Utility of walk tests in progression of mild COVID-19 infection at a tertiary hospital in North India.

INTRODUCTION: There have been 214 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 worldwide with a total death tally of 4.4 million. The current study aims to determine the predictive value of various scores in assessment of progression of mild COVID-19 infection at a tertiary care hospital in North India. METHODS: The study population consisted of adults (age more than 18 years) with a confirmed diagnosis of COVID-19 by RT-PCR on nasopharyngeal specimens. Patients with only mild illness were enrolled. After the patients were admitted to the isolation ward, the presenting history, comorbidity status, vital signs and laboratory parameters were recorded. The 3 and 6 minute walk test was performed daily from admission till discharge or progression of severity of COVID-19 and it was used to calculate Borg dyspnoea score (BDS) and National Early Warning Score (NEWS2) scores. RESULTS: Our study consisted of 50 patients with 34 (68%) males and the mean (SD) age of the patient population being 28.1 (6.4) years. The most common symptoms were fever, sore throat, and cough. All laboratory parameters were within normal ranges for all the patients. 96% recovered without progression, while only 4% of them progressed to moderate illness. Results of the 3 and 6 minutes walk tests, BDS and NEWS2 scores showed improvement over the course of hospital stay. CONCLUSIONS: Although the walk tests and the scores improved over time, they failed to predict the disease progression.

What Indians Think of the COVID-19 vaccine: A qualitative study comprising focus group discussions and thematic analysis.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: The study aims to interpret current knowledge, attitude, perceptions and concerns regarding COVID-19 vaccine in the Indian population. METHODS: Eight focus group discussions were conducted. Participants were recruited via purposive sampling. Discussions were recorded and transcribed verbatim. Key themes were extracted using thematic analysis method. RESULTS: There were 19 males and 24 females, with a mean age of 36 ± 11 years. Sub-themes identified were knowledge, attitude, perception and concerns regarding COVID-19 vaccine, leading to the main theme, i.e., views about the COVID-19 vaccine. CONCLUSION: People have mixed perceptions regarding COVID-19 vaccine. Channelling correct messages may improve people's willingness to get vaccinated.

A short questionnaire to assess changes in lifestyle-related behaviour during COVID 19 pandemic.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: The lasting impact of COVID 19 pandemic and associated restrictions are bound to be significant on lifestyle-related behaviour including diet, physical activity and sleep which is one of the important components in the management of diabetes mellitus and metabolic syndrome. This study was conducted to develop and validate a questionnaire to assess changes in individual's lifestyle-related behaviour during COVID 19 pandemic. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The questionnaire was developed through a standardised methodology including literature review, focus group discussion, expert evaluation, pre-testing and validation. The face validity and content validity of the questionnaire were analysed. A cross-sectional survey was carried out on 103 participants to validate the questionnaire that used a 5-point Likert scale for the response option. Exploratory factor analysis was performed to establish construct validity. Cronbach's alpha was calculated to test the internal consistency of the whole questionnaire. RESULTS: A questionnaire with 20 items to assess the lifestyle-related behaviour of people was developed. The questionnaire shows a satisfactory validity and a good internal consistency with the Cronbach's alpha value of 0.72. CONCLUSION: The developed tool is valid and reliable to assess the changes in lifestyle-related behaviour of individuals during COVID 19 pandemic.

Development and validation of a questionnaire to evaluate the impact of COVID-19 on lifestyle-related behaviours: eating habits, activity and sleep behaviour.

OBJECTIVE: This study was conducted to develop and validate a questionnaire to assess the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on lifestyle-related behaviour related to eating, activity and sleep pattern. DESIGN: Indexed study used a mixed method design. Phase I employed qualitative methods for development of questionnaire including literature review, focus group discussion, expert evaluation and pre-testing. Phase II used quantitative methods for establishing construct validity of the questionnaire via parallel factor analysis. PARTICIPANTS: Phase 1 involved participation of experts from different fields (Departments of Medicine, Nutrition and Clinical Psychology) and general adult population. For phase II, data were collected from 124 adult respondents (female = 57·26 %); mean age (36 ± 14·8 years) residing in an urban setting. RESULTS: The questionnaire consisted of three sections: (A) socio-demographic and anthropometric parameters, (B) twenty-four items each for investigating the changes in eating, activity and sleep behaviour before v. during COVID-19, (C) six items assessing COVID-19 specific reasons for lifestyle change. The Cronbach's α value of the questionnaire is 0·83 suggesting its good internal consistency. CONCLUSIONS: This appears to be a valid tool to assess the impact of COVID-19 on lifestyle-related behaviours with potential utility for public health researchers to identify these changes at community level and develop strategies to reinforce corrective behaviours.