ABSTRACT
The study aims to describe the frequency of COVID-19 in healthcare workers (HCWs) in a designated hospital for COVID-19 treatment in Bucharest, Romania, and to explore COVID-19 vaccination and other factors associated with the clinical outcome. We actively surveyed all HCWs from 26 February 2020 to 31 December 2021. Cases were laboratory-confirmed with RT-PCR or rapid test antigen. Epidemiological, demographic, clinical outcomes, vaccination status, and co-morbidities data were collected. Data were analyzed using Microsoft Excel, SPSS, and MedCalc. A total of 490 cases of COVID-19 in HCWs were diagnosed. The comparison groups were related to the severity of the clinical outcome: the non-severe group (279, 64.65%) included mild and asymptomatic cases, and the potentially severe group included moderate and severe cases. Significant differences between groups were registered for high-risk departments (p = 0.0003), exposure to COVID-19 patients (p = 0.0003, vaccination (p = 0.0003), and the presence of co-morbidities (p < 0.0001). Age, obesity, anemia, and exposure to COVID-19 patients predicted the severity of the clinical outcomes (χ2 (4, n = 425) = 65.69, p < 0.001). The strongest predictors were anemia and obesity (OR 5.82 and 4.94, respectively). In HCWs, mild COVID-19 cases were more frequent than severe cases. Vaccination history, exposure, and individual risk influenced the clinical outcome suggesting that measures to protect HCWs and occupational medicine are important for pandemic preparedness.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Recording real-time data of vaccinations performed, vaccine stocks, and adverse events following immunization is a particularly useful activity in the effective development of any vaccination campaign or vaccination program, guiding the decisions of public health authorities. The aim of this paper is to present the benefits of the National Electronic Registry of Vaccinations in providing useful information for the optimization of healthcare vaccination policies, specifically related to COVID-19 vaccination. METHODS: We performed a descriptive study using data available in the reports generated from the National Electronic Registry of Vaccinations regarding COVID-19 vaccinations performed between 27 December 2020 and 31 December 2021. RESULTS: A total of 27,980,270 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine were distributed. Of these, 15,757,638 (56%) were administered in 4545 vaccination centers: 7,882,458 as the 1st dose (50%), 5,878,698 as the 2nd dose (37%), and 1,996,482 as the 3rd dose (13%). More than 25% of the total doses were administered to people over 65 years of age. A total of 41% of the population received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. A total of 4083 adverse events following immunization were reported. CONCLUSIONS: The existence of a National Electronic Registry of Vaccinations containing accurate information on vaccinations performed in Romania offers the opportunity to obtain a clear picture of vaccination status that will significantly contribute to the optimization of vaccination strategies and programs.
ABSTRACT
The COVID-19 pandemic continues to be a major public health problem in most countries of the world, especially in developing countries with an underfunded healthcare system. We aim to present a comparative profile of the epidemiological characteristics of the COVID-19 pandemic in Romania and neighboring countries, which have similar onset and a similar socio-cultural pattern. A descriptive comparative study was performed using COVID-19 data collected from various official websites regarding demography, morbidity, mortality, vaccination, and testing capacity. The countries included in the study were Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary, Republic of Moldova, Serbia, and Ukraine. The study period was from week 09/2020 to week 46/2021. Overall, these countries have reported 8,382,441 cases and 216,014 deaths (during the study period). The highest cumulative incidence rate of cases has been recorded in Serbia (17,801.5) and the highest mortality rate has been recorded in Bulgaria (391.0). Romania is in fourth place regarding the cumulative incidence rate of cases/100,000 inhabitants but in third place regarding the mortality due to COVID-19 (case-fatality rate of 3.1%). Although the World Health Organization and EU co-ordinate the COVID-19 response, each state makes its own decisions regarding SARS-CoV-2 mitigation measures, the epidemiological indicators directing us about the effectiveness of responses.
ABSTRACT
In Romania, health and social workers were prioritized for COVID-19 vaccination. We aimed to describe the vaccine adverse events identified through an active survey (using an electronic questionnaire) conducted among the staff of a pediatric hospital from Bucharest, vaccinated with the mRNA Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. Data on the frequency and duration of adverse events were collected and analyzed using Microsoft Excel, Epi Info, and MedCalc. The questionnaire was sent to 426 persons. The participation rate was 81.2% after 1st dose and 63.8% after the 2nd dose. Overall, 81.9% were women, median age 42 (IQR 32-50 years). A total of 48 respondents (14.8%) reported no adverse event after the 1st dose and 35 (14.1) after the 2nd dose. No anaphylaxis was reported. The most frequent adverse event was pain at injection site, being reported by 261 responders (80.3%) after 1st dose and 187 (75.1%) after 2nd dose. Fatigue and headache were reported significantly less frequently in our study compared with data provided by the vaccine manufacturer. The current study has shown higher local reactogenicity after the first dose of the vaccine and higher systemic reactogenicity after the second dose. This real-world knowledge of the reactogenicity and safety profile may increase the vaccine's acceptance rate among healthcare workers.
ABSTRACT
The COVID-19 pandemic has influenced the epidemiology of other respiratory pathogens, and this was most evident in the 2020–2021 season, which was characterized by a low circulation of influenza viruses. We aim to present a comparative analysis of clinical and epidemiological characteristics of 2018–2019 influenza cases and 2020–2021 COVID-19 cases, hospitalized at a tertiary infectious diseases hospital in Bucharest. We used data collected from patients admitted for severe acute respiratory infection (SARI) and subsequently confirmed with either influenza or COVID-19. During the 2018–2019 season, 208 patients over 18 years of age were confirmed with influenza (median age = 53 years, 59.6% were female) and 6.7% had been vaccinated against influenza. The most frequent symptoms were fever (97.1%) and cough (94.7%), and 77.4% had at least one chronic condition. 90.4% received influenza antiviral therapy. During the 2020–2021 season, 191 patients were confirmed with COVID-19 (median age = 56 years, 67% were male). The most frequent symptoms were cough (85.9%) and fever (80.6%), and 75.9% had at least one chronic condition. This analysis highlights the main similarities and differences between influenza and COVID-19 and could help to optimize the management of cases.