Team Success: A Mixed Methods Approach to Evaluating Virtual Team Leadership Behaviors

The virtuality of organizational teams have gained interest and popularity in recent years, and have become more prevalent amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Organizational productivity and team relationship-building may suffer certain pitfalls in virtual communication and support without the understanding of the dynamics of short-term, project-based virtual teams. The manuscript aimed to expand what is currently known about short-term virtual team dynamics related to types of effective leadership behaviors. The present study employed a mixed method approach to understanding the dynamics of these teams at both the individual and team level. Small teams were formed and instructed to collaborate on a virtual survival task. Team-related outcomes were measured at the individual level, such as team coordination, team support, and team success. Additionally, distinct latent profiles of leadership behaviors were developed and analyzed at the team level. Team support, more so than team coordination, significantly predicted team success at the individual level, with instrumental support having the strongest effect. Distinct leadership behaviors emerged in teams and were classified through a latent profile analysis, but none of the profiles were significantly related to team performance scores. Demonstrating instrumental support in short-term virtual teams may improve team success. It is important to understand that distinct leadership behaviors exist and future research should explore the impact of these leadership behaviors on other team-related outcomes. © 2023 by the authors.

EFFICACY AND SAFETY OF COVID-19-SPECIFIC TREATMENTS IN SLE: A MULTICENTRE CASE-CONTROL STUDY

BackgroundCOVID-19 is associated with higher morbidity and mortality burdens in immunocompromised individuals, including patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE;1). These patients might benefit from treatment with anti-SARS-CoV-2-specific antiviral agents and monoclonal antibodies, but clinical evidence is to date limited.Objectivesto comparatively assess the course of COVID-19 in patients with SLE treated or untreated with COVID-19-specific agents.MethodsPatients with SLE and COVID-19 treated with antivirals and/or monoclonal antibodies from February 2020 to December 2022 were identified within a three-centre cohort of tertiary referral centres and age-, sex- SLE extension- and SLE duration-matched 1:2 with patients with a history of untreated COVID-19. Data on COVID-19 presentation, course (including time to viral clearance) and sequelae, along with SLE treatment at COVID-19 onset and SLE course after COVID-19 were collected. COVID-19 severity at presentation was quantitated through a 0-4 analogue scale [2]. Data are expressed as median (interquartile range, IQR) unless otherwise specified.ResultsOver three years, 39% of patients with SLE had at least one COVID-19 event. Eighteen subjects (16 women) were treated with antivirals (n=12) or monoclonal antibodies (n=6) and were matched with 36 controls. There was no difference in the frequency of organ involvement between the two groups. Treated patients were receiving significantly higher prednisone daily doses at COVID-19 onset (6.25 (0-10) vs 0 (0-2.5) mg;p=0.005) and had a higher prevalence of previous high-dose steroid treatments (83% vs 47%;p=0.019) compared to controls. SLE disease activity index (3 (0-5) vs 1 (0-4)) and SLE International Collaborating Clinics Damage Index scores (1 (0-3) vs 0 (0-1)) were also numerically higher in treated patients at COVID-19 onset. Patients in the treated group had more severe COVID-19 at presentation but showed no significant differences with control subjects in terms of COVID-19 resolution, prevalence of sequelae and viral clearance (Table 1). There was also no difference in flare occurrence between the two groups (Log-rank=0.02, p=0.889). Two patients reported mild adverse events with monoclonal antibodies (muscle cramps and chest pain, both self-resolving).ConclusionThese data support the safe use