Impact of COVID 19 vaccination or infection on disease activity in radiologically isolated syndrome cohort: the VaxiRIS study

Introduction: Nowadays, mandatory vaccination in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) is widely recommended. Regarding COVID19, the absence of specific warnings led to the proposal of vaccination in patients with inflammatory diseases of the central nervous system. However global vaccination hesitancy remains and potential effect of COVID19 vaccination on disease activity needs to be assessed. Objective(s): We aimed to evaluate if COVID19 vaccination or infection increased the risk of clinical conversion to multiple sclerosis or evidence of disease activity (EDA) in a cohort of RIS subjects. Method(s): This multicentric observational study is based on the RISC cohort. Data regarding COVID19 infection and vaccination has been collected between January 2020 and December 2021. We compared the occurrence of clinical conversion to MS and EDA in patients according to their vaccination status. The same analysis was conducted by comparing patients according to their history of COVID19 infection. Result(s): 217 subjects with known vaccination status were included (Mean age: 44yrs, F/M sex ratio 2.7). 80% of subjects had a complete vaccination and 20% were incompletely or not vaccinated. Both groups did not differ regarding the main demographical data and known risk factors of conversion to MS. No difference was found concerning clinical conversion to MS in the vaccinated versus unvaccinated group (2.4% versus 2.5%, p = 0.9747). We did not observe any statistical difference regarding the rate of EDA in both groups. 20% of subjects had a history of COVID-19 infection. The rate of clinical conversion to MS in the infected compared to the noninfected group did not show any difference The global conversion rate to MS in the whole RISC cohort in 2021 was 2.64%, which is comparable with the observed rates during the four previous years (5.75%, 2.55%, 4.79%, and 4.85% per year respectively). Conclusion(s): Our study suggests that COVID19 vaccination does not increase the risk of clinical conversion to MS in RIS subjects and supports that immunization can be safely proposed for these patients.

“We were told that the content we delivered was not as important:” disconnect and disparities in world language student teaching during COVID-19

Student teaching, the most important stage of a teacher candidate's preparation, was profoundly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. For world language (WL) student teachers, the effects were even more pronounced, as language learning and teaching were given an even lower priority than usual. In this study we use collaborative, co-constructed autoethnographic narratives to explore how five participant researchers experienced the sudden shift to emergency remote learning during the beginning stages of the pandemic. Findings indicate an overall feeling of disconnect from classroom practices and district communication, followed by disparate student teaching experiences depending upon the districts' socioeconomic makeup. Other findings corroborate previous research demonstrating decreased student engagement and diminished attention to world language as a content area by both districts and families. However, we also believe that our experiences during the pandemic allowed us to acquire important skills in online teaching and caring for students, which we plan to utilize in our future careers. Within the context of these findings, we offer suggestions for future emergency remote teaching situations in the context of WL teacher education.