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1.
Progress in Geography ; 42(2):341-352, 2023.
Article in Chinese | Scopus | ID: covidwho-20245367

ABSTRACT

Existing studies show that the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has a significant impact on crime occurrences. However, it remains to be empirically examined whether the regular pandemic prevention and control measures in China can significantly affect the spatial patterns of crimes. To fill this gap, this study chosed the central urban area of Haining City in Zhejiang Province, which had taken the regular pandemic prevention and control measures, as the research area. Using standard deviation ellipse and kernel density estimation methods, this study examined the spatiotemporal patterns of theft crimes between February 2018 and July 2021 in the study area. The results show that: 1) While there were no significant changes in the hourly patterns of theft crimes within a day, the monthly number of thefts in the study area decreased by an average of 53% after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and fluctuated between 100 to 200 thefts per month. The regular COVID-19 pandemic prevention and control measures had a long-term and stable inhibitory effect on the number of theft crimes in Haining City. 2) The intensity and amount of hotspots for theft crimes in the study area decreased significantly during February 2020 and July 2021 when compared with the pre-pandemic period, and the spatial distribution patterns of theft crimes were relatively stable. 3) For the 12 crime hotspots identified for the pre-pandemic period, the monthly number of crimes decreased between 52% and 78% on average after the outbreak while trajectories of their quarterly temporal changes differed significantly. The average crime drop for the 12 hotspot areas were 63%, which was higher than that for the whole study area. 4) Seven crime-control measures were identified among the regular pandemic prevention and control measures based on the routine activity theory and the crime triangle theory. Functional type of place, geographic location, and pre-pandemic local governance ability all played an important role in affecting the actual crime-control effects of the seven regular COVID-19 pandemic prevention and control measures. The results of this study are important for understanding the spatial evolution of crimes under the influence of major public health emergencies and for formulating scientific strategies for crime prevention and control. © 2023, Editorial office of PROGRESS IN GEOGRAPHY. All rights reserved.

2.
Progress in Geography ; 42(2):328-340, 2023.
Article in Chinese | Scopus | ID: covidwho-20245301

ABSTRACT

In order to analyze the impact of COVID-19 prevention and control measures on the hotspots of residential burglary, the data of crimes that occurred during the First Level Response period of Major Public Health Emergencies in Beijing in 2020 and the same period in 2019 were collected, and the changes of hotspots during the two periods were compared by using kernel density estimation and predictive accuracy index. Consequently, the environmental features such as street network, point of interest (POI) diversity, crime locations, and repeat victimization in significantly varied hotspot areas were investigated. The results show that: 1) After the outbreak of the pandemic, the occurrence of residential burglary in the core urban areas of Beijing dropped significantly, and daily occurrence of crimes during the First Level Response period in 2020 decreased by 66.8% compared with the same days in 2019. 2) The eight major hotspots that existed in 2019 apparently declined during the corresponding days in 2020, five of them basically disappeared, and three hotspots weakened. 3) The declined hotspots were generally clustered around traffic hubs, areas with high diversity of POIs, clustered crimes, and repeat victimizations. 4) Home isolation and social restriction strategies implemented during the First Level Response period reduced the opportunities of offenders, and the real-name inspection adopted in public places increased the exposure risk of offenders, which are the main reasons for the hotspots decline during the pandemic. This work has some implications for crime prevention and police resources optimization during the pandemic. © 2023, Editorial office of PROGRESS IN GEOGRAPHY. All rights reserved.

3.
Proceedings of SPIE - The International Society for Optical Engineering ; 12626, 2023.
Article in English | Scopus | ID: covidwho-20245242