of COVID-19 specific treatments in patients with SLE. Patients treated with antivirals and monoclonal antibodies had a favourable COVID-19 course, despite a more severe presentation and a higher risk of deterioration due to SLE and corticosteroid treatment burden, suggesting the potential efficacy of COVID-specific treatments in preventing severe COVID-19 in patients with SLE.References[1]Strangfeld A et al, Ann Rheum Dis, 2021[2]World Health Organization. Clinical management of COVID-19;Interim guidance 27 May 2020.Table 1.COVID-19 presentation and courseTreated (n=18)Untreated (n=36)Number of vaccine doses3 (2-3)3 (2-3)Time from last vaccine administration (days)118 (53-184)134 (30-210)COVID-19 featuresWHO class at presentation1 (1-1)**0 (0-1)Symptoms at presentation: n(%)Dyspnoea3 (17)3 (8)Fever10 (56)22 (61)Upper Respiratory Symptoms16 (89)29 (81)GI symptoms1 (6)2 (6)Pneumonia3 (17)3 (8)COVID-19 courseTime to symptom resolution (days)5 (4-8)7 (3-8)Time to viral clearance (days)10 (7-14)9 (7-14)Any complication: n(%)1 (6)6 (17)Hospitalisations: n(%)1 (6)0 (0)Long COVID: n(%)3 (17)6 (17)Deaths: n(%)0 (0)1 (3)AcknowledgementsWe thank Dr. Giordano Vitali and his staff for assisting and treating patients with SLE and COVID-19 from IRCCS San Raffaele Hospital in the local mild COVID-19 clinic.Disclosure of InterestsGiuseppe Alvise Ramirez Consultant of: Astrazeneca, Maria Gerosa: None declared, Daniel Arroyo-Sánchez: None declared, Chiara Asperti: None declared, Lorenza Maria Argolini: None declared, Gabriele Gallina: None declared, Chiara Bellocchi: None declared, Martina Cornalba: None declared, Isabella Scotti: None declared, Ilaria Suardi: None declared, Lorenzo Beretta: None declared, Luca Moroni Consultant of: strazeneca, Enrica Bozzolo: None declared, Roberto Caporali Speakers bureau: AbbVie, Amgen, BMS, Celltrion, Fresenius, Galapagos, Janssen, Lilly, Novartis, Pfizer, and UCB, Consultant of: AbbVie, Fresenius, Galapagos, Lilly, Novartis, Pfizer, and UCB, Lorenzo Dagna Consultant of: Abbvie, Amgen, Astra-Zeneca, Biogen, Boehringer-Ingelheim, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Celltrion, Eli Lilly and Company, Galapagos, GlaxoSmithKline, Janssen, Kiniksa Pharmaceuticals, Novartis, Pfizer, Roche, Sanofi-Genzyme, Swedish Orphan Biovitrium (SOBI), and Takeda, Grant/research support from: Abbvie, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Celgene, GlaxoSmithKline, Janssen, Kiniksa, Merk Sharp & Dohme, Mundipharma Pharmaceuticals, Novartis, Pfizer, Roche, Sanofi-Genzyme, and SOBI.

Fintech in the Face of the Economic Crisis Caused by COVID-19

This paper aims to analyze the opportunities of fintech in the face of the economic crisis generated by COVID-19, which has had a great impact on companies and on the lives of people who have been forced to reinvent their work, consumption habits and their interaction with the environment in order to sustain themselves in an increasingly competitive market that affect their lifestyle. It is es-sential to bear in mind that the traditional system and the government have made efforts to main-tain the country's economic stability, but the results have not been very satisfactory. Therefore, a triangular-type exploratory research is carried out from the qualitative and quantitative aspects, through the application of information collection instruments, identifying financial, organizational and strategic of the SMEs in the city of Bogota, that reported their financial statements with cutoff to December 2021 to the Superintendency of Corporations. Finally, it is evident the opportunity for fintech to do disruptive technological innovation for the development of financial products through connectivity from mobile devices for personal use that allow monitoring, electronic commerce, transaction systems, financing, decision-making models and optimization of financial processes at a low cost, which makes it possible to open a range of multiple opportunities for SMEs that seek greater participation and competitiveness where they can offer their products and services in an efficient, agile, comfortable and reliable way.

