ABSTRACT
Background: Cancer patients are at high risk of severe COVID infection and recommended at least three doses of SARS-CoV2 mRNA vaccines. Various anti-neoplastic treatments may affect long-term vaccine immunogenicity. Methods: Patients with solid or haematological cancer were recruited from two Singapore hospitals between July 2021 and March 2022. GenScript cPASS surrogate virus neutralisation assays measured antibody responses, which were correlated with clinical outcomes obtained from medical records and national mandatory-reporting databases. Results: In total, 273 patients were recruited (40 with haematological malignancies and the rest solid tumours). Two-hundred and four patients (74.7%) were receiving active cancer therapy: 98 (35.9%) receiving systemic chemotherapy and the rest targeted or immunotherapy. All patients were seronegative at baseline. After receiving one, two and three doses of SARS-CoV-2-mRNA vaccination, seroconversion rate was 35.2%, 79.4% and 92.4% respectively. After three doses, patients on active treatment for haematological malignancies had lower antibodies (57.3%±46.2) as compared to patients on immunotherapy (94.1%±9.56, p<0.05) and chemotherapy (92.8%±18.1, p<0.05). SARS-CoV-2 infection was reported in 77 (28.2%) patients of which 18 were severe. Conclusion: This study demonstrates high immunogenicity of three doses of vaccines and protection against severe infection in cancer patients.
ABSTRACT
Various vaccines were developed and administered to end the pandemic caused by the novel coronavirus diseases 2019 (COVID-19). These vaccines caused rare side effects not known during clinical trials. We report 2 cases of idiosyncratic drug-induced liver injury where the Pfizer BioNTech COVID-19 mRNA vaccine was administered. Both cases showed hepatocellular liver injury with negative autoimmune features on serology and histology and progressed to a protracted course of severe jaundice and pruritus before resolving without any immunosuppressants. We hope to raise awareness of possible rare side effects of the COVID-19 vaccine so that physicians can be vigilant.
ABSTRACT
Purpose The Malaysian movement control order is a series of national lockdowns implemented by the Malaysian federal government to contain the spread of Coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19). The government has made it mandatory for all non-essential sectors to work remotely to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. The eating behavior of working adults may have altered following the changes in working norms. This study aimed to assess the eating behavior of remote working adults during the COVID-19 pandemic. Design/methodology/approach A total of 159 remote working adults were recruited through a convenience sampling approach. Bodyweight and body height were self-reported by the respondents. Body mass index was calculated according to the cut-off of World Health Organization standards. The eating behavior was evaluated using the eating behavior questionnaire. Findings Results revealed more than half of the remote working respondents did not practice meal skipping. Irrespective of the gender, more than 70% of the respondents consumed either breakfast, lunch or dinner every day. Most of the respondents consumed vegetables, bread/rice/noodles and meat/chicken at least two times per day. Regression analysis revealed meal skipping was associated with younger people, overweight status and median monthly household income. Originality/value Many sectors adopted remote working systems during the COVID-19 pandemic. It is postulated that working remotely will be a new normal even after this pandemic. Until now, to the best of the authors' knowledge, little or no data are available on assessing the eating behavior of remote working adults during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study could provide an insight into the eating behavior of adults during remote working.
ABSTRACT
Purpose This study aims to investigate the relationships among screen time-based sedentary behaviour, eating self-regulatory skills and weight status among private university students during the Movement Control Order (MCO). Design/methodology/approach A total of 186 private university students was enrolled in this cross-sectional study using a combination of snowball and purposive sampling approaches. Anthropometric measurements, including body height, body weight before and during the MCO enforcement were self-reported by the respondents. Screen-time based sedentary behaviour sedentary behaviour was evaluated using HELENA sedentary behaviour questionnaire, whereas the Self-Regulation of Eating Behaviour Questionnaire (SREBQ) was used to determine the eating self-regulatory skills in MCO. Findings Respondents spent most of the time on the internet for non-study purposes (148 +/- 77.7 min). It is also noted that 64.5% of the respondents had medium eating self-regulatory skill during the MCO, with an average score of 3.0 +/- 0.5. Findings from path analysis confirmed that poor eating self-regulation significantly contributed to the weight gain during home confinement (ss = -0.24, p = 0.01). In conclusion, eating self-regulation, but not total screen time, emerged as the determinant for weight gain during the COVID-19 lockdown. Originality/value According to the authors' knowledge, this study was among the few that investigated sedentary behaviour, eating self-regulatory skills and weight status of university students during the COVID-19 pandemic.
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to evaluate the diagnostic performance of the Abbott Architect SARS-CoV-2 IgG assay in COVID-19 patients. METHODS: Residual sera from 177 symptomatic SARS-CoV-2-positive patients and 163 non-COVID-19 patients were tested for antibody with the Abbott SARS-CoV-2 IgG assay (Abbott Diagnostics, Chicago, USA). Clinical records for COVID-19 patients were reviewed to determine the time from onset of clinical illness to testing. RESULTS: Specificity of the assay was 100.0% (95%CI: 97.1-100.0%). The clinical sensitivity of the assay varied depending on time from onset of symptoms, increasing with longer periods from the onset of clinical illness. The clinical sensitivity at ≤6 days was 8.6% (7/81; 95%CI: 3.8-17.5%), at 7-13 days 43.6% (17/39; 95%CI: 28.2-60.2%), at 14-20 days 84.0% (21/25; 95%CI: 63.1-94.7%), and at ≥21 days 84.4% (27/32; 95%CI: 66.5-94.1%). Clinical sensitivity was higher in the ≥14-day group compared to <14 days. There were no differences between the 14-20-day and ≥21-days groups; the combined clinical sensitivity for these groups (≥14 days) was 84.2% (49/57; 71.6-92.1%). CONCLUSION: The Abbott SARS-CoV-2 IgG test has high specificity. Clinical sensitivity was limited in the early stages of disease but improved from 14 days after the onset of clinical symptoms.