Reducing the risk of indoor transmission of SARS-CoV-2 using UV-C disinfection

In this work, SARS-CoV-2 infectivity after UV-C exposure of porous and non-porous surfaces was assessed under controlled environment conditions. The irradiance of a setup of UV-C lamps, placed indoors was studied in detail as a function of the geometry and the distance to the surface. In the presence of living beings, the external UV-C lamps are turned off, and the UV-C lamps mounted inside the disinfection chamber are kept active, allowing a continuous air disinfection and a decreased risk of indoor transmission. © 2022 17th International Conference on Indoor Air Quality and Climate, INDOOR AIR 2022. All rights reserved.

Occurrence of adverse events and factors related to prognosis in a cohort of patients hospitalized with COVID-19 at University hospital - UNICAMP, Brazil

Background. In Brazil, 30.378.061 cases of COVID were reported and 662.866 deaths up to April 27 of 2022. Hospital infections and other hospital adverse events may increase the risk of death in patients with COVID-19. Methods. Cohort study that included 650 adult patients hospitalized with a diagnosis of SARS CoV-2 infection at Hospital HC-UNICAMP from March/20 to March/21. Results. Of the 650 patients included in the study, 139 (21.38%) died. Comparing the patients who died vs those who survived, we observed a statistically significant difference in the occurrence of thromboembolic and vascular events (23% vs 9.8%;OR 1.332;95%CI 1.12-1.59;p < 0,0001), ICU admission (84.9% vs 39.6%;OR 0.675;95%CI 0.62-0.74;p< 0.0001) and the occurrence of HI: bloodstream infections (30.2% vs 8.6%;OR 1.62;95%CI 1.31-1.99;p< 0.0001), VAP (52.5% vs 12.3%;OR 1.882;95%CI 1.57-2.26;p< 0.0001) and UTI (27.3% vs 7.2%;OR 1.672;95%CI 1.32-2.11;p< 0.0001). Gram negative bacteria were the most isolated (62.1%), especially K. pneumoniae, A. baumannii and P. aeruginosa, followed by gram positive bacteria (27%) and fungi (13.8%). When evaluating patients who had thromboembolic events, we observed a statistically significant association with male gender (15.9% vs 7.9%;p 0.003), mean initial D-Dimer values (10,418.00 ng/mL vs 3011.34 ng/ml;p 0.003);acute renal failure (19.1% vs 9.3%;p 0.001) and the occurrence of HI (24.4% vs 7.3%;p< 0.0001). The following factors associated with ICU admission were identified: diabetes mellitus (59.3% vs 40.5%;p< 0.0001);obesity (58.3% vs 41.7%;p 0.003);O2 saturation at admission < 88% (67.8% vs 32.2%);acute renal failure (78.6% vs 21.4%;p< 0.0001) and the occurrence of HI (87.8% vs 12.2%;p< 0.0001). Logistic regression analysis identified the following variables independently associated with death: age (OR 1,034;CI 1,015-1,052), ICU admission (OR 1,107;CI 1,596-5,868), use of vasoactive drugs (OR 2,93;CI 1,79-4,82), development of acute renal failure (OR 7,756;CI 4,537-13,26), and the occurrence of VAP (OR 2,205;CI 1,227-3,961) (Table 1). Conclusion. Adverse events, particularly HI, have an important impact on the evolution of patients with COVID-19, reinforcing the need for prevention and control measures to be optimized as an essential part of the care for these patients.

SARS-CoV-2 contamination potential in environmental and wastewaters in the Algarve region, Southern Portugal

The Ria Formosa, Southern Portugal (Algarve) is a mesotidal lagoon with restricted exchange with Atlantic Ocean. Due to arid Mediterranean climate and absence of large freshwater inputs, the lagoon remains hypersaline relative to adjacent ocean (>= 37 psu). Generally, fecal coliforms and land-derived bacteria do not survive long in seawater due to UV, osmotic shock, oligotrophy and competition with marine bacteria. However, survival of human pathogenic viruses in natural waters remains relatively unknown. In view of 2020-2021 SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, this preliminary study aimed to estimate potential contamination by wastewater and persistence in marine environment. Five sampling campaigns (45 total samples) were completed in 2020 and 2021 at three stations in the lagoon, as well as inflow and outflow from three wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). Despite relatively high fecal contamination at lagoon stations, SARS-CoV-2 could not be detected in surface waters using improved methodology. Untreated wastewaters were positive at Faro-Aeroporto 21/10/2020, 14/12/2020, 08/03/2021;Vilamoura 21/10/2020, 14/12/2020;Olhao 14/12/2020. All treated wastewaters were negative, as well as environmental samples. Highest viral titers were observed in Faro-Aeroporto WWTP on 8 March 2021 (1.35 x 10(5) genomic copies L-1) coinciding with peak SARS-CoV-2 cumulative positive cases in Algarve (2.03 x 10(4)), yet SARS-CoV-2 was not detected in Vilamoura and Olhao raw wastewater then. Thus, the contamination potential of SARS-CoV-2 seemed non-existent in the Ria Formosa during peak pandemic surges in Algarve. However, predicted climate change and its impact on microbial populations remains a challenge to be addressed by both health and tourist authorities.