Between complying and learning: experiences of rural youth in higher education during the pandemic

This article explores the rural youth condition during the Covid-19 pandemic, by recovering the voice and experiences of young students of the Sustainable Agricultural Innovation Engineering program at the Instituto Tecnológico Superior in the municipality of Cuquío, in Jalisco, México. The pandemic is presented as a phenomenon that accentuates the already existing inequalities in rural areas, making visible how young people have faced the challenges of sustaining education in a virtual way, challenging the defi ciencies present in their families and communities. The students experience a decrease in their learning, however, they responded with their resources to the obligation to comply with school requirements despite the changing conditions, which is a sign that the rural youth condition is related to the circumstances experienced at a structural level from their intersubjective experiences in specifi c territories. © 2023 Edipucrs. All rights reserved.

Post-COVID-19 syndrome.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a multisystemic disease caused by an emerging virus called SARS-CoV-2. Most patients with COVID-19 have mild symptoms, or they may be asymptomatic;however, some have severe manifestation, that can even be life threatening. Some patients that recovered from COVID-19 develop chronic symptoms (a clinical entity named post-COVD-19 syndrome), which includes neurological, psychiatric, hematological, cardiovascular, pulmonary and endocrine features. The management of these complications so far is supportive and includes symptomatic medical treatment and physical rehabilitation.Copyright © 2022 Comunicaciones Cientificas Mexicanas S.A. de C.V.. All rights reserved.

Review on bioethical aspects in triage decisions in the intensive care unit during the COVID-19 pandemic

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic caused an increase in patients referred to Intensive Care Units (ICU). The application of triage algorithms caused ethical dilemmas when it was necessary to decide on the clinical management and/or treatment of patients. Objectives: To analyze the main bioethical aspects involved in the algorithms used in triage decision-making in the ICU during the COVID-19 pandemic based on a review of the literature published in the period comprehended from July 2020 to February 2021. Methods: A search was conducted in Pubmed, Scielo, Ovid and Cochrane with the search terms in English and Spanish: "triage,""Covid,""SARS Cov-2", "intensive care unit", "ethics". Articles that did not mention intervention algorithms in the ICU, which do not analyze decision-making, which do not involve the clinical setting, which were not indexed, or repeated articles were excluded. Results: 45 articles were obtained: Two authors independently reviewed the s to eliminate bias, selecting 12 articles that met the selection criteria. It was found that the main ethical aspects that were considered were: unavoidable prioritization, justice, and support for the role of clinical judgment, taking personal rights into account. Conclusions: It is necessary to make bioethical adjustments to standardize the universalization of decision-making at times when the capacity of health services is exceeded. Copyright © 2023 Grecia Alejandra García León, Dania Nimbe Lima Sánchez, Lucía Abascal Miguel.

Identification of inhibitors of the RdRp and Mpro enzymes of SARS-CoV-2 virus by structural homology

TCOVID-19 has enormously impacted global public health due to the high infection and mortality rates associated with the SARS-CoV-2 virus-causing disease. The World Health Organization (WHO) approved 10 safe and effective vaccines. However, there are still significant limitations to their administration in developing countries and remote locations. Concerns remain about the emergence of virus variants that may evade immunity acquired through vaccination. In addition to preventing infection, effective therapeutic agents are needed to treat patients diagnosed with COVID-19. Under this context, the present study aimed to perform a structure-based virtual screening of the protease (Mpro) and RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) enzymes of SARS-CoV-2. For this purpose, homologous protein inhibitors belonging to different viruses were tested. Multiple sequence alignment of these enzymes allowed us to recognize the high conservation of these enzymes between species, especially of the regions comprising the inhibitor binding sites. Therefore, it follows that it is possible to employ a redirection approach to inhibitors that were designed to treat other viral diseases. Molecular docking experiments identified that RTP inhibitors (binding affinity = -7.3 kcal/mol) and V3D (binding affinity = -8.0 kcal/mol) are excellent inhibitors of RdRp and Mpro, respectively. These results suggest that these molecules can virtually bind and inhibit the activity of RdRp and Mpro and thus constitute potential drugs to combat SARS-CoV-2. © 2022 by the authors.

