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Background/Objectives: Chemosensory dysfunction is a hallmark of SARS-CoV-2 infection;nevertheless, the genetic factors predisposing to long-term smell and taste loss are still unknown. This study aims to identify candidate genes possibly involved in persistent smell/taste loss through Whole Genome Sequencing (WGS) analysis of a large cohort of 130 fully characterised Italian individuals, previously diagnosed with COVID-19. Method(s): DNA of all analysed patients was used to perform WGS analysis, and a detailed personal anamnesis was collected. Moreover, orthonasal function was assessed through the extended Sniffin' Sticks test, retronasal function was tested with 20 powdered tasteless aromas, and taste was determined with validated Taste Strips. Self-reported smell and taste alterations were assessed via Visual Analog Scales plus questionnaires. Result(s): The clinical evaluation allowed to classify the patients in two groups: 88 cases affected by persistent smell dysfunction (median age, 49) and 42 controls (median age, 51). Among cases, 26.1% (n = 23) were functionally anosmic and 73.9% (n = 65) were hyposmic. Within cases, 77 underwent the taste strip test: 53.2% (n = 41) presented hypogeusia and 46.8% (n = 36) were normogeusic. Preliminary WGS results on a first subset of 76 samples confirmed the important role of UGT2A1 gene, previously described as involved in smell loss. Interestingly, we identified a nonsense variant (rs111696697, MAF 0.046) significantly associated with anosmia in males (p-value: 0.0183). Conclusion(s): Here, for the first time a large cohort of patients, fully characterised through a comprehensive psychophysical evaluation of smell and taste, have been analysed to better define the genetic bases of COVID-19-related persistent chemosensory dysfunction.
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The novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 is associated with a significant incidence of neuropsychiatric disorders, which tend to have a long course in the post-COVID period. Objective(s): to study post-COVID mental disorders in clinical psychiatric practice. Patients and methods. 30 patients aged 37.75+/-14.07 years with anamnesis of SARS-CoV-2 infection were examined. Clinical scale assessment was carried out using the Hamilton Depression and Anxiety Scale. The Symptom-Checklist (SCL-90-R) was used to assess the psychopathological status of the patient. Patients' cognitive functioning was assessed using the Mini-Cog Cognitive Assessment Questionnaire. Patients' sleep quality was assessed by the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). Results and discussion. Mental disorders associated with a previous coronavirus infection are observed in a wide time range from less than 1 month to a year after the previous disease, and in no case did the coronavirus infection have a severe course. Sleep disorders, anxiety and depressive disorders, which did not exceed a moderate degree of severity, and asthenia dominated in the structure of the post-COVID syndrome. The level of mental distress in patients with post-COVID syndrome increased 2 times. Post-COVID mental disorders are interrelated with female gender, age, and psychotraumatic factors associated with the pandemic. Cognitive impairment mediated by mental disorders was observed in approximately 60% of patients and did not reach the degree of dementia. Conclusion. The clinical picture of the post-COVID syndrome is represented by a wide range of mental disorders, the development of which involves not only biological, but also psychosocial factors associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, which determines the specifics of diagnostic approaches and the feasibility of complex treatment of the post-COVID syndrome.Copyright © 2022 Ima-Press Publishing House. All rights reserved.
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The most common causes of acute hepatitis in children are hepatitis A and autoimmune hepatitis. Hepatitis in the course of Wilson's disease is sporadically registered in adolescents. An increase of activity of aminotransferases both in the course of multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) and in the course of COVID-19 has been observed. Hepatitis is common in children with MIS-C and is associated with a more severe presentation and persistent elevation of liver function tests. To date, no cases of acute hepatitis in children due to COVID-19 have been reported. We present 2 cases of acute hepatitis in children where the only cause seems to be a previous asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection.Copyright © 2023 Termedia Publishing House Ltd.. All rights reserved.
