Alterations in vaginal microbiota among pregnant women with COVID-19.

The maintenance of vaginal microbiota is an important factor to achieve optimum pregnancy outcomes. The study aims to describe the alterations in the composition of vaginal microbiota in pregnant women with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). This was a prospective case-control study. Vaginal swabs were collected from uninfected pregnant women (n = 28) and pregnant women with COVID-19 (n = 19) during the active phase of infection and within a month after recovering from infection. The vaginal microbiota on the swabs was examined by 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Shannon index indicates that alpha diversity is significantly higher in women with COVID-19 (p = 0.012). There was a significant decrease in Firmicutes (p = 0.014) with an increase in Bacteroidota (p = 0.018) phyla and a decrease in Lactobacillus (p = 0.007) genus in women with COVID-19 than those of uninfected pregnant women. The relative abundance of L. crispatus, L. iners, L. gasseri, and L. jensenii were lower in the COVID-19 group than in uninfected pregnant women. In subgroup analysis, the amount of Ureaplasma spp. was higher in women with moderate/severe than those of asymptomatic/mild disease (p = 0.036). The study revealed that vaginal dysbiosis with low abundance of Lactobacillus species occurred in pregnant women infected with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2. These findings may lead to new studies to elucidate the risk of pregnancy adverse outcomes related to COVID-19.

The association between Acinetobacter baumannii infections and the COVID-19 pandemic in an intensive care unit.

We aimed to describe the increased rate of Acinetobacter baumannii infections during the COVID-19 pandemic and define its significance within the last five years. This study was performed in a tertiary hospital with 280 beds and included all patients infected with A. baumannii in the intensive care unit between January 1, 2018, and June 30, 2022. A. baumannii-infected patients in the intensive care unit 27 months before the pandemic and 27 months during the pandemic were included. Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis was performed to assess clonal relatedness. The infection control measures were specified based on the findings and targeted elimination. In total, 5718 patients were admitted to the intensive care unit from January 1st, 2018, to June 30th, 2022. A. baumannii infection was detected in 81 patients. Compared to the pre-pandemic era, the rate of A. baumannii infection during the pandemic was 1.90 times higher (OR: 1.90, 95% CI: [1.197, 3.033]). Clonality assessment of multidrug-resistant A. baumannii samples revealed eight clusters with one main cluster comprising 14/27 isolates between 2021 and 2022. The case fatality rate of the pre-pandemic and pandemic era was not different statistically (83.33% vs. 81.48%, p = 0.835). Univariate analysis revealed the association of mechanical ventilation (p = 0.002) and bacterial growth in tracheal aspirate (p = 0.001) with fatality. During the COVID-19 pandemic, potential deficits in infection control measures may lead to persistent nosocomial outbreaks. In this study, the introduction of enhanced and customized infection control measures has resulted in the containment of an A. baumannii outbreak.

Association of SARS-CoV-2 IgG Antibody Levels with Clinical/Laboratory Characteristics in COVID-19 Patients: Data from a Turkish Study.

BACKGROUND: COVID-19 causes clinical manifestations ranging from asymptomatic infection to multi-organ failure. It is reported that those with severe disease have higher anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibody titers compared to asymptomatic or mild cases. We evaluated the correlation of antibody responses with laboratory and clinical indicators in COVID-19 patients. METHODS: Seventy-nine male and 66 female patients (mean age: 39) with at least one positive SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR test and SARS-CoV-2 IgG antibody result after acute infection were included. RESULTS: Seventy-six (52%), 45 (31%), and 24 (17%) patients had mild, moderate, and severe clinical findings, respectively. Patients with high body mass index and advanced age had significantly more severe disease (p < 0.001). A significant correlation was found between the increase in lymphopenia, C-reactive protein, ferritin, D-dimer, and lactate dehydrogenase and the severity of clinical findings (p = 0.0001). SARS-CoV-2 IgG antibody test was positive in 128 (88.3%) patients. A significant correlation was found between disease severity and antibody levels in the comparison of all groups (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Long-term monitoring of immune responses will be required to determine the appropriate time for the administration of new vaccines.