Fintech in the Face of the Economic Crisis Caused by COVID-19

This paper aims to analyze the opportunities of fintech in the face of the economic crisis generated by COVID-19, which has had a great impact on companies and on the lives of people who have been forced to reinvent their work, consumption habits and their interaction with the environment in order to sustain themselves in an increasingly competitive market that affect their lifestyle. It is es-sential to bear in mind that the traditional system and the government have made efforts to main-tain the country's economic stability, but the results have not been very satisfactory. Therefore, a triangular-type exploratory research is carried out from the qualitative and quantitative aspects, through the application of information collection instruments, identifying financial, organizational and strategic of the SMEs in the city of Bogota, that reported their financial statements with cutoff to December 2021 to the Superintendency of Corporations. Finally, it is evident the opportunity for fintech to do disruptive technological innovation for the development of financial products through connectivity from mobile devices for personal use that allow monitoring, electronic commerce, transaction systems, financing, decision-making models and optimization of financial processes at a low cost, which makes it possible to open a range of multiple opportunities for SMEs that seek greater participation and competitiveness where they can offer their products and services in an efficient, agile, comfortable and reliable way.

Can COVID-19 pandemic worsen previous neurological/psychiatric diseases?

Introduction: The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has been affecting the world since January 2020. Although its pathogenesis is primarily directed to the respiratory tract, other organs may be affected, including the nervous system. It has also been shown that the social context (confinement, lack of treatment) has affected neurological patients during this period. The aim of the study it was to assess the subjective worsening of neurological/psychiatric diseases in the context of the SARS-Cov-2 pandemic. Methods: Three groups of neurological/psychiatric patients were included: Patients who had symptomatic COVID-19 (n = 89), patients who had asymptomatic COVID-19 (n = 40), and a control group (n = 47), consisting of neurological/psychiatric patients without a history of SARS-Cov-2 infection. Results: 30.7% of the included individuals considered that their basal pathology had worsened during the study period. This feeling was significantly more frequent (P = 0.01) in patients with symptomatic COVID-19 (39.3%) than in patients of the other 2 groups (21.8%). Worsening was not related to the severity of COVID-19. The neurological conditions that significantly worsened after COVID-19, comparing symptomatic COVID-19 with the other 2 groups, were demyelinating and degenerative diseases. Conclusions: These results confirmed the impact of the SARS-Cov-2 pandemic on patients with neurological/psychiatric diseases. Confinement, lack of medical care, and the threat of diagnosis are surely contributing factors. Although the finding of a higher frequency of worsening in symptomatic COVID-19 patients may be related to greater anxiety/depression in this group of patients, we cannot exclude the role of direct affectation of the nervous system by the virus or damage due to neuroinflammation.