ABSTRACT

In 2020, the global spread of Coronavirus Disease 2019 exposed entire world to a severe health crisis. This has limited fast and accurate screening of suspected cases due to equipment shortages and and harsh testing environments. The current diagnosis of suspected cases has benefited greatly from the use of radiographic brain imaging, also including X-ray and scintigraphy, as a crucial addition to screening tests for new coronary pneumonia disease. However, it is impractical to gather enormous volumes of data quickly, which makes it difficult for depth models to be trained. To solve these problems, we obtained a new dataset by data augmentation Mixup method for the used chest CT slices. It uses lung infection segmentation (Inf-Net [1]) in a deep network and adds a learning framework with semi-supervised to form a Mixup-Inf-Net semi-supervised learning framework model to identify COVID-19 infection area from chest CT slices. The system depends primarily on unlabeled data and merely a minimal amount of annotated data is required;therefore, the unlabeled data generated by Mixup provides good assistance. Our framework can be used to improve improve learning and performance. The SemiSeg dataset and the actual 3D CT images that we produced are used in a variety of tests, and the analysis shows that Mixup-Inf-Net semi-supervised outperforms most SOTA segmentation models learning framework model in this study, which also enhances segmentation performance. © 2023 SPIE.

4.
Higher Education in Asia ; Part F3:101-122, 2023.
Article in English | Scopus | ID: covidwho-20236940

ABSTRACT

During the pandemic, virtual Transnational higher education (TNHE) became one of the solutions to support researchers and students in continuing academic research collaborations, intercultural competence, and global awareness acquisition via a virtual platform. This case study explores the implementation of the MOST-NSF Partnership for International Research and Education (PIRE) research project between Taiwan and the USA in terms of governance modes and research productivity according to Knight's Functional, Organizational, a Political approaches (FOPA) model. The study finds that the political and functional models are somehow consistent with the national needs of scientific development. Second, the COVID-19 crisis intensified international collaboration and justified the supremacy of global sciences, which has overridden national and individual interests. The case study provides feasible management modes and research collaboration experiences for the researchers who would like to implement transnational higher education with other foreign partners in the post-pandemic era. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.

5.
International Eye Science ; 23(5):873-877, 2023.
Article in Chinese | EMBASE | ID: covidwho-20234057

ABSTRACT

AIM: To explore the characteristics of astigmatism in preschool children before, during and after the COVID-19 epidemic, so as to provide a reference for further prevention and control of children's vision. *METHODS: In the consecutive four years from January 2018 to December 2021, a retrospective analysis of vision data was conducted on 2 273 preschool children (4546 eyes) younger than 4 years old who participated in children' s vision screening test in Baiyun district, Guangzhou. They were divided into 1 - year old group (ages<1-year old, 420 cases), 2-year old group (1-year <= ages < 2- year, 543 cases), 3- year old group (2- year <=ages <3-year, 614 cases), and 4 - year old group (3 - year <= ages< 4- year, 696 cases) according to ages. The analysis included astigmatic degrees of children's eyes as well as their conditions of astigmatism. *RESULTS: In 2018, the astigmatic degrees of the both eyes of 1-year-old group were higher than those of other groups (P<0.05). The binocular astigmatic degrees of the preschool children in four groups were obviously higher in 2020 than 2019 (P < 0. 05), while they were significantly decreased in 2021 when compared with 2020 (P < 0. 05). From 2019 to 2020, the increase of astigmatic degrees of the right eye is more considerable than the left eye of preschool children in those four groups (P < 0. 001). Furthermore, the morbidity of astigmatism basically echoes with the changing tendency of astigmatic degrees from 2018 to 2021. *CONCLUSIONS: Preschool children in Baiyun district, Guangzhou, have the highest degree of astigmatism and the fastest progression rate within 1 year old. Before COVID - 19 epidemic, the changes in astigmatism and prevalence were relatively stable;during COVID - 19 epidemic, the astigmatism and prevalence increased significantly and the astigmatic degrees of right eye increased more than that of the left eye;after the normalization of epidemic prevention and control, the astigmatism and prevalence decreased significantly.Copyright © 2023 International Journal of Ophthalmology (c/o Editorial Office). All rights reserved.