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BACKGROUND: SARS-CoV-2 virus infection is a pandemic that began to emerge in December 2019 in various countries with high death rates of 4-9% until now. In March 2020, Indonesia found its first case where the condition of the infection kept spreading to various regions in Indonesia. Different regional conditions in Indonesia make it difficult to manage this virus infection. The capability of the regional hospitals to detect this virus infection with their facilities and infrastructure is required. CASE PRESENTATION: A 17-year-old man came to the Ajibarang Regional Hospital with complaints of coughs and colds felt for 4 days and fever for 2 days. Physical examination found a good general condition, moderate pain, the temperature of 38.8degreeC, pharyngeal hyperemia, and minimal lung crackles sound. Laboratory tests showed normal leukocytes, platelet, and hemoglobin levels. Chest radiograph was suggestive of bronchitis. The patient was hospitalized for approximately 4 days until the fever resolved and was discharged. Five days after the patient was discharged from the hospital, the results of the viral load examination using real-time polymerase chain reaction confirmed positive for Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). CONCLUSION(S): This case showed unusual conditions of a mild clinical COVID-19 infection, laboratory results that did not support viral infections, as well as radiology examination of only bronchitis. The viral load test was found to be positive. Therefore, the diagnosis of the COVID-19 infection requires a comprehensive interpretation of complete history taking, clinical examination, laboratory, and radiology examinations for clinicians working with limited hospital facilities and infrastructures.Copyright © 2023 Edward Kurnia Setiawan Limijadi, Inge Cahya Ramadhani, Dian Tunjungsari Hartutiningtyas, Gara Samara Brajadenta.
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Objective: To determine the impact of Covid-19 vaccines on sperm quality. Study Design: Case control study Place and Duration of Study: Department of Diabetes & Endocrinology, Chandka Medical College Hospital Larkana from 1st July 2022 to 31st December 2022. Methodology: Patients were enrolled as 50 those who had PCR confirmed Covid 19 history and 50 those who never got Covid-19. On this basis those cases who had a Covid-19 history were placed in group A while those who did not had Covid-19 history were placed in Group B. Patients clinical history including anamnesis, marital status, cryptorchidism, operative varicocele, or any chronic ailment were documented. A counting chamber was used for sperm count in a 100 square area. Spermatozoa was measured as either rapid-progressively motile (Type a), or as slow-progressively-motile (Type b), or as situ motile (Type c), and finally as immobile (Type d). The total semen sperm count was gained by multiplication of concentration of sperm with its volume. Result(s): Volume and concentration was significantly different in both study groups. Difference in tail anomaly was also observed. In group A, it was 29.20 +/- 10.26 while 27.59 +/- 12.31 was the value of group B. Almost equal number of participants were married. Azoospermia was only found among Covid patients. Conclusion(s): Azoospermia was only found in Covid patients and no such results were obtained from Covid negative patients.Copyright © 2023 Lahore Medical And Dental College. All rights reserved.
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The global pandemic of coronavirus infection (COVID-19) has set complex diagnostic tasks for doctors of polyclinics and hospitals. Considering the simultaneous pandemic spread of two infectious diseases - COVID-19 and HIV infection, the problem of studying the clinical features of combined COVID-19/HIV infection becomes urgent. The aim of the study was to determine the features of the diagnosis and course of COVID-19 against the background of HIV infection in patients undergoing inpatient treatment. Material and methods. The study was conducted on the basis of the temporary Clinical Medical Center COVID-19 of the A.I. Yevdokimov Moscow State University of Medicine and Dentistry of the Ministry of Healthcare of the Russian Federation in Moscow from October 2020 to January 2022. The study included 31 233 patients with COVID-19 complicated by pneumonia. To analyze the features of the course of combined COVID-19/HIV infection, a group of 51 HIV-infected patients was identified. The diagnosis of COVID-19 was determined based on the detection of SARS-CoV-2 RNA by PCR in nasal/oropharyngeal smears and/or according to computed