Introducción: La pandemia por SARS-CoV-2 afecta al mundo desde enero de 2020. Aunque su patogenia se dirige principalmente a las vías respiratorias, otros órganos pueden verse afectados, incluido el sistema nervioso. También se ha demostrado que el contexto social (confinamiento, falta de tratamiento) ha afectado a los pacientes neurológicos durante este periodo. El objetivo del estudio fue evaluar el empeoramiento subjetivo de enfermedades neurológicas/psiquiátricas en el contexto de la pandemia por SARS-Cov-2. Métodos: Se incluyeron tres grupos de pacientes neurológicos/psiquiátricos: pacientes que tenían COVID-19 sintomático (n = 89), pacientes que tenían COVID-19 asintomático (n = 40) y un grupo control (n = 47), formado por pacientes neurológicos/psiquiátricos sin antecedentes de infección por SARS-Cov-2. Resultados: El 30,7% de los individuos incluidos consideró que su patología basal había empeorado durante el período de estudio. Este sentimiento fue significativamente más frecuente (p = 0,01) en pacientes con COVID-19 sintomático (39,3%) que en pacientes de los otros 2 grupos (21,8%). El empeoramiento no estuvo relacionado con la gravedad de COVID-19. Las condiciones neurológicas que empeoraron significativamente después de la COVID-19, comparando la COVID-19 sintomática con los otros 2 grupos, fueron las enfermedades desmielinizantes y degenerativas. Conclusiones: estos resultados confirmaron el impacto de la pandemia del SARS-Cov-2 en pacientes con enfermedades neurológicas/psiquiátricas. El encierro, la falta de atención médica y la amenaza del diagnóstico son seguramente factores contribuyentes. Aunque el hallazgo de una mayor frecuencia de empeoramiento en pacientes sintomáticos de COVID-19 puede estar relacionado con una mayor ansiedad/depresión en este grupo de pacientes, no podemos excluir el papel de la afectación directa del sistema nervioso por el virus o el daño por neuroinflamación.

The teaching professional ethical knowledge and its presence in the inclusion of technologies in the present educational context

The objective of this study is to analyze the professional ethical knowledge of teachers in the use of technologies by teachers in training. Starting from the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) model to measure the correct inclusion of technologies in the classroom, a descriptive mixed methodological design study has been carried out. The instruments used were the Likert scale questionnaire and the personal interview, both organized in four dimensions on the professional ethical knowledge, the ethics of technology, the pedagogical technological ethics and the disciplinary technological ethics of future teachers. The questionnaire was applied to a sample of 632 professors in training from a European university in the context of COVID-19 and 429 students participated in the interview. The findings revealed little or no training in professional ethical knowledge of the teachers in training;the need to deepen such knowledge to face the current, pandemic and post-pandemic context of education and the importance of including the ethical component in the TPACK model for a correct and ethical implementation of digital resources in the classroom. © 2022 Authors. All rights reserved.

E-COMMERCE ADOPTION IN THE FRUIT AND VEGETABLE SECTOR: AN ANALYSIS IN PANDEMIC TIMES

The covid-19 pandemic encouraged e-commerce adoption by companies in the fruit and vegetable value chain in response to decreased sales. Despite this, certain challenges for the efficient use of e-commerce persist in the industry. Therefore, this research sought to identify the level of adoption of this business approach in organizations that make part of distribution link of the fruit and vegetable value chain in the city of Bogotá (Colombia). The emica methodology was implemented to recognize the challenges for a more competitive management by this sector in the post-pandemic era. Our findings show that organizations in this sector make extensive use of technologies and present a medium degree of maturity regarding e-commerce, making it necessary to improve interaction with customers in order to promote their products. We could establish that the use of social networks and valuable content creation improve marketing processes, while the need to engage more complex variables —such as digital traffic and omnichannel presence— is recognized a limitation for fully understanding the factors associated with e-commerce adoption. © 2023, Universidad Nacional de Colombia. All rights reserved.

Use of frailty measurements in observational studies on older patients with breast cancer: A systematic review

Background: Among women, breast cancer (BC) is the most frequently diagnosed cancer and is ranked as the leading cause of cancer death. Given that aging is one of the strongest risk factors for the development of breast cancer, older adults (65+) are disproportionately affected. At the same time, more than half of older cancer patients are considered frail or pre-frail and are at increased risk of adverse outcomes including treatment intolerance, as well as morbidity, and mortality. Frailty is thus recognized as an important metric to guide decision-making in geriatric oncology. This study characterizes the use of frailty measurements in observational studies on older women with breast cancer. Material(s) and Method(s): MEDLINE, EMBASE, and Cochrane Library were systematically queried to identify observational studies (cohort, casecontrol, cross-sectional) on older women with breast cancer which evaluate survival or mortality before or after treatment, published from 2017-2022. Studies were managed using Covidence software and assessed for inclusion with predefined criteria by independent reviewers. Data was extracted with respect to the characteristics of the studies. Frailty measurements were identified, the proportion of studies using frailty measurements was calculated, and the prevalence of frailty among BC patients was determined. Result(s): A total of 9823 studies were screened on title and after deduplication. Based on specified criteria, 217 full text studies were assessed for eligibility, 71 of which were excluded, mainly due to incorrect target population with respect to age, or incorrect outcome assessment. Overall, 146 studies were included. Preliminary results revealed that frailty status was not considered in all identified observational studies. Among studies that measured frailty, a relevant proportion of female BC patients were considered frail. Detailed results will be shown at the conference. Conclusion(s): Despite having significant prognostic importance, the use of frailty measurements is not a compulsory practice in observational studies on breast cancer in older women. Additionally, although multiple frailty screening tools have been developed, there is no gold standard measurement used to detect frailty. As a result of such heterogeneity in clinical practice, an established definition of frailty remains elusive. Efforts to create a unified definition and gold standard may improve targeted care and health outcomes for older breast cancer patients. No conflict of interest. Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

Global Projects: An Initiative to Train Chemical Engineering Students in Global Awareness

The United Nations General Assembly established a set of 17 goals in 2015 known as the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). They inspire concerted efforts around the world to be accomplished by the year 2030. Goal 17, “Partnerships for the Goals”, embraces the fundamental strategy to achieve all the goals by the effective collaboration of all nations, institutions, organizations, and individuals. It relies on extensive global awareness as the fundamental ground to build the recognition of diversity and inclusion;striving to consider every perspective in our shared world. Academic institutions, particularly colleges and universities, should take leadership roles in educating the upcoming generation of professionals and leaders to accomplish this mission. Engineering schools and departments are required to demonstrate these as educational outcomes for their students. Specifically, Student Outcomes 2, 3, and 4 of ABET Criterion 3, all involve awareness, communication, and consideration of global contexts. This is critical to address the Sustainable Development goals as the students make up the future workforce in charge of advancing technical solutions for a better and sustainable world. This paper discusses a three-year experience in the Chemical Engineering Department, with the participation of 162 college students, in 33 projects, as a curricular requirement for a capstone course. The project provided a unique opportunity for students to become acquainted with problems around the world and to challenge them to consider multiple solutions. Student teams collaborated with foreign organizations (in the country they chose to address a problem) to analyze and propose solutions for challenges in that country. Activities are organized during the entire semester following project management techniques. They include an early presentation of the proposal, a scheduled progress report presentation, a poster, and a final presentation. Foreign partners are asked to provide their reflections on the experience. All classmates review and peer grade every deliverable from other teams. Students evaluate their teammates' performance and provide a self-assessment of their individual experience at the end of the course. A ChE Global Day was held at the end of the semester to display the posters and presentations to a broad audience with the support of university offices and centers focused on global experiences and international relations. Students earn up to 10% of the definitive grade of the course for these global engagement projects. This approach has proved to be fully sustainable, and with an overwhelming satisfaction of all the participants. It is important to note that the incorporation of a virtual platform during COVID-19 and the continuous monitoring and coaching by the instructor are producing best practices to foster communication between students and stakeholders. © American Society for Engineering Education, 2022

Cytokine storm and stem cell activation in unveiling potential targets for diagnosis and therapy

Cytokine storms illustrate a robust, uncontrolled immune response that can severely disrupt the physiology of a person infected with a virus such as COVID-19. Cytokine storms during the most severe of COVID-19 infections are believed to be one of the major contributing factors to mortality and severe pathologic outcomes of the disease. Dysregulated levels of cytokines during a cytokine storm contribute to changes in different components of the local microenvironments including the stem cell components. Here, we review the pathophysiology of cytokine storms looking at different aspects of viral-induced cytokine release. In particular, we note the changes in the stem cell compartments that occur as well as therapeutic targets relying on targeting stem cells. © 2022 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

IMPACT OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC ON 30-DAY MORTALITY AND UNPLANNED REOPERATION RATES FOR PEDIATRIC CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM TUMORS

INTRODUCTION: Unplanned reoperations and mortality within 30 days are important indicators when evaluating the quality of care provided by surgical systems. We reviewed these outcomes among children with primary central nervous system (CNS) tumors treated during the COVID- 19 pandemic. METHODS: This is a retrospective study of all pediatric patients who underwent neurosurgery for primary CNS tumors at the Philippine General Hospital, the national university hospital, from January 1, 2020 until December 31, 2021. Their clinical presentation, perioperative course, and outcomes were analyzed. During this time, our hospital concurrently served as a COVID-19 referral center, thus, the workforce was restructured, and resources were reallocated to care for COVID-19 patients. RESULTS: A total of 92 pediatric patients with CNS tumors underwent 140 neurosurgical operations during the study period. Two-thirds of the patients were males, and mean age was 9.3 ± 5.0 years (range: 3 months to 18 years). Average preoperative length of stay was 3.9 ± 2.6 days. Tumor resection was performed in 73 patients (79%). Most common histologic diagnoses were medulloblastoma (20%) and low-grade glioma including pilocytic astrocytoma (20%). Overall, the 30-day mortality and unplanned reoperation rates were 12% and 22%, respectively. Eight patients died from brain herniation and/or tumor progression. Reasons for unplanned reoperations were postoperative hydrocephalus (20%), infection (9%), hematoma (7%), and tumor residual (3%). DISCUSSION: Worldwide, the COVID-19 pandemic has altered hospital protocols and shifted resources considerably. The observed high rates of death and reoperation are likely due to delays in seeking care leading to worse neurologic status at presentation, delays in performing essential surgery within the hospital, and shortage of health workers providing specialist care. It is important to periodically assess perioperative outcomes to improve the quality of surgical care given to children with CNS tumors, who remain a vulnerable population during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Experiences of student nurses understood from a focus group assisted by technology during COVID-19

Objective: To explore the experiences of student nurses in their family, social, academic and work contexts in times of COVID-19. Method: The study has a hermeneutical interpretive approach, guided by the technology-assisted focus group technique, which allowed the interaction and free expression of the participants. A methodological guide was used with five questions directed by the moderator and collection of field notes. Grounded theory was applied as a method of analysis of the narrative corpus. Results: the demands of the pandemic and the intersections of emerging roles are found to run through the body;economic capitals turn to and fro;and academic training is perceived as incomplete between absences and support networks. Conclusion: young students have little capital to advance in the transition of life trajectories during the pandemic. Due to the intersection between his studies in exclusive virtuality, emerging family and economic demands, suffer physical, mental and relational alterations;on the other, they consider their learning in this modality insufficient. However, the pedagogical sensitivity of some teachers, the spirituality and the support of the State, are evaluated by them as relevant supports that allow them to adapt to these changes and overcome obstacles.

SARS-CoV-2 Vaccines and motor symptoms in Parkinson disease (PD)

