ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION: The COVID-19 epidemic and various control and mitigation measures to combat the widespread outbreak of the disease may affect other parts of health care systems. There is a concern that the COVID-19 pandemic could disrupt HIV services. Therefore, this study aimed to systematically evaluate the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on service delivery and treatment outcomes in people with HIV. METHODS: In this study, a systematic search was conducted using the keywords in the online databases including Scopus, PubMed, Web of Science, and Cochrane databases. The retrieved articles underwent a two-step title/abstract and full-text review process, and the eligible papers were selected and included in the qualitative synthesis. RESULT: We selected 16 studies out of 529 retrieved records that met the inclusion criteria for this review. Study populations of the selected studies were either HIV-positive patients or HIV clinics and healthcare providers. Most studies were focused on adhering to and obtaining medication and attending clinical appointments and their decrement during the pandemic. Other aspects of HIV care (alternative healthcare settings, viral suppression, psychological care, etc.) were discussed to a lesser extent by the included studies. CONCLUSION: Interruption in in-person visits and medical follow-up services, loss of adherence to treatment, and subsequent increase in mortality due to the COVID-19 pandemic complications in PLHIV have led to growing concerns. Other challenges were psychological disorders such as anxiety and depression, an increase in substance abuse, and a rise in experienced stigma and discrimination. However, the use of telemedicine in some countries helps to alleviate the situation to some extent and is recommended in similar settings in the future.
Subject(s)
COVID-19 , HIV Infections , Humans , COVID-19/epidemiology , Pandemics , HIV Infections/drug therapy , HIV Infections/epidemiology , Delivery of Health Care , Treatment OutcomeABSTRACT
Introduction and importance: COVID-19 virus is thought to complicate underlying conditions, including acalculous cholecystitis. Two COVID-19 patients with gangrenous gallbladder are reported who were not involved with severe pneumonia. Case presentation: We present two non-critically ill patients with COVID-19 presenting with acalculous cholecystitis. Both patients had gangrenous gallbladder and had to undergo cholecystectomy. Upon surgery, one of the patients showed patchy gangrene on gallbladder and the other, a fully gangrenous gallbladder. Conclusion: There may be a possibility for COVID-19 patients with cholecystitis to develop ischemic gallbladder.
ABSTRACT
Mass vaccination has been the main policy to overcome the Covid-19 pandemic. Several vaccines have been approved by the World Health Organization. With growing vaccination, safety concerns and adverse events that need prompt evaluation are also emerging. Herein, we report a case of a healthy woman with longitudinally extensive transverse myelitis after vaccination with the AstraZeneca vaccine. The patient was successfully treated after ruling out all the possible causes.
Subject(s)
COVID-19 , Myelitis, Transverse , Vaccines , COVID-19/prevention & control , COVID-19 Vaccines/adverse effects , Female , Humans , Myelitis, Transverse/etiology , Pandemics , SARS-CoV-2 , Vaccination/adverse effectsABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: There are more than 206 million confirmed cases of Covid-19 infection globally. Nasopharyngeal swab testing is one of the widely used diagnostic methods for the initial diagnosis of such cases. With the growing diagnostic testing capacity, it is expected to observe an increased number of adverse events due to nasopharyngeal testing. CLINICAL PRESENTATION: A middle-aged woman presented with unilateral rhinorrhea, started after nasopharyngeal swab test for Covid-19. She had no prior medical issues. Thorough examination and imaging showed the presence of cerebrospinal fluid leakage. CONCLUSION: Nasopharyngeal swab testing may lead to serious complications and taking a brief history might be helpful. Also, patients should be educated on different complications of nasopharyngeal swab testing and their associated symptoms.