6.
Policing-a Journal of Policy and Practice ; 17, 2023.
Article in English | Web of Science | ID: covidwho-2327734

ABSTRACT

Taiwan has been a few of the exceptions recording very low infection figures in the worldwide pandemic COVID-19 since early 2020. The island was regarded as 'abnormally normal' during the public health crisis. This study analysed the management of COVID-19 in two cities in Taiwan-Taipei City and New Taipei City, by exploring the roles of two groups of easily forgotten, street-level personnel who were indispensable-the village chiefs and police constables in field stations. We argued the effectiveness of infection control could partly be explained by the well-developed community policing practices. A close cooperation among public officers could be seen in the enforcement of home quarantine order for the Taiwan resident returnees in the early days of the anti-pandemic fight. This government-society collegiality in Taiwan is merely a continuation of the institutionalized practice of community policing evolving from the colonial and authoritarian regimes.

7.
Chinese (Taiwan) Yearbook of International Law and Affairs ; 39:314-336, 2023.
Article in English | Scopus | ID: covidwho-2322134

ABSTRACT

The events of the COVID-19 outbreak in Wuhan and the WHO's immediate response have garnered international media attention and popular criticism against the organization for being unduly deferential to Chinese reporting and, by extension, incapable of independent investigation and pandemic management. The study examines the WHO's efforts to contain international spread of the virus whilst managing its relationship with influential member states, namely the United States and China. It argues that the International Health Regulations (2005) are poorly insulated against underlying political dynamics and competition that are largely unrelated to international public health. That is, the existing framework governing pandemic events are susceptible to manipulation by influential member states with ulterior motives who do not abide by their reporting duties. Finally, the study suggests that, by promoting greater transparency and incorporating a dispute-settlement mechanism focused on adjudicating international health law-specific matters, the WHO will be better equipped to respond to future pandemics. © Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, 2023.

8.
Topics in Antiviral Medicine ; 31(2):78, 2023.
Article in English | EMBASE | ID: covidwho-2314438

ABSTRACT

Background: It is unknown whether individuals with neurological post-acute sequelae of COVID-19 (NeuroPASC) display altered levels of neuroimmune activity or neuronal injury. Method(s): Participants with new or worsened neurologic symptoms at least 3 months after laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 were enrolled in The COVID Mind Study at Yale. Never COVID controls (no history of COVID-19;nucleocapsid (N) antibody negative) were pre-pandemic or prospectively enrolled volunteers. CSF and plasma were assessed for neopterin and for IL-1beta, IL-1RA, IL-2, IL-4, IL-5, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, IL-12p40, IL-12p70, IL-13, MCP-1, TNFalpha by bead-based multiplex assay;and for anti-SARS-CoV-2 N antibodies by Luminex-based multiplex assay in technical replicate, normalized against bovine serum albumin conjugated beads. Plasma concentrations of D-dimer, C-reactive protein, neurofilament light chain (NFL), and glial fibrillary acid protein (GFAP) were measured using high-sensitivity immunoassays. Group comparisons used non-parametric tests. Result(s): NeuroPASC participants (n=38) were studied 329 (median) days (range 81-742) after first positive test for acute COVID-19. Cognitive impairment (84%) and fatigue (82%) were the most frequent post-COVID symptoms. NeuroPASC and controls (n=22) were median 49 vs 52 yrs old (p=0.9), 74% vs 32% female (p< 0.001), 76% vs 23% white race (p< 0.001), and 6% vs 57% smokers (p< 0.001). CSF white blood cells/mL, CSF protein, and serum:CSF albumin ratio were normal in both groups. CSF TNFalpha (0.66 vs 0.55 pg/ul) and plasma IL12p40 were higher (103.3 vs 42.7);and MCP-1 (503 vs 697 pg/ul) and IL-6 (1.32 vs 1.84 pg/ul;p < 0.05 for IL-6) were lower in NeuroPASC vs controls (p< 0.05);but none of these differences were significant after adjusting for multiple comparisons. Plasma GFAP was elevated in NeuroPASC vs controls (54.4 vs 42.3 pg/ml;adjusted p< 0.03). There were no differences in the other biomarkers tested. 10/31 and 7/31 NeuroPASC had anti-N antibodies in CSF and plasma, respectively. Conclusion(s): When comparing NeuroPASC to never COVID controls, we found no evidence of neuroinflammation (normal CSF cell count, inflammatory cytokines) or blood-brain barrier dysfunction (normal albumin ratio), and no support for ongoing neuronal damage (normal plasma NFL). Future studies should include better gender and race matched controls and should explore the significance of a persistent CNS humoral immune response to SARS-CoV-2 and elevated plasma GFAP after COVID-19. (Figure Presented).

