Corrigendum: SARS-CoV-2 antibody response after mRNA vaccination in healthcare workers with and without previous COVID-19, a follow-up study from the University Hospital in Krakow, Poland.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2022.1071204.].

SARS-CoV-2 antibody response after mRNA vaccination in healthcare workers with and without previous COVID-19, a follow-up study from a university hospital in Poland during 6 months 2021.

Introduction: Healthcare workers (HCWs) from the beginning of the pandemic have been at risk of exposure to SARS-CoV-2, so they were vaccinated as first. Objectives: The purpose of the study was to determine the level of antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 in HCWs before and after vaccination with mRNA preparations according to previous COVID- 19. Patients and methods: The HCWs from the University Hospital in Krakow completed two surveys: the baseline survey before receiving the first dose of vaccine (in January 2021) and the follow-up survey in June 2021. In parallel, two blood samples were collected from each participant at baseline and at follow-up. Total anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibody levels were measured using the ECLIA technique. Results: At baseline, 41.1% of HCWs had positive antibody test results, and at follow-up, the vaccinated HCWs had almost 100 times higher antibody levels than the unvaccinated HCWs. Participants under 30 years of age had significantly higher antibody levels in June than older HCWs. Among participants with positive antibody test results in January, HCWs who had experienced asymptomatic COVID-19 had more than five times higher antibody levels in June than HCWs self-reported severe COVID-19. In total, 86.9% of HCWs received Comirnaty or Spikevax. The incidence rate of COVID-19 in the unvaccinated vs. vaccinated group was 13 times higher, 20.5% and 1.9% respectively. Conclusions: These results confirm the effectiveness of vaccination in the prevention of COVID-19 in HCWs. It is worth getting vaccinated regardless of previous infection. Furthermore, vaccination among HCWs under 30 years of age induced more effective antibody production compared to older individuals.

Preparedness of Health Care Workers and Medical Students in University Hospital in Krakow for COVID-19 Pandemic within the CRACoV Project.

Backgrounds Health care workers' (HCWs) knowledge of and compliance with personal protective procedures is a key for patients' and personnel safety. The aim of this study was to assess which factors are associated with higher self-evaluations of training on infection prevention and control (IPC) and higher self-assessment of IPC practices used by HCWs regarding COVID-19 in University Hospital in Krakow, Poland, in January 2021. Material and methods This was an online survey on the preparedness for COVID-19 epidemic of medical/non-medical staff and medical students. Questions included in the survey concerned participants' socio-demographic characteristics, hospital staff involvement in the training, knowledge about the hand hygiene, and adherence to IPC measures. Knowledge and Performance Index (K&PI) based on selected questions was constructed for to reflect both subjective (self-evaluation) of preparedness and objective IPC knowledge and skills of HCWs participated in the IPC training. Results A total of 1412 health care workers, including 129 medical students, participated in the study. The largest group, 53.6%, was made up of nurses and paramedics. Age of respondents significantly correlated with knowledge of IPC and with K&PI. The mean age of workers with high K&PI was 42.39 ± 12.53, and among those with low, 39.71 ± 13.10, p < 0.001. 51% UHK workers participated in IPC training, but 11.3% of physicians, 28.8% of other HCWs, and 55.8% of students did not know the IPC standard precaution. Most participants, 72.3%, felt that they had received sufficient training; however, 45.8% of students declined this. There was no correlation between self-reported preparedness and the K&PI, indicating that self-reported preparedness was inadequate for knowledge and skills. Nurses and paramedics assessed their knowledge most accurately. Participants with low K&PI and high subjective evaluation constituted a substantial group in all categories. Students least often overestimated (23.8%) and most often (9.6%) underestimated their knowledge and skills. Conclusions Our study revealed inadequate IPC practice, especially as it refers to the training programme. We confirmed the urgent need of including theory and practice of IPC in curricula of health professions' training in order to provide students with knowledge and skills necessary not only for future pandemic situations but also for everyday work.

Is treated hypertension associated with a lower 1-year mortality among older multimorbid residents of long-term care facilities?

INTRODUCTION: Long-term care facility (LTCF) residents are typically excluded from clinical trials due to multimorbidity, dementia, and frailty, so there are no clear evidence-based rules for treating arterial hypertension in this population. Moreover, the role of hypertension as mortality risk factor in LTCFs has not yet been clearly established. OBJECTIVES: The study aimed to investigate whether treated hypertension is associated with lower mortality among older LTCF residents with multimorbidity. PATIENTS AND METHODS: The study was performed in a group of 168 residents aged ≥ 65 years in three LTCFs. Initial assessment included blood pressure (BP) measurements and selected geriatric scales: MNA-SF, AMTS and ADL. Hypertension, comorbidities, pharmacotherapy, antihypertensive drugs and mortality during one-year follow-up were extracted from the medical records. The data was compared in groups: Survivors and Deceased. RESULTS: Survivors and Deceased revealed similar age, DBP, number of diseases, medications, and antihypertensive drugs. However, Deceased had significantly lower SBP (P <0.05) and presented significantly worse functional, nutritional and cognitive status than Survivors (P <0.001). Hypertension (P <0.001) and antihypertensive therapy (P <0.05) were significantly more frequent among Survivors. Significantly more of the hypertensive-treated than other multimorbid residents survived the follow-up (P <0.001). Logistic regression analysis showed that treated hypertension had a protective effect on mortality [OR = 0.11 (95% CI, 0.03-0.39); P <0.001]. CONCLUSIONS: One-year survival of LTCF residents with treated hypertension was significantly higher than the others. Appropriate antihypertensive therapy may be a protective factor against death in frail nursing home residents, even in short period of time.