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Aim: SARS-CoV-2 has caused a global pandemic that has negative consequences for many parts of life. To our knowledge, no study has assessed the effect of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic on a possible delay in prosthodontic treatments because of a potential concern of contamination in individuals. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to assess this potential impact of fear, as well as oral health-related quality of life, in partially edentulous patients using questionnaires during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. Material(s) and Method(s): A total of 135 partially edentulous patients (74 females and 61 males aged 18-70 years) participated in this study. A complete questionnaire consisting of general knowledge questions on SARS-CoV-2 and the OIDP scale, which evaluates the effect of oral status on daily activities were used in participants. Result(s): Statistical analyzes showed that participants with a history of SARS-CoV-2 and/or who are aware of a member of their social circle with a history of the virus, and/or who is deceased, were unwilling to receive dental care during the pandemic. Most of the participants between the ages of 31 and 60 were more worried about the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 during dental treatment. Discussion(s): Concerns about SARS-CoV-2 contamination of patients over 30 years of age may have a negative impact on oral health due to delayed prosthodontic treatments.Copyright © 2022, Derman Medical Publishing. All rights reserved.
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The outbreak of COVID-19 makes people feel distant from each other, and masks have become one of the indispensable articles in People's Daily life. At present, there are many brands of masks with various types and uneven quality. In order to understand the current market of masks and the sales of different brands, users can choose masks with perfect quality. This paper uses Python web crawler technology, based on the input of the word "mask", crawl JD website sales data, through data visualization technology drawing histogram, pie chart, the word cloud, etc., for goods compared with the relationship between price, average price of all brands, brands, average distribution of analysis and evaluation of user information, In this way, the sales situation, price distribution and quality evaluation of each store of the product can be visually displayed. At the same time, it also provides some reference for other users who need to buy the product. © The Authors. Published under a Creative Commons Attribution CC-BY 3.0 License.
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Objectives: Implementation of venovenous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (VVECMO) allowed survival of patients with severe respiratory failure associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection. However, VVECMO treatment is usually associated with long ICU stays, prolonged sedation, and neuromuscular blockage days. Functional disability, due to delirium and acquired muscle weakness, is frequently an inevitable burden causing long term disability. This study aims to analyse main characteristics of patients under ECMO due to COVID-19 pneumonia, their outcomes and functional status six months after ICU discharge. Method(s): Retrospective review of a prospectively collected database in an ECMO referral centre. All patients receiving VVECMO for SARS-CoV-2 infection were included. Epidemiological and clinical data were reviewed. Functional status at 6 months after ICU discharge was assessed with modified Rankin Scale (mRS). Result(s): Ninety-three patients were included (29% female). Median age was 54+/-12 years, mean SOFA was 5.7+/-2.9, mean SAPS II was 35.6+/-13.6. Mean time from intubation to cannulation was 5+/-5.6 days in 91 patients;awake-ECMO was performed in 2 patients. Mean ECMO run duration was 33.1+/-30 days (longest ECMO run was 194 days). A period of awake-ECMO was performed on 36.5% of patients, during 16.4+/-21.2 days. ICU-acquired weakness was diagnosed on 64.5% of patients and delirium on 63.4%. Mortality was 24.7% (23 patients) with only 1 patient deceased in hospital after ICU discharge. At 6 months follow-up, all patients were still alive and most of them (65.1%) were independent on all daily activities (mRS <= 2). Conclusion(s): Patients with severe COVID-19 treated with VVECMO support had very good functional outcomes at six-month follow-up. Despite long ICU length-of-stay, high incidence of delirium and acquired muscle weakness, full recovery at six-month post-ICU discharge was achievable in most patients.
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Over the years, the gold prices have been increasing rapidly. Covid-19 and its impact leads to rise in the prices of Gold in the year 2020. So many variables are mindful for increasing the gold cost in India and it leads to investment decisions of individuals and enterprises. Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average (ARIMA) is useful method to gauge time series data. In the paper we mainly focus on daily costs of Gold from the year 2018 to 2020 to determine and forecast the daily gold prices in 2021. Also estimate the error (%) between the observed and estimated values through ARIMA model. This study will provide the estimates of suitable ARIMA model (0,1,2) along with Autocorrelation function (ACF) & Partial autocorrelation function (PACF) from the selected data, The auxiliary source information shows the positive patterns for getting effectiveness, For quantitative examination and speculation selections of financial backers. © 2023 Author(s).
