ABSTRACT
Three years into the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, there are still growing concerns with the emergence of different variants, unknown long- and short-term effects of the virus, and potential biological mechanisms underlying etiopathogenesis and increased risk for morbidity and mortality. The role of the microbiome in human physiology and the initiation and progression of several oral and systemic diseases have been actively studied in the past decade. With the proof of viral transmission, carriage, and a potential role in etiopathogenesis, saliva and the oral environment have been a focus of COVID-19 research beyond diagnostic purposes. The oral environment hosts diverse microbial communities and contributes to human oral and systemic health. Several investigations have identified disruptions in the oral microbiome in COVID-19 patients. However, all these studies are cross-sectional in nature and present heterogeneity in study design, techniques, and analysis. Therefore, in this undertaking, we (a) systematically reviewed the current literature associating COVID-19 with changes in the microbiome; (b) performed a re-analysis of publicly available data as a means to standardize the analysis, and (c) reported alterations in the microbial characteristics in COVID-19 patients compared to negative controls. Overall, we identified that COVID-19 is associated with oral microbial dysbiosis with significant reduction in diversity. However, alterations in specific bacterial members differed across the study. Re-analysis from our pipeline shed light on Neisseria as the potential key microbial member associated with COVID-19.
ABSTRACT
Background: The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic led to the restructuring of traditional clinical activity;hence, globally, 58% of countries implemented the use of telemedicine to meet their healthcare needs. Background: To examine patients' satisfaction with telemedicine medical service and experience at the level of primary care in the Kingdom of Bahrain. Methods: A retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted on 335 patients who used teleconsultations in January 2022 in primary care. A validated questionnaire was modified to assess patients' satisfaction with teleconsultation medical services and experience during the COVID-19 pandemic. Results: A total of 315 responses were included in the final analysis (response rate 94%). Almost all expressed extreme satisfaction with the medical service as they were able to easily explain their medical problem over the phone and fully understood their illness after the consultation. They were also satisfied with the ability of the doctor to understand their problem, explain their treatment, and provide appropriate management over the phone. Over 90% were satisfied with the consultation time that it does not require transportation and would like to use it in the future. Sharing private or personal information over the phone received the lowest satisfaction rate (77.5%). Conclusion: The overall satisfaction expressed by respondents of this survey with the teleconsultation medical service and experience is very high. Such a result confirms that patients have a positive attitude towards telemedicine services in primary care and are willing to use it again and, therefore, must be adopted as a proactive strategy to ensure long-term sustainability.
ABSTRACT
Background: COVID-19 pneumonia is newly recognized illness has spread rapidly around the world. It causes much morbidity and mortality. Diabetes in COVID-19 patients is individual risk factor and documented in worldwide studies to contribute to severity of the disease, increased length of stay and higher mortality. Aggressive management of blood sugars and acute diabetic complications reduce the length of stay and mortality. Method(s): The improvement project carried over for four months in King Fahd Armed Forces hospital. Randomly selected 200 patients admitted to the hospital with diabetes and COVID-19 studied. The unified treatment protocol applied for all patients and blood sugars monitored closely and optimized. Data collected on bimonthly basis and analyzed. The patient characteristics taken from data extraction tool (Oasis) of hospital. Median values for length of stay and post discharge FBS and RBS were calculated Microsoft Excel tool. Mortality rates calculated by percentages. Result(s): 200 patients studied in the 4 months study period. The median length of stay was 3 days. The mortality rate was 2.5%. The median FBS and RBS in the patient group monitored in the post discharge clinic was 130 mg/dl and 170 mg/dl respectively. The results compared with the standard international studies and improvements in primary and secondary outcomes documented. Discussion(s): The length of stay in the study population in the project was 3 days as compared to 13 days in a major international study helping rapid turnover of beds and financial savings. The mortality was 2.5% compared to 7.3% in a major published study, reflecting the implications of aggressive management of diabetes by teamwork. The median values of FBS 130 mg/dl and RBS of 170mg/dl achieved by regular follow-up and support to the patient by running postdischarged clinic definitely help reducing readmissions and acute complications of uncontrolled diabetes. Conclusion(s): COVID-19 patients with diabetes are more prone to have more severe disease, and tend to stay longer in hospital and have higher mortality compared to non-diabetics. An aggressive preemptive strategy with unified treatment protocols and readily available service of endocrinologist and effective control of diabetes and acute complications of diabetes significantly reduces the length of and mortality in COVID-19 patients with diabetes.
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This paper employed an integrated model for examining behavioral intention to adopt blockchain technology in the supply chain management of manufacturing industries in Bangladesh. The proposed conceptual model was empirically tested using data collected from 189 supply chain managers working in manufacturing organizations in Bangladesh. The findings suggest that perceived usefulness, trading partners' pressure, and competitive pressure are the most important determinant of behavioral intention. © 2023 Taylor & Francis.
ABSTRACT
Introduction: & Background: Diabetes in COVID-19 patients is individual risk factor and documented in worldwide studies to contribute to disease severity, increased length of stay and higher mortality (fig-1). Aggressive management of blood sugars and acute diabetic complications reduce the length of stay and mortality. Methods: Randomly selected 200 patients admitted with diabetes and COVID-19 studied. The unified treatment protocol (fig-2) applied for all patients and blood sugars monitored closely and optimized. Data collected on bimonthly basis and analyzed. Patients’ characteristics taken from data extraction tool (Oasis) of hospital. Median values for length of stay and post discharge FBS and RBS were calculated Microsoft Excel tool. Mortality rates calculated by percentages. Results: 200 patients studied in the 4 months study period. The median length of stay was 3 days. The mortality rate was 2.5% (fig-3,4). The median FBS and RBS in the patient group monitored in the post discharge clinic was 130 mg/dl and 170 mg/dl respectively. The results compared with the standard international studies. Discussion: Diabetes in COVID-19 patients posed great challenge as increased severity and mortalities reported compared to non-diabetic. Taking a pre-emptive strategy to combat this problem by aggressively manage diabetes help in reducing length of stay and morbidity. The length of stay in studded population was 3 days as compared to 13 days in a major international study(Ref: 1) . Financial saving come from rapid turnover of beds. The mortality was 2.5% compared to reported 7.3% in a major study (Ref: 2), reflecting the implications of aggressive management of diabetes. Regular follow-up and support by running post-discharge clinic definitely help reducing readmissions and acute complications of uncontrolled diabetes. Conclusion: Aggressive management of diabetes in COVID-19 patients by tailored treatment protocols and dedicated teams will help to decrease the morbidity and mortality.Presentation: No date and time listed
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BACKGROUND: The novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) disease has transformed innumerable aspects of medical practice, particularly in the field of transplantation. MAIN BODY: Here we describe a single-center approach to creating a generalizable, comprehensive, and graduated set of recommendations to respond in stepwise fashion to the challenges posed by these conditions, and the underlying principles guiding such decisions. CONCLUSIONS: Creation of a stepwise plan will allow transplant centers to respond in a dynamic fashion to the ongoing challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.