9.
Critical Care Conference: 42nd International Symposium on Intensive Care and Emergency Medicine Brussels Belgium ; 27(Supplement 1), 2023.
Article in English | EMBASE | ID: covidwho-2313584

ABSTRACT

Introduction: COVID-19 is a public health emergency of international concern. Clinicians are likely to adopt various antithrombotic strategies to prevent embolic events, but the optimal antithrombotic strategy remains uncertain. We performed a Bayesian network meta-analysis to evaluate various antithrombotic strategies comprehensively. Method(s): We systematically searched PubMed, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, EMBASE and Clinical trials. gov to screen trials comparing different antithrombotic strategies. The primary outcome is 28-day mortality, and the secondary outcomes include major thrombotic event, major bleeding and in-hospital mortality, etc. We assessed the risk of bias using the Cochrane Collaboration's tool and the quality of evidence according to the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) approach. We successively performed traditional pairwise and Bayesian network meta-analysis using R v4.2.1 software. Result(s): Twenty-six eligible randomized controlled trials were included, giving a total of 35 paired comparisons with 32,041 patients randomized to 7 antithrombotic strategies. In comparison to standard of care (SoC) strategy, therapeutic anticoagulation (TA) (RR 0.36, 95% CrI 0.13-0.86) and prophylactic anticoagulation (PA) (RR 0.35, 95% CrI 0.12-0.85) strategy significantly reduced the mortality of COVID-19 patients (Fig. 1). The antiplatelet (AP) strategy was associated with high risk of major bleeding when compared with SoC strategy (RR 2.5, 95% CrI 1.1-8.9), and the TA (RR 0.43, 95% CrI 0.17-0.98), PA (RR 0.27, 95% CrI 0.10-0.63) and PA with Fibrinolytic agents (FA) strategy (RR 0.12, 95% CrI 0.01-0.81) was associated with low risk of major thrombotic event. Conclusion(s): This network meta-analysis indicates that the TA and PA strategies probably reduce mortality and confer other important benefits in COVID-19 patients. These findings provide guidance on how to choose optimal antithrombotic strategies for COVID-19 patients.

10.
Neurol Sci ; 44(7): 2239-2245, 2023 Jul.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-2320296

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: There is concern that the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccine may trigger or worsen autoimmune diseases. The objective of this study was to determine the impacts of COVID-19 vaccination on symptom severity in patients with myasthenia gravis (MG). METHODS: A total of 106 enrolled patients with MG who were vaccinated against COVID-19 were followed up, and a questionnaire was used to document in detail the exacerbation of muscle weakness after vaccination and all other uncomfortable reactions after vaccination. Demographic, clinical characteristics, medication, and vaccination data were collected by follow-up interview. The main observation outcome was whether the MG symptoms of patients were exacerbated. The definition of exacerbation is according to the subjective feeling of the patient or a 2-point increase in daily life myasthenia gravis activity score relative to before vaccination, within 30 days after vaccination. RESULTS: Of 106 enrolled patients [median age (SD) 41.0 years, 38 (35.8%) men, 53 (50.0%) with generalized MG, 74 (69.8%) positive for acetylcholine receptor antibody, and 21 (19.8%) with accompanying thymoma], muscle weakness symptoms were stable in 102 (96.2%) patients before vaccine inoculation. Muscle weakness worsened in 10 (9.4%) people after vaccination, of which 8 patients reported slight symptom worsening that resolved quickly (within a few days). Two (1.9%) of patients showed serious symptom aggravation that required hospitalization. CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that inactivated virus vaccines against COVID-19 may be safe for patients with MG whose condition is stable. Patients with generalized MG may be more likely to develop increased muscle weakness after vaccination.


Subject(s)
COVID-19 Vaccines , COVID-19 , Myasthenia Gravis , Thymus Neoplasms , Adult , Female , Humans , Male , COVID-19/prevention & control , COVID-19/complications , COVID-19 Vaccines/adverse effects , Muscle Weakness , Myasthenia Gravis/complications , Thymus Neoplasms/complications , Vaccination/adverse effects
11.
4th International Conference on Artificial Intelligence and Advanced Manufacturing, AIAM 2022 ; : 633-639, 2022.
Article in English | Scopus | ID: covidwho-2293293

ABSTRACT

In the current environment where COVID-19 is serious, the space, place and resources required for teaching nuclear power plants are restricted to a great extent. To solve such problems and improve the utilization of education resources, this study improved an accident simulator for nuclear power plants based on the concept of cloud technology. We build the Browser / Server architecture so that the platform has successfully implemented multiterminal, multiplatform and multiuser simultaneous applications. Through the simulation results of the Small Break Loss of Coolant Accident (SBLOCA) and the test results of platform performance by PCTran-Cloud, the correctness of PCTran-Cloud in the accident simulation function and results were verified. In general, PCTran-Cloud has the characteristics of high scalability, high concurrency and high security. The platform can provide an environment for the training and education of nuclear power professionals. © 2022 IEEE.

12.
25th International Conference on Advanced Communications Technology, ICACT 2023 ; 2023-February:23-27, 2023.
Article in English | Scopus | ID: covidwho-2299149

ABSTRACT

This paper presented a simple and easy-To-use intelligent mirror with the activated function by face recognition. Firstly, the function of face recognition was realized by the OpenMV platform, and the recognition information was transmitted to the main controller, i.e., Loongson 1C Zhilong development board. The main controller connected to the Django server through the distant communication function of ESP8266 module. The user's schedules were acquisitioned by such a communication pathway and analyzed by the main controller. Finally, the recognized user's business or traveling schedule was shown on a screen located in the rear of a semitransparent mirror. For strangers of this smart mirror, the successful rate of strangers was 100%. For the user, the successful rate of strangers was 90% and accuracy of user's recognition was 100% in 120 times of tests. Furthermore, Adaptive Neuro Fuzzy Inference System supports a nice performance for Automatic classification in computer simulation. The COVID-19 pandemic is still threatening human beings. A smart mirror with the function of face recognition activation is a non-Touching solution for avoiding the infections to support an idea for elevating human health. © 2023 Global IT Research Institute (GiRI).

13.
4th International Academic Exchange Conference on Science and Technology Innovation, IAECST 2022 ; : 499-502, 2022.
Article in English | Scopus | ID: covidwho-2276042

ABSTRACT

Automatic image segmentation is critical for medical image segmentation. For example, automatic segmentation of infection area of COVID-19 before and after diagnosis and treatment can help us automatically analyze the diagnosis and treatment effect. The existing algorithms do not solve the problems of insufficient data and insufficient feature extraction at the same time. In this paper, we propose a new data augmentation algorithm to handle the insufficient data problem, named Joint Mix;we utilize an improved U-Net with context encoder to enhance the feature extraction ability. Experiments in the segmentation of COVID-19 infection region using CT images demonstrate its effectiveness. © 2022 IEEE.

14.
Asia Pacific Management Review ; 2023.
Article in English | Scopus | ID: covidwho-2265468

ABSTRACT

The outbreak of COVID-19 at the end of 2019 spreads over the world extensively and rapidly. The daily lives are affected by lockdowns, work-from-home, and travel bans. The economic growth is stagnated. Many industries are severely affected by this pandemic. There are, however, also industries that are unexpectedly benefited from the pandemic. The objective of this paper is to investigate the industries in Taiwan that are affected by the pandemic. Samples of the top 1,000 manufacturing and the top 500 service companies in Taiwan are collected to calculate their productivities before the pandemic, in the period of 2016–2019, and during the pandemic, in the year of 2020. The results show that three industries: automobile, tourism, and electronic products distribution, have their productivities significantly decreased by 3.98%, 4.92%, and 1.27%, respectively. There are also four industries: electronic components, optoelectronic, electrical and cable, and oil, gas and electricity, whose productivities are unexpectedly increased significantly by 1.37%, 1.98%, 3.32%, and 4.31%, respectively. The impact of COVID-19 to large companies in Taiwan seems to be not severe. In 2021, approximately five sixths of the industries have their productivities increased. There are only five industries whose productivities become lower;however, the decreases are not significant, indicating that the economy in Taiwan is recovering from the pandemic. © 2023 The Authors

15.
Venture Capital ; 2023.
Article in English | Scopus | ID: covidwho-2254594

ABSTRACT

Using data on Chinese GEM-listed companies from the first quarter of 2018 to the second quarter of 2022, we examine the impact of COVID-19 on SMEs' financing constraints and the moderating effect of fiscal and tax incentives using the difference-in-differences method (DID). The results indicate that the COVID-19 shock severely affected SMEs' financing constraints, and this effect is more pronounced among firms in industries particularly sensitive to COVID-19, such as transportation, catering, accommodation, culture, and entertainment. A further analysis shows that tax incentives and fiscal subsidies have differing moderating effects, with the former alleviating SMEs' financing constraints and the latter having only a relatively limited effect. This finding provides direct micro-level evidence for understanding the impact of COVID-19 on financing constraints and provides insights for promoting the optimization of fiscal support policies for SMEs. © 2023 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

16.
Economic Change and Restructuring ; 2023.
Article in English | Scopus | ID: covidwho-2286133

ABSTRACT

In the post-COVID-19 era of green economic recovery, this paper analyses the elderly care environment of cities in the Yangtze River Delta (YRD) region and investigates the future development direction of the elderly care industry based on comparative advantages and resource endowment. Firstly, an evaluation index system of the elderly care environment is constructed, then the entropy weight method is used to calculate the weight, and finally the comprehensive evaluation index of the elderly care environment in each city is obtained by weighted calculation. The development directions of the elderly care industry for each city in the YRD region are proposed based on the results. The study shows that the suitable development direction of the elderly care industry differs among cities. Cities suitable for residential elderly care are mainly distributed in the central and western regions, cities fit for the leisure and tourism of elderly care are mainly located in the southeast, and cities suitable for the treatment and rehabilitation of elderly care are mainly provincial capitals and cities with better economic development levels. Additionally, Wenzhou City in Zhejiang Province is eligible for the development of a comprehensive elderly care industry. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.

17.
Frontiers in Energy Research ; 10, 2023.
Article in English | Scopus | ID: covidwho-2239720

ABSTRACT

Introduction: To meet the multi-user, cross-time-and-space, cross-platform online demand of work, and professional training teaching in nuclear reactor safety analysis under the normalization of Coronavirus Disease 2019. Method: Taking the nuclear accident simulation software PCTRAN as an example, this study adopts cloud computing technology to build the NasCloud, a nuclear accident simulation cloud platform based on Browser/Server architecture, and successfully realizes multi-user, cross-time-and-space, cross-platform applications. Targeting the AP1000, a pressurized water reactor nuclear power plant, the simulation of cold-leg Small Break Loss of Coolant Accident and cold-leg Large Break Loss of Coolant Accident were carried out to verify the correctness of the NasCloud's accident simulation function. Results: The result shows that the simulation functions and results of the NasCloud in multi-terminal are consistent with the single version of PCTRAN. At the same time, the platform has high scalability, concurrency and security characteristics. Discussion: Therefore, the nuclear accident simulation cloud platform built in this study can provide solutions for the work and training of nuclear reactor safety analysis, and provide reference for other engineering design and simulation software cloud to computing transformation. Copyright © 2023 Chen, Chen, Xie, Xiong and Yu.

18.
Education Sciences ; 12(12), 2022.
Article in English | Web of Science | ID: covidwho-2199904

ABSTRACT

Research has proven that counselling services are essential to solving the troubles in the mental health of international Chinese students in the post-epidemic stage. Online questionnaires were implemented for about 1000 international Chinese college students from three universities in Thailand. Results showed that female junior and senior students who stayed in post-pandemic Thailand longer than others were likely to suffer from mental health disorders. In addition, in Thailand, counselling has a significant positive association with the mental health status of the students. Therefore, it is recommended in this study that Thai universities should provide more counselling services to support students in focusing on education and adjusting or adapting to the environment abroad.