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This study analysed the spatial and temporal trends and dynamics of COVID-19 to understand their implications on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Zimbabwe. Data on daily cases and mortality rates of COVID-19 were collected from the Worldometer website, whilst data on lockdown measures and travel restrictions were collected from Zimbabwe's Ministry of Health and Child Care. Exploratory and confirmatory analyses were employed on statistical data. COVID-19 statistical data were first tested for normality using the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test. Subsequently, the non-parametric Mann-Kendal (M-K) test was performed to determine the monthly average number of new cases and deaths trend from March 2020 to February 2022 using XLSTAT (2020). The study shows a significant increase (p = 0.00, α= 0.05) in COVID-19 cases between March 2020 and February 2022. The trend is characterised by sharp increases associated with wave periods. Although the results show no correlation between stringency index and COVID-19 cases, periods of high stringency are associated with a slightly lower number of cases. The spatial trends show that highly populated areas have high numbers of patient cases. Indeed, the lockdown measures put in place, among other factors, contributed to controlling the spread of the virus. The trends and dynamics of COVID-19 in Zimbabwe have implications for achieving SDG 1, SDG 2, SDG 3 and SDG 6. Thus, there is a need to factor in the temporal and spatial realities of COVID-19 in making a policy framework for effective control of the pandemic and promotion of sustainable development. © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2023.
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Risk and predisposing factors for viral zoonoses abound in the sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) region with significant public health implications. For several decades, there have been several reports on the emergence and re-emergence of arbovirus infections. The lifetime burden of arboviral diseases in developing countries is still poorly understood. Studies indicate significant healthcare disruptions and economic losses attributed to the viruses in resource-poor communities marked by impairment in the performance of daily activities. Arboviruses have reportedly evolved survival strategies to aid their proliferation in favorable niches, further magnifying their public health relevance. However, there is poor knowledge about the viruses in the region. Thus, this review presents a survey of zoonotic arboviruses in SSA, the burden associated with their diseases, management of diseases as well as their prevention and control, mobility and determinants of infections, their vectors, and co-infection with various microorganisms. Lessons learned from the ongoing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic coupled with routine surveillance of zoonotic hosts for these viruses will improve our understanding of their evolution, their potential to cause a pandemic, control and prevention measures, and vaccine development.Copyright © GERMS 2022.
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Introduction: The purpose of this case report is to describe the 7-year functional outcomes and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) of the first successful pediatric bilateral hand transplantation. The report focuses on activity and participation. The authors suggest assessment methods that can be applied to future cases. Method(s): The child underwent quadrimembral amputation at age two years and received bilateral hand allografts at age eight. Rehabilitation included biomechanical, neurorehabilitation, and occupational approaches in acute and outpatient settings. Therapist observed outcomes assessments, patientreported and parent-reported outcome questionnaires were repeated over a 7-year period. Result(s): At 7-years post transplantation, the adolescent and his mother reported a high level of satisfaction with the outcomes. Therapist observed assessments showed the adolescent achieved functional gross motor dexterity with each upper extremity. Although left gross and fine dexterity was superior to the right at all timepoints observed, the adolescent used his right upper extremity as dominant and incorporated both extremities as appropriate for bimanual tasks. The adolescent achieved modified independence to full independence with self-care activities. The adolescent participated in diverse activities with a high level of enjoyment. Participation was more diverse, social, and communitybased prior to and after the initial COVID-19 pandemic restrictions. At 7-years post transplantation when the adolescent was 15-years of age, the parent rated more instrumental activities of daily living as somewhat difficult. Discussion and Conclusion(s): Therapist observed outcomes assessments, patient-reported and parent-reported outcome questionnaires, showed the child had incorporated his hands into various activities, was completing daily activities independently, and HRQOL outcomes in social, emotional, cognitive, and physical domains were favorable. Most results were stable over time. The decrease in right hand dexterity scores might reflect small kinesiological changes in the right hand. Difficulty with some instrumental activities of daily living were likely due to new activities typical of child development for this now 15-year-old patient.
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The sudden admission of many patients with similar needs caused by the COVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic forced health care centers to temporarily transform units to respond to the crisis. This process greatly impacted the daily activities of the hospitals. In this paper, we propose a two-step approach based on process mining and discrete-event simulation for sizing a recovery unit dedicated to COVID-19 patients inside a hospital. A decision aid framework is proposed to help hospital managers make crucial decisions, such as hospitalization cancellation and resource sizing, taking into account all units of the hospital. Three sources of patients are considered: (i) planned admissions, (ii) emergent admissions representing day-to-day activities, and (iii) COVID-19 admissions. Hospitalization pathways have been modeled using process mining based on synthetic medico-administrative data, and a generic model of bed transfers between units is proposed as a basis to evaluate the impact of those moves using discrete-event simulation. A practical case study in collaboration with a local hospital is presented to assess the robustness of the approach. Note to Practitioners—In this paper we develop and test a new decision-aid tool dedicated to bed management, taking into account exceptional hospitalization pathways such as COVID-19 patients. The tool enables the creation of a dedicated COVID-19 intensive care unit with specific management rules that are fine-tuned by considering the characteristics of the pandemic. Health practitioners can automatically use medico-administrative data extracted from the information system of the hospital to feed the model. Two execution modes are proposed: (i) fine-tuning of the staffed beds assignment policies through a design of experiment and (ii) simulation of user-defined scenarios. A practical case study in collaboration with a local hospital is presented. The results show that our model was able to find the strategy to minimize the number of transfers and the number of cancellations while maximizing the number of COVID-19 patients taken into care was to transfer beds to the COVID-19 ICU in batches of 12 and to cancel appointed patients using ICU when the department hit a 90% occupation rate. IEEE
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Aims: The impacts of the coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on mental health have been relatively severe. This study examined the influence of the COVID-19 especially on depression and suicidal ideation in community-dwelling elderly in Korea. Method(s): Data were employed from a survey on elderly mental health in Jeollanam-do (southwest province in Korea). A total of 2423 elderlies were recruited from 22 counties in Jeollanam-do between April and October 2021. We used self-reported questionnaires, including sociodemographic factors, COVID-19 related stress, suicidal ideation, Geriatric Depression Scale-Short Form Korean Version (GDS-SF). Logistic regression was performed to examine the factors on depression and suicidal ideation. Result(s): Of the 2423 subjects, 622 (25.7%) reported depressive symptoms and 518 (21.4%) reported suicidal ideation. The multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that living alone, poor perceived health status, the worry of COVID-19 infection and restriction of daily activity due to COVID-19 pandemic were significantly associated with depression. Male sex, poor perceived health status, disability in house chores and depressive symptom are risk factors for suicidal ideation. Conclusion(s): These findings showed that increased risk factor for depression and suicidal ideation in community dwelling elderly during COVID-19 pandemic. We confirmed that feelings of isolation and negative perception of health were risk factors on depression in community dwelling elderly in the context of the COVID -19 pandemic. Also male, poor self-perceived health status, difficulty of independent living and worry and depression are increased the risk of suicidal ideation among the elderly.