tomography of the lungs (CT). During the study, age, gender, anamnesis, objective examination data were analyzed, taking into account the results of CT scans of the chest organs, data from routine laboratory blood tests, oxygen support regimens, treatment outcomes and duration of detection of SARS-CoV-2 RNA. All patients were treated according to the Temporary Clinical Guidelines for the Diagnosis and Treatment of COVID-19, 14 version dated 12/27/2021. Results. The number of patients with combined HIV infection and SARS-CoV-2 out of the total number of hospitalized COVID-19 patients (n=31 233) was 0.16%. Upon admission, 30 (59%) patients reported having HIV infection and receiving antiretroviral therapy (ART). HIV infection was first diagnosed in 21 patients at 2-3 weeks of inpatient treatment. The average age of patients with SARS-Cov-2/HIV co-infection was 1.5 times less than in patients without HIV (41.1+/-5.3 and 64.4+/-10.1, respectively) (p<=0.05). Concomitant pathology (hypertension, type 2 diabetes mellitus, chronic kidney disease and chronic lung diseases) was less common (51%) in the group of combined infection than in the group without HIV (83%). However, in 41% of patients with coinfection, chronic viral hepatitis B, C was detected, in contrast to 0.3% of cases of COVID-19 patients without HIV. 26 (51%) patients were discharged with improvement, while the average bed-day did not differ from patients without HIV infection (13.4+/-4.5 days and 11.7+/-5.2, respectively) (p>=0.05). 7 (24%) patients at the time of discharge (16.8+/-4.2 days) with clinical and laboratory improvement maintained a positive result of PCR RNA on SARS-Cov-2. In 22 (43%) patients with coinfection, hospitalization was fatal for 3 to 21 days of treatment, with ARDS with respiratory and multiple organ failure, which is 3.6 times higher than in patients without HIV infection. The analysis showed that, regardless of the result of PCR on SARS-CoV-2 RNA, in non-specialized hospitals, HIV testing is indicated for young patients with fever for more than 14 days, with lung damage in the form of bilateral interstitial changes according to CT, a history of chronic hepatitis C, B, with progressive severity of the condition on against the background of COVID-19 therapy. Early consultation of an infectious disease specialist, examination of sputum/lavage by PCR for pathogens of opportunistic infections and the appointment of ART and drugs for the treatment of opportunistic diseases will improve the quality of medical care for patients in a non-core HIV hospital will improve the prognosis of COVID-19.Copyright © Eco-Vector, 2022.
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The novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 is associated with a significant incidence of neuropsychiatric disorders, which tend to have a long course in the post-COVID period. Objective(s): to study post-COVID mental disorders in clinical psychiatric practice. Patients and methods. 30 patients aged 37.75+/-14.07 years with anamnesis of SARS-CoV-2 infection were examined. Clinical scale assessment was carried out using the Hamilton Depression and Anxiety Scale. The Symptom-Checklist (SCL-90-R) was used to assess the psychopathological status of the patient. Patients' cognitive functioning was assessed using the Mini-Cog Cognitive Assessment Questionnaire. Patients' sleep quality was assessed by the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). Results and discussion. Mental disorders associated with a previous coronavirus infection are observed in a wide time range from less than 1 month to a year after the previous disease, and in no case did the coronavirus infection have a severe course. Sleep disorders, anxiety and depressive disorders, which did not exceed a moderate degree of severity, and asthenia dominated in the structure of the post-COVID syndrome. The level of mental distress in patients with post-COVID syndrome increased 2 times. Post-COVID mental disorders are interrelated with female gender, age, and psychotraumatic factors associated with the pandemic. Cognitive impairment mediated by mental disorders was observed in approximately 60% of patients and did not reach the degree of dementia. Conclusion. The clinical picture of the post-COVID syndrome is represented by a wide range of mental disorders, the development of which involves not only biological, but also psychosocial factors associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, which determines the specifics of diagnostic approaches and the feasibility of complex treatment of the post-COVID syndrome.Copyright © 2022 Ima-Press Publishing House. All rights reserved.