Design of an Interactive Mobile Platform to Assist Communities in Voluntary Cooperation to Counter the COVID-19 Outbreak

The COVID-19 pandemic brought some challenges to humanity, such as the need to reduce the circulation of people while still meeting basic needs such as food, health care and education. People with commodities or who belong to risk groups needed to isolate themselves and the world saw several new technologies and business models being launched in a short time. This work, in line with the necessary innovations given the health crisis, but also striving for solidarity, proposes and demonstrates the functions of a free platform based on a mobile application that provides essential services for the population of risk groups. In addition, it also uses the moment to launch and encourage the consumption of services by the application that can speed up the orientation work and even increase the public safety of the university campus. This project was implemented at one University. © 2021, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

Guidelines for occupational therapy assistance in COVID-19 pandemic and post-pandemic perspectives

INTRODUCTION: COVID-19 is a highly contagious disease of a recent presentation, caused by the new coronavirus called SARS-CoV-2 because it belongs to the SARS family (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome). Scientifically grounded guidelines are needed on occupational therapists' interventions in caring for people with COVID-19 and on prospects for post-pandemic care. OBJECTIVE: To present guidelines and recommendations to occupational therapists on the clinical management of patients with COVID-19 at different levels of health care, to favor safe care with technical and scientific quality. METHOD: Ten occupational therapists from different Brazilian states, experts in their areas of expertise, met, through web conferences, to develop guidelines for the work of the occupational therapist in the pandemic of COVID-19. The target audience of these guidelines is composed of occupational therapists, managers, and other professionals interested in the knowledge and actions of Occupational Therapy with patients with COVID-19 and their families. As there are still no studies and systematic reviews of scientific evidence related to occupational therapy in COVID-19, the best guidelines and evidence available in the literature were analyzed. A wide review of national and international documents published on the subject, such as scientific articles and resolutions of the World Health Organization and the Ministry of Health of Brazil, was carried out. Publications made available by international occupational therapy societies or professional organizations, such as the World Federation of Occupational Therapists, the American Association of Occupational Therapists, the Royal College of Occupational Therapists from United Kingdom, and the Colegio Profesional de Terapeutas Ocupacionales de la Comunidad from Madrid, Spain. RESULTS: The guidelines in this publication do not replace institutional and national policies. They are based on the principles of Occupational Science and the best evidence available in the literature and the experience of all professionals involved in the production of this document. Topics such as occupational deprivation resulting from the pandemic and the strategy of social detachment and the technical resources recommended for the promotion of occupational performance and management of pain and symptoms in different contexts were addressed, with emphasis on the role of the occupational therapist in primary care, hospital care and palliative care. FINAL CONSIDERATIONS: Given the recent presentation of COVID-19, there is a need for constant updating of information, and new scientific evidence may be published. Clinical reasoning is essential for planning and implementing assistance to patients and their families or caregivers. It will be necessary to monitor patients who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 to verify the consequences of COVID-19, their needs and demands of rehabilitation, post-hospitalization, and post-pandemic. © 2020 Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirao Preto - U.S.P.. All rights reserved.

Knowledge and use of personal protective equipment by nursing professionals during the Covid-19 pandemic

OBJECTIVE: To explore the knowledge and use of personal protective equipment by nursing professionals of Primary Health Care during the Covid-19 pandemic. METHOD: This is an exploratory study of a non-probabilistic sample developed in Basic Health Units in the city of Picos, Piaui, Brazil. Data were collected between June and August 2020, by phone call, following a semi-structured script, with responses recording and transcription. For material analysis, the software IRaMuTeQ was used for statistical textual analyses: Descending Hierarchical Classification, similarity analysis, and word cloud. RESULTS: From the corpus of 6,873 words and 832 lexical units, three categories were created: (1) motivations and barriers for use (20.9%);(2) handling of personal protective equipment (classes 5 and 4) with 25% and 21.6%, respectively, and (3) measures to protect users and health professionals (classes 3 and 5) with 17.6% and 14.9%. CONCLUSION: The nursing professionals interviewed demonstrated that they did not have sufficient knowledge for the proper use of the equipment, which could compromise their integrity and that of the patient as a subject who receives unsafe care.

Knowledge and use of personal protective equipment by nursing professionals during the Covid-19 pandemic

Objective: To explore the knowledge and use of personal protective equipment by nursing professionals of Primary Health Care during the Covid-19 pandemic. Method: This is an exploratory study of a non-probabilistic sample developed in Basic Health Units in the city of Picos, Piaui, Brazil. Data were collected between June and August 2020, by phone call, following a semi-structured script, with responses recording and transcription. For material analysis, the software IRaMuTeQ was used for statistical textual analyses: Descending Hierarchical Classification, similarity analysis, and word cloud. Results: From the corpus of 6,873 words and 832 lexical units, three categories were created: (1) motivations and barriers for use (20.9%);(2) handling of personal protective equipment (classes 5 and 4) with 25% and 21.6%, respectively, and (3) measures to protect users and health professionals (classes 3 and 5) with 17.6% and 14.9%. Conclusion: The nursing professionals interviewed demonstrated that they did not have sufficient knowledge for the proper use of the equipment, which could compromise their integrity and that of the patient as a subject who receives unsafe care.