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Aim: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is complex multisystem disease. After 4 weeks of persistent symptoms, it is termed as Long COVID-19. Long COVID-19 causes a decrease in health-related quality of life (HRQoL). In this study, it was aimed to determine which symptoms were associated with lower HRQoL in Long COVID-19 in this study. Material(s) and Method(s): This cross-sectional study was conducted in a tertiary research hospital. Patients who have positive RT-PCR results at least 28 days and at most 180 days ago were selected for the study. Online survey was applied to 266 patients who had positive PCR test results for COVID-19. The EuroQoL 5D-3L scale was used to measure the HRQoL as a dependent variable. Socio-demographic features and symptoms were assessed by the survey as independent variables. Due to heteroscedasticity, a robust standard error regression analysis was conducted to make inferences on the effects of persistent symptoms on HRQoL. Result(s): Of the total 266 participants, 163 were females (63.3%). The mean age was 41.2 +/- 11.8 years. One hundred forty-two patients (53.3%) did not report any ongoing symptom. Female gender and lower education level as socio-demographic variables, visual problems and myalgia as persistent symptoms were identified as risk factors for reduced HRQoL in Long COVID-19 patients. Discussion(s): Long COVID-19 patients experience lower levels of HRQoL, especially those with visual problems and/or myalgia. Interventions to raise the HRQoL of Long COVID-19 patients should first target visual problems and myalgia.Copyright © 2023, Derman Medical Publishing. All rights reserved.
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The COVID-19 pandemic, caused by the novel coronavirus, has had a significant impact on daily life, education, business, and trade. The virus spreads quickly through direct contact with droplets, fecal-oral transmission, and water contamination. The consequences of the pandemic can be classified into three categories: health, economic, and social. The physical, mental, and psychological behaviors of individuals have also changed due to the pandemic. This study aimed to assess the impact of COVID-19 on the general population. A survey questionnaire with ten questions was distributed through an online portal, and the responses were analyzed using SPSS software. The results showed that healthcare workers were among the most affected, with the primary impact on their social and psychological well-being. Although previous research suggested that all fields were equally affected, this study found that healthcare workers were the most impacted group. The study concluded that the COVID-19 pandemic had a significant impact on the social and psychological well-being of the general population, with healthcare workers being the most affected. © 2023 IEEE.
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The COVID-19 pandemic created a range of stressors, among them difficulties related to work conditions, financial changes, lack of childcare, and confinement or isolation due to social distancing. Among families and married individuals, these stressors were often expressed in additional daily hassles, with an influence on mental health. This study examined two moderated mediation models based on Bodenmann's systemic-transactional stress model. Specifically, the models tested the hypothesis that intra-dyadic stress mediates the association between extra-dyadic stress and mental health, while two measures of family functioning, cohesion and flexibility, moderate the relationship between extra and intra-dyadic stress. Participants were 480 Palestinian adults in Israel who completed self-report questionnaires. All were in opposite-sex marriages and identified as either cisgender women or cisgender men. The results showed partial mediation patterns supporting both models, indicating that family cohesion and flexibility weakened the mediating effect of intra-dyadic stress on the relationship between extra-dyadic stress and mental health. These findings increase our understanding of the variables that affected mental health during the pandemic, and suggest that when faced with extra-dyadic stress, married individuals with good family environments are less likely to experience high levels of intra-dyadic stress, which is in turn associated with preserved mental health. Limitations and implications for planning interventions for couples and families during the pandemic are discussed.
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The current outbreak of COVID-19 is caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus that has affected > 210 countries. Various steps are taken by different countries to tