Comparison of three prognostic and predictive scores in 10 patients with COVID-19 pneumonia caused by nosocomial infection

Introduction: A nosocomial outbreak of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) occurred in the Toda Chuo General Hospital in Toda City, Saitama Prefecture, Japan in December 2020. The purpose of this study was to compare the accuracy of three prognostic indices for predicting the outcome of COVID-19 in patents with COVID-19 pneumonia. Patients and Methods: Patients in the Department of Urology and Transplant Surgery at Toda Chuo General Hospital with nosocomially acquired COVID-19 confirmed by a positive polymerase chain reaction test were included in the study. We used the COVID-GRAM, International Severe Acute Respiratory and Emerging Infections Consortium's World Health Organization 4C Mortality Score, and COVID-19 Registry Japan to independently predict the prognoses of 10 patients and identify common prognostic factors. All three indices include age, dyspnea, and comorbidities as prognostic factors. Result(s): Ten patients were included in the study, of which two patients died. According to the COVID-GRAM both patients were "high risk," whereas the 4C Mortality Score predicted "high risk" and "very high risk." Conclusion(s): The prognostic scores of all three indices were useful for predicting illness severity.Copyright © 2023 The Authors

Microscale Educational Kits for Learning Chemistry at Home

Educational kits can improve the teaching of experimental sciences, providing an interesting strategy to be explored at home, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. In this sense, chemistry kits based on a microscale design were developed encompassing safety, portability, efficacy, and low cost. They were successfully applied in regular classes and distance learning courses at the University of São Paulo. This article provides the basic guidelines and is complemented with details and examples in the Supporting Information. The kits are adaptable to all levels of teaching, from elementary school to the university. Their application aims to enhance the student skills and interest in science. ©

Galileo’s pendulum as a magnetic balance for studying chemical magnetism at home

A very simple, but rich experiment, encompassing a classical Galileo’s pendulum, has been devised to be performed at home, especially during the Covid-19 pandemics. The experiment uses a miniature supermagnet rod as the pendulum oscillating element suspended from a fixed sewing thread. Its physics can be fully investigated, allowing to study the oscillation movements and to extract the gravity acceleration constant. The interaction with chemical substances can be accurately monitored by equilibrating the magnetic attraction of the probe as it opposes the gravity restoring force. Magnetic susceptibilities can be precisely measured in this way, allowing to access the number of unpaired electrons in the compounds, while stimulating discussions in the light of the ligand field theory. The simplicity and the opportunity of joining physics and chemistry are the most relevant aspects of the experiment. Curiously, the pendulum performance also implies a meditation like posture, requiring complete silence and confinement. In this sense it can also help relaxing our mind during the pandemics. © 2021 Sociedade Brasileira de Quimica. All rights reserved.