19.
Annals of Emergency Medicine ; 80(4 Supplement):S118, 2022.
Article in English | EMBASE | ID: covidwho-2176255

ABSTRACT

Study Objectives: Restraint use in the emergency department (ED) has been shown to pose significant physical, psychological, and medicolegal risk to both patients and health care workers. Recent studies have demonstrated racial disparities in restraint application in the ED setting. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of Code De-escalation, a standardized team-based approach for agitation management and assessment of perception of threatening behaviors, in reducing restraint use and racial disparities in restraint application in a community hospital emergency department. Study Design/Methods: We performed a retrospective observational study of the effect of introduction of the Code De-escalation pathway on violent restraint use among ED patients who had been placed on an involuntary psychiatric hold in a community emergency department. This new pathway includes a built-in step for the team members to systematically assess the perception of threat related to the patient behavior and the threat perceived by the patient. We used a Chi-squared test to compare incidence of restraints per ED encounter during the eight- month period after the intervention (May 2021-Dec 2021) with an eight-month period pre-intervention. We used a Cochran-Mantel- Haenszel test to look for differences in restraint use among racial and ethnic groups. To avoid confounding by the dramatic changes in patient volume and type during the peak of the COVID pandemic, we chose a pre-intervention period that pre-dated this (May 2019-Dec 2019). We compared our results to rates at neighboring community hospitals within the same hospital network during the same period. Results/Findings: Our sample size included 434 ED encounters pre intervention and 535 ED encounters post intervention. Over the study period, we observed a significant decrease in the violent restraint use among patients on an involuntary psychiatric hold from a rate of 7.4% to 3.7% (p=0.02). This was despite an overall increase in the number of patients requiring an involuntary psychiatric hold over the same period. This decrease was observed across all racial and ethnic groups. The same decrease in violent restraint use was not observed at the two other community hospitals within our hospital network and in the same metro area. Conclusion(s): A standardized de-escalation algorithm may be an effective tool in helping EDs decrease their use of restraints and may be one tool to help close the racial gap in restraint use among patients experiencing agitation. * Note Dana Im and Alice Bukhman contributed equally to conception and writing of this No, authors do not have interests to disclose Copyright © 2022

20.
JACCP Journal of the American College of Clinical Pharmacy ; 5(12):1346, 2022.
Article in English | EMBASE | ID: covidwho-2173027

ABSTRACT

Introduction: To date, there has been no reported case of adverse reaction characterized by chest pain related to neither myocarditis nor pericarditis after the administration of COVID-19 mRNA vaccines (Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna). We report 33 such cases. Case: A total of 33 patients with a mean age of 32+/-9 years sought medical attention at the hospital outpatient clinic after vaccination (30 were administered Pfizer-BioNTech and 3 were administered Moderna). The chief complaint of all patients included chest pain, and both myocarditis and pericarditis were ruled out in the diagnosis. Chest pain occurred 0-89 days (median = 4 days;mode = 0 days) after vaccination. Twenty-nine patients (88%) were treated with bisoprolol, 19 (58%) with acetaminophen+carisoprodol, and 17 (52%) with prednisolone. After treatment, major improvement or recovery was achieved in 16 patients, slight improvement was achieved in 9, no improvement was achieved in 4, and 4 were lost to follow-up. Discussion(s): Reports of chest pain without excluding myocarditis and pericarditis were not found in electronic databases (Micromedex, PubMed, and UpToDate) or package inserts of Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna. The symptoms of the 33 patients in this study were speculated to have therapeutic relationships with the following drug responses: bisoprolol decreases cardiac stressrelated chest pain, acetaminophen+carisoprodol alleviates muscle pain near the chest, and prednisolone decreases inflammation of muscle or lung tissue. Limitations of this study include that patient heterogeneity was not analyzed and that there are many factors affecting chest pain. Conclusion(s): If chest pain occurs after COVID-19 mRNA vaccine administration when myocarditis and pericarditis diagnoses are ruled out, increased cardiac stress, muscle pain, or inflammation near the chest must be considered. Treatment with bisoprolol, acetaminophen, carisoprodol, or prednisolone should be considered.

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