ABSTRACT
The aim of the study was to investigate the implication of university students in Covid-19-related misinformation dissemination in Morocco using an online questionnaire sent out to various faculties and online student groups around the country. A total of 295 university students responded to the questionnaire. The majority of respondents 269/295 (91.2%) claimed to have come across misinformation during the pandemic. The main source of misinformation was online news outlets (77.2%). The most frequent subjects of misinformation had to do with confinement and curfews (24.2%), the politics around the pandemic (17.2%) and the Covid-19 vaccine (16.6%). Some 36.6% of respondents reported having transmitted misinformation at least once. Overall, the difference between medical and non-medical students' implication in misinformation dissemination did not reach statistical significance (Chi-square = 6.37, p=0.095). Misinformation, in particular, among university students has potentially been an obstacle to satisfactory Covid-19 response. University students should be a focus of interventions aimed at combatting misinformation. Copyright © 2022 (Klevor, Camara, Ait Taleb, Taouzer, Kissani, Chraa).
ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION: The Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in a spark in interest in the subject given the high exposure rate to viral antigens in the form of infections and vaccines. It is expected that acute disseminated encephalomyelitis (ADEM) cases see a rise in incidence during this period. Given the plethora of Covid-19-related central nervous system (CNS) involvement, it is important to be aware of the varied presentations of ADEM. CASE REPORTS: In this paper, we report 3 cases of ADEM following Covid-19 infection. Patients presented with polyfocal neurological symptoms 6 to 18 days after respiratory symptoms onset. The diagnosis of Covid-19 was made based on nasal swab reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and chest computerized tomography (CT). DISCUSSION: These cases illustrate both classic and atypical presentations requiring exclusion of a spectrum of CNS conditions to be able to retain the diagnosis of ADEM. Consequently, we stress the importance of context, clinical examination and MRI findings in the differentials. In addition, we discuss workup, and particularly, the indication of brain biopsy. Also, the paper discusses options in therapy and the prognosis. The prognosis of covid-associated ADEM is dependent on the extent of pathology intrinsic to ADEM and the intrication of the prognosis of Covid-19 infection. CONCLUSION: The key message in these 3 cases is that clinicians should have a low threshold of suspicion of ADEM in the Covid-19 context, adopt appropriate workup strategies, and initiate adequate treatment for better outcomes.