Perception of the Impact of COVID-19 on a Sample of Spaniards with Hearing Disabilities.

This paper describes an empirical study carried out with 40 Spanish deaf people, users of sign language, between 19 and 45 years of age, which gathers their perceptions of aspects related to the incidence of the COVID-19 pandemic and its repercussions. During the pandemic, people with hearing disabilities, among other groups, were forgotten. They suffered from accessibility problems to the information issued by the authorities, violating their right to be informed and exposing their health to COVID-19. In this work, we identify the problems they suffered and what effects COVID-19 had on their lives. This will help to take the appropriate measures to restore their rights and design policies and strategies to deal with any new future health emergency. For this, an ad hoc questionnaire was designed, adapted to easy reading and sign language. This was publicized via email and WhatsApp through the Association of Deaf People of Granada and Province (Spain) and was responded to online and by video call with the collaboration of sign language interpreters using the LimeSurvey platform. The results discover (1) the difficulties of communication barriers in the relationship with health professionals and institutions, as well as in the spheres of work and education, (2) similarities with the rest of the population in the negative effects of confinement, and (3) presence of positive effects, such as the development of positive activities and emotions. The study highlights the need to increase economic and institutional support aimed at improving coping resources, access to information, and the reduction of social and institutional barriers that would allow people with hearing disabilities to successfully face future health problems of a global nature such as that experienced with COVID-19.

Frequency, Clinical Characteristics and Outcome of Adults With Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia and COVID 19 Infection in the First vs. Second Pandemic Wave in Spain.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: SARS-CoV-2 infection has bimodal distribution in Europe with a first wave in March to June 2020 and a second in September 2020 to February 2021. We compared the frequency, clinical characteristics and outcomes of adults with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and infection in the first vs. second pandemic waves in Spain. PATIENTS AND METHODS: In this prospective study the characteristics of ALL and COVID-19 infection, comorbidities, treatment and outcome in the two periods were compared. The study ended when vaccination against SARS-CoV-2 was implemented in Spain. RESULTS: Twenty eight patients were collected in the first wave and 24 in the second. The median age was 46.5 years (range 20-83). Patients from the first wave had a trend to more severe ALL (higher frequency of patients under induction or submitted to transplantation or under immunosuppressive therapy). No significant differences were observed in need for oxygen support, intensive care unit (ICU) requirement, days in ICU and time to COVID-19 infection recovery. Seventeen patients (33%) died, with death attributed to COVID infection in 15 (29%), without significant differences in the 100 day overall survival (OS) probabilities in the two waves (68% ± 17% vs. 56% ± 30%). The only prognostic factor for OS identified by was the presence of comorbidities at COVID-19 infection (HR: 5.358 [95% CI: 1.875- 15.313]). CONCLUSION: The frequency and mortality of COVID-19 infection were high in adults with ALL, without changes over time, providing evidence in favor of vaccination priority for these patients.