Objective: We aimed to assess whether SARS-CoV2 vaccines have any positive or negative impact on motor symptoms in PD patients. Background: Studies focusing on the relationship between SARSCoV- 2, COVID-19 and PD have provided conflicting results (1). Recently, few cases of severe dyskinesia after receiving BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine have been reported but there is no data about impact of vaccines on motor symptoms in larger series of PD patients (2). Methods: We reviewed the charts of the last two months of consecutive PD patients who were attended monthly by telemedicine during the pandemic and who had received one or two doses of any of the SARSCoV- 2 vaccines available in Peru (BNT162b2, Pfizer/BioNTech and BBIBP-CorV, Sinopharm). We specifically searched for any reported variation on motor symptoms including dyskinesia during a period of at least three days after any of each dose. Results: One hundred eighty-one PD patients met inclusion criteria. 107 males and 74 females were included. Mean age was 65 years old (range 31-99). 178 patients received two doses of SARSCoV2 vaccine (177 Pfizer/BioNTech and 1 Sinopharm respectively) and three patients received only one dose of Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine. Eleven patients (6%) had COVID19 infection during the pandemic. The effect of the infection on parkinsonian symptoms was not evaluated in this report. Only two patients (1.1%) reported some degree of exacerbation following one of the dose of the vaccine. First one presented with increased rigidity and gait impairment soon after the first dose and the second case presented with increased resting tremor that lasted for two weeks also after the first dose. In both cases exacerbation improved spontaneously. Conclusion: The approved mRNA-based vaccines and viral vector vaccines are not expected to interact with the neurodegenerative process nor modify motor symptoms in PD. SARS-CoV-2 vaccines are not known neither to interfere with the current therapies for PD. Some patients have developed exacerbation of motor symptoms or severe dyskinesia after vaccination and the reasons remain unclear but they might be explained by triggering a systemic inflammatory response, by stress or excessive anxiety or due to modification of habitual medication response. These very low incidence should not discourage patients to receive vaccines and we recommend COVID-19 vaccination with approved vaccines for persons with PD, unless there is a specific contraindication.

COVID-19 pandemia impact on patients included in heart rehabilitation programme

Background/Introduction: COVID-19 PANDEMIA has significant cardiovascular implications. Patients with acute or latent infection may present with myocardial injury, endothelial dysfunction and thrombotic complications. Health systems in many places have been overwhelmed and prevention has been pushed aside in favor of urgent care. In many cases, the usual activity of heart rehabilitation programmes is affected. Some programmes have stopped, some have managed to perfom e-rehailitation. Our programme stopped during confinement and restarted on face-to-face mode in June 2020 with adjustments (reduction of capacity, reduction of sessions, hygienic measures) Purpose: Our objective is to analyze the main characterisitcs and main results of the patients included on heart rehabilitation programmes inmediately before and inmediately after the beginning of COVID-19 pandemia and check if the changes made to the programme affected the results of the patients Methods: Retrospective descriptive cohort of consecutive patients admitted to cardiac rehabilitation in the second half of 2019 compared with patients who started inmediately after the pandemia beginning in our city (second half of 2020), The selection criteria are: 1) patients who have started rehabilitation within the established periods. 2) complete cardiac rehabilitation programme. Baseline, ergometric and echocardiographic characteristic are analyzed. Results: 131 patients werw included, 59 in second half 2019 group (2019 group) and 72 in the second half 2020 group (2020 group). The mean age of the 2020 group was lower, without reaching statistical significance (65 +/-13 vs 62 +/-10 p=ns). In the “2019 group” 52(88%) males were included vs 58 males (81%) included in the “2020 group”. The initial burden of cardiovascular risk factors (hypertension, diabetes, dyslipemia, smoking habit) was similar ( see Table 1). The main reason for inclusion in cardiac rehabilitation programme was ischemic heart disease in both groups (49 (83%) VS 57 (79%), p= ns), and the number of vessel affected was similar ( see Table 1). Patients with ventricular ejection fraction less than 50% were similar, too. Initial functional capacity (initial METS) and final functional capacity ( final METS) showed no differences, neither mean BMI. The initial and final lab test parameters analyzed here (LDL-choleterol and HDL-cholesterol) showed no differences between the 2 groups. Conclusion(s): Our group opted to maintain a face-to-face cardiac rehabilitation programme with adaptations (reduction of capacity, reduction of sessions, hygienic measures among others. Despite this adaptation, the baseline characteristics of the patients included, the reason for inclusion on the programme and the main results showed no differences between both groups. (Figure Presented).