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Another rise in the incidence of a new coronavirus infection (COVID-19), due to the penetration of the SARS-CoV-2 delta strain into Russia in the second half of April 2021, is characterized by rapid spread, severe course in adults and an increase in cases of the disease among children. The aim of the work is to assess the clinical and laboratory parameters of a new coronavirus infection (COVID-19) in children. Material and methods. The results of clinical and laboratory examination and complex therapy of 95 children with moderate and severe forms of COVID-19, hospitalized in the Republican Clinical Infectious Diseases Hospital in Ufa from May to September 2021, are presented. Results. The anamnesis of the disease and life, epidemiological, clinical and laboratory, instrumental data obtained during the examination of children with COVID-19 in the course of the disease were studied. Among the clinical manifestations in children, symptoms of acute respiratory infection (37.9+/-4.98%), pneumonia without respiratory failure (26.3+/-4.52%), pneumonia with acute respiratory failure (33.7+/-4.85%). In 2 patients of the first months of life (2.1+/-1.47%), against the background of a aggravated premorbid background, immunodeficiency, COVID-19 proceeded in an extremely severe form with a fatal outcome. Conclusion. The clinical manifestations of COVID-19 are similar in children and adults, but differ in the frequency of respiratory symptoms. A severe course with a fatal outcome was registered in children in the first months of life with a burdened premorbid background.Copyright © Infectious Diseases: News, Opinions, Training 2022.
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The pandemic of coronavirus infection is characterized by a low percentage of complications and severe forms in sick children compared to the adult population. However, there have been described cases of severe clinical course of COVID-19 in children with comorbidities among which is obesity. The aim of this study was to analyze the severe course of a new coronavirus infection paralleled with morbid obesity in a pediatric patient. Materials and methods. All accompanying patient medical documentation was examined. Results and discussion. From the anamnesis of life it is known that the patient was long time complained of intensively increased body weight, on which she repeatedly underwent examinations. In 2018, hypothalamic pubertal syndrome was diagnosed for the first time, for which the patient received hypoglycemic and antihypertensive drugs, hepatoprotectors on an ongoing basis. In the epidemiological anamnesis, the intrafamilial COVID-19 contact with mother was established. The main disease began acutely with a rise in body temperature up to 39-39.5degreeC, cough and weakness. During the first week of illness, the patient did not seek medical help and receive self-treatment, but the positive effect was not achieved. Saturation measurement showed low oxygen level (SpO2 71%). In this regard, the patient underwent chest computed tomography, which revealed a bilateral interstitial polysegmental lung lesion with signs of consolidation. After emergency hospitalization, the patient was prescribed empiric antibiotic therapy, anti-inflammatory and antithrombotic treatment, as well as respiratory support. A positive PCR result of a throat and nasal swab for SARS-CoV-2 was obtained in the hospital. Due to a poor response to therapy, the patient was transferred to a respiratory hospital. At the time of hospitalization, the condition was considered severe due to severe respiratory failure and premorbidity. The range of treatments included oxygenotherapy, antibacterial and anticoagulation therapy, as well as surfactant and the nucleoside analogue Remdesivir. During treatment, the clinical picture gained a positive trend, and after 6 days of hospitalization the patient no longer needed respiratory support. According to the results of repeated computed tomography, bilateral interstitial polysegmental pneumonia was diagnosed with damage to the lung tissue up to 95%. The patient remained stable and showed no signs of respiratory failure during the following days of hospitalization. On the 20th day of ilness, the patient was discharged from hospital with full clinical recovery. Conclusion. This clinical case demonstrates the role of premorbid background in aggravating the clinical picture of a new coronavirus infection in a child. Careful study of anamnestic characteristics is necessary in patients of any age, even with an uncomplicated disease course.Copyright © 2023 Saint Petersburg Pasteur Institute. All rights reserved.
