symptoms, increasing severity of the disease and the presence of co-morbidity. CONCLUSION: Seroconversion increased during the period of observation. The severe/moderate cases of COVID-19 tend to have an early seroconversion as compared to the asymptomatic/mild cases. Only half of the patients were seroconverted at discharge.
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BACKGROUND: The first dose of the ChAdOx1 nCoV- 19 Corona Virus Vaccine (Covishield) was administered to the eligible beneficiaries of tertiary care institute of Western Maharashtra on 16 Jan 21 and in the past three months almost 97% of the staff has been vaccinated. The present study analyses the incidence of COVID cases in the unvaccinated and vaccinated population of the institute. METHODS: All Covid 19 infections (RT-PCR positive) from 01 February 21 to 25 April 21 were included in the study and analyzed as per their vaccination status. To assess the COVID 19 transmission in contacts, Secondary Attack Rates (SAR) of the pre-vaccination period (Jun-Oct 20) was compared with the present SAR. RESULTS: A total of 113 cases occurred in the study period (01 Feb to 25 Apr 21). Lower number of infections were observed among the fully vaccinated as compared to partially vaccinated and non-vaccinated. The overall vaccine effectiveness was found to be 88.6% (81.55-92.37) and 44.1% (4.55-67.3) in completely and partially vaccinated individuals respectively. Hazard Ratios for getting infected dropped significantly after 28 days of the second dose. The SAR in high risk contacts (HRCs) was found to be 4.25%, which was lower than SAR (20.6%) of pre-vaccination period. CONCLUSION: This is one of the earliest studies in India to report the impact of COVID-19 vaccination. The results indicate that the vaccine provides effective protection against COVID-19 infection. However, given the complex dynamics of vaccination, the role of NPIs and implementation of COVID appropriate behavior cannot be undermined.
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BACKGROUND: After nine months of responding to the coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) pandemic, the scientific fraternity is yet to unravel the mystery of those who are at most risk from mortality. Despite resistance to wear masks, the global public health response has beaten the grimmer projections of millions of deaths. The present study seeks to analyze the survival of COVID-19 patients at a tertiary care hospital and identify the risk factors of mortality. METHODS: Medical records of 1233 RT PCR confirmed COVID-19 patients admitted in a tertiary care hospital between 01 April and 30 September 2020 were retrospectively analyzed for calculating overall survival and to investigate the independent predictors of survival of COVID-19 patients. RESULTS: There were 72 (5.8%) deaths; which occurred in 24.9% of the elderly (age > 60yrs) people (P < 0.001), 76.0% in people with multiple comorbidities (having more than one comorbidity) (P < 0.001), 75.6% in people with diabetes (P < 0.001), and 75.5% in people with hypertension (P < 0.001). A significantly higher risk of mortality was observed in elderly patients, patients with comorbidities, and patients requiring oxygen while admitted in the hospital. CONCLUSION: Survival reflects the cure rates and is used by health professionals and policymakers to plan and implement disease control measures. The insights provided by the study would help facilitate the identification of patients at risk and timely provision of specialized care for the prevention of adverse outcomes in the hospital setting.