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The novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 is associated with a significant incidence of neuropsychiatric disorders, which tend to have a long course in the post-COVID period. Objective(s): to study post-COVID mental disorders in clinical psychiatric practice. Patients and methods. 30 patients aged 37.75+/-14.07 years with anamnesis of SARS-CoV-2 infection were examined. Clinical scale assessment was carried out using the Hamilton Depression and Anxiety Scale. The Symptom-Checklist (SCL-90-R) was used to assess the psychopathological status of the patient. Patients' cognitive functioning was assessed using the Mini-Cog Cognitive Assessment Questionnaire. Patients' sleep quality was assessed by the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). Results and discussion. Mental disorders associated with a previous coronavirus infection are observed in a wide time range from less than 1 month to a year after the previous disease, and in no case did the coronavirus infection have a severe course. Sleep disorders, anxiety and depressive disorders, which did not exceed a moderate degree of severity, and asthenia dominated in the structure of the post-COVID syndrome. The level of mental distress in patients with post-COVID syndrome increased 2 times. Post-COVID mental disorders are interrelated with female gender, age, and psychotraumatic factors associated with the pandemic. Cognitive impairment mediated by mental disorders was observed in approximately 60% of patients and did not reach the degree of dementia. Conclusion. The clinical picture of the post-COVID syndrome is represented by a wide range of mental disorders, the development of which involves not only biological, but also psychosocial factors associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, which determines the specifics of diagnostic approaches and the feasibility of complex treatment of the post-COVID syndrome.Copyright © 2022 Ima-Press Publishing House. All rights reserved.
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Objective: Patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) are at serious risk for COVID-19. Studies have reported that the levels of inflammation markers correlate with the clinical severity of COVID-19. The aim of this study is to investigate the relationship between HbA1c values and inflammatory markers that have been shown to closely related to the severity of disease in patients with COVID-19. Materials-Methods: In this study, cases older than 18 years of age who were hospitalized in Hatay State Hospital, between November 2020 and January 2021, with findings consistent with COVID-19 in RT-PCR (+) or thorax computer tomography were included. In the anamnesis forms of the cases, age, gender, chronic disease, drugs used, smoking and alcohol use were reported. In laboratory findings, both routine biochemistry parameters of the cases and HbA1c, D-Dimer, CRP and Ferritin values were determined. Correlation analyses were performed between HbA1c and CRP, D-Dimer and Ferritin values. Result(s): 91 patients who were hospitalized in the COVID-19 service department of the hospital, of which 33 (36.3%) women and 58 (63.7%) men with mean ages 67 (22-84) and 61 (37-89) respectively. The most common diseases observed in the cases were diabetes (90%), hypertension (75.5%) and coronary artery disease (69%), respectively. HbA1c, CRP, D-Dimer and Ferritin levels were 8.70 (7.10-10.00), 14.33 (5.15-59.90), 0.85 (0.38-2.28) and 491.30 (258.90-939.30) respectively. While no significant correlation was found between HbA1c and levels of inflammatory parameters (p > 0.05), a weak correlation was observed between CRP and D-Dimer (p = 0.045;r = 0.211). Conclusion(s): It was observed that most of the patients hospitalized due to COVID-19 were diabetic, and HbA1c levels were not associated with inflammatory parameters.
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Aim. To study clinical and anamnestic data, as well as inhospital outcomes in patients with ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) with prior coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) compared with previously uninfected STEMI patients. Material and methods. This prospective study included 181 patients treated for STEMI. The patients were divided into 2 groups, depending on the anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgG titer as follows: the main group included 62 seropositive patients, while the control group - 119 seronegative patients without prior COVID-19. Anamnesis, clinical and paraclinical examination, including electrocardiography, echocardiography, coronary angiography, were performed. Mortality and incidence of STEMI complications at the hospital stage were analyzed. Results. The mean age of the patients was 62,6+/-12,3 years. The vast majority were men (69,1% (n=125)). The median time from the onset of COVID-19 manifestations to STEMI was 60,00 [45,00;83,00] days. According to, the patients of both groups were comparable the severity of circulatory failure (p>0,05). Coronary angiography found that in patients of the main group, Thrombolysis In Myocardial Infarction (TIMI) score of 0-1 in the infarct-related artery was recorded much less frequently (62,9% (n=39) vs, 77,3% (n=92), p=0,0397). Patients of the main group demonstrated a lower concentration of leukocytes (9,30*109/l [7,80;11,40] vs 10,70*109/l [8,40;14,00], p=0,0065), higher levels of C-reactive protein (21,5 mg/L [9,1;55,8] vs 10,2 mg/L [5,1;20,5], p=0,0002) and troponin I (9,6 ng/mL [2,2;26,0] vs 7,6 ng/mL [2,2;11,5], p=0,0486). Lethal outcome was recorded in 6,5% (n=4) of cases in the main group and 8,4% (n=10) in the control group (p=0,6409). Both groups were comparable in terms of the incidence of complications (recurrent myocardial infarction, ventricular fibrillation, complete atrioventricular block, stroke, gastrointestinal bleeding) during hospitalization (p>0,05). Conclusion. Patients with STEMI after COVID-19, despite a more burdened history and higher levels of C-reactive protein and troponin I, compared with STEMI patients without COVID-19, did not differ significantly in clinical status, morbidity, and inhospital mortality.Copyright © 2023, Silicea-Poligraf. All rights reserved.
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The reason for the publication of this article was the increase in the number of children with long-standing organic foreign bodies in the respiratory tract, the late diagnosis of which causes severe complications. The article presents the three most significant cases from the general series, when the diagnosis and treatment tactics at the stages of treatment were associated with errors both at the prehospital stage and in the hospital. In the first clinical case, as it turned out, the child had aspired multiple foreign bodies. The first bronchoscopy revealed one solid foreign body. Due to severe fibrinous-purulent endobronchitis and contact bleeding, the bronchoscopy procedure was aborted. However, after 10 days, the child independently coughed up the second seed, which was a surprise to us. Control bronchoscopy after 3 weeks revealed no foreign bodies. In the second clinical observation, a child developed bronchiectasis due to a long stay of a foreign body in the respiratory tract. The third case demonstrates the diagnosis and treatment tactics in a child with a foreign body against the background of a coronavirus infection. In the first and third cases, the results of treatment were satisfactory. In the second case, a long stay of peanuts in the respiratory tract led to bronchiectasis in the lower lobe of the left lung, which required its removal. In the follow-up, there are no complaints, the child grows and develops according to age. The study analyzes the mistakes made at the stages of diagnosis and treatment of children with foreign bodies in the respiratory tract. Conclusion. Young children with long-term and atypically current respiratory diseases, dubious and even normal radiological picture with the absence of comprehensive information on the anamnesis of diseases should alert the doctor to the possibility of aspiration of a foreign body in the respiratory tract and serve as the basis for performing bronchoscopy.Copyright © 2023 National Academy of Pediatric Science and Innovation. All rights reserved.
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COVID-19 disease is caused by the new coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. The disease first appeared in China in 2019 and quickly spread throughout the world. It primarily affects the respiratory tract, manifested by fever, cough and the devel-opment of dyspnoea, but the symptoms and complications can affect any organ system. Neurological symptoms include headaches, muscle and joint pain, taste and smell disorders. Complications include inflammatory diseases of the central nervous system, ataxia, peripheral nerve and muscle diseases, worsening of extra-pyramidal diseases, and neuropsychiatric disorders. This paper presents a case report of a 62-year-old man with cere bellar syndrome, ataxia, intentional tremor and hypermetria when dealing with COVID-19 disease.Copyright © 2021 Neuroendocrinology Letters.
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We reviewed literature about the effects of novel coronavirus disease COVID-19 on the digestive system. The review ses the pathogenesis, the natural history, and the frequency of gastrointestinal and hepatobiliary complications in patientCOVID-19. We briefly overviewed therapy for intestinal, liver, and pancreatic damage by COVID-19.Copyright © 2021, Media Sphera Publishing Group. All rights reserved.
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Background: Clinical Trial Recruitment Support Systems can booster patient inclusion of clinical trials by automatically analyzing eligibility criteria based on electronic health records. However, missing interoperability has hindered introduction of those systems on a broader scale. Purpose(s): Our aim was to develop a recruitment support system based on FHIR R4 and evaluate its usage and features in a cardiology department. Methods/Implementation: Clinical conditions, anamnesis, examinations, allergies, medication, laboratory data and echocardiography results were imported as FHIR resources. Trial study nurses and physicians were enabled to add new and edit trial information and input inclusion and exclusion criteria using a web-browser user interface in the hospital intranet. All information were recorded on the server side as the FHIR resources ResearchStudy and Group . Eligibility criteria linked by the logical operation OR were represented by using multiple FHIR Group resources for enrollment. On the client side, eligibility criteria were transformed to a tree-like structure (see Figure 1). Upon user demand, all hospitalized and ambulatory patients in the cardiology department were instantly screened for trial eligibility using the FHIR eligibility criteria on the existing patients' FHIR resources. Furthermore, study personal was able to manually edit trial status (i.e. ineligible, on-study, ..) of patients, which was implemented using the FHIR resource ResearchSubject . Result(s): This implementation of a CTRSS based on FHIR R4 was evaluated in clinical practice: Beginning from 1st April 2021 the application was used as an additional patient screening tool for the four trials CLOSUREAF, FAIR-HF2, SPRIRIT-HF and TORCH-PLUS of the German Centre for Cardiovascular Research. As the COVID-19 pandemic is prohibiting any proper comparison of patient inclusion rates, efficacy of the recruitment support system was tested by comparing the numbers of patients identified by the recruitment support system and enrolled in a trial to the actual number of enrolled patients irrespective of the screening method from 1st April 2021 to 23rd November 2021. The system was able to identify 52 of 55 patients included in those four clinical trials. Conclusion(s): Use of FHIR for defining eligibility criteria of clinical trials may facilitate interoperability and allow automatic screening for eligible patients at multiple sites of different healthcare providers in the future. Upcoming changes in FHIR should allow easier description of OR -linked eligibility criteria. (Figure Presented).
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Background: COVID-19 vaccines contain additives such as Polyethylenglycol-2000 (PEG2000;mRNA vaccines) or Polysorbat 80 (vector vaccines), which have been described previously as culprits for anaphylactic events. Method(s): This retrospective study included 46 individuals, who were referred to the Allergy Center at the Depart. of Dermatology, University Hospital Linz with suspected allergic reactions to the first COVID-19 vaccine dose with either mRNA or vector-based vaccines. Patients underwent detailed anamnesis, clinical examination and in most cases skin prick testing using pure additive substances (PEG -different molecular weights, Polysorbate 80). Result(s): Out of 46, 7 patients' reactions were classified as possibly anaphylactic and graded according to Ring & Messmer. Forty patients out of 46 were assessed with skin prick tests for potential allergens in COVID-19 vaccines. Only one patient showed an immediate positive prick test to PEG2000. Second-dose vaccination with mRNA or vector-based vaccines were tolerated well in all patients, including the individual with a positive skin prick test against PEG2000. Conclusion(s): The currently available COVID-19 vaccines have an overall low allergic potential and may be administered safely in patients with suspected allergic reactions to the first dose.
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Influenza is an infectious respiratory disease caused by influenza A and B, which is a virus characterized by a high mutation rate with new strains appearing regularly, making regular booster vaccinations necessary. In this study, we evaluated the immune status of Influenza A and B by using ELISA. A questionnaire was utilized to appraise the immunization anamnesis and the stance on vaccination. In total, 202 probands participated in this study. 35.6% of the probands were vaccinated, 10.9% indicated a confirmed influenza infection. 88.1% had a positive influenza A titer, whereas a positive influenza B titer was determined in only 38.6%. Additionally, a correlation between vaccination and titer could be observed. In this study, we were able to show a higher vaccination rate in our cohort than the Austrian average. Additionally, a higher percentage showed a positive influenza A titer compared to influenza B titer.Copyright © 2022
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We report the case of a 65-year-old patient who was admitted during the COVID-19 pandemic to the intensive care unit for acute respiratory distress. Following a large meal the day before, she had recurrent episodes of vomiting, which were followed by intense retrosternal pain with progressively worsening dyspnea. The patient was admitted with initial suspicion of acute respiratory failure secondary to SARS-CoV-2 infection. However, after a careful anamnesis, the diagnosis of Boerhaave's syndrome was suggested. The aim of this article is to try to understand, through this clinical case of Boerhaave's syndrome, how this health crisis could influence the clinical reasoning of the physicians.Copyright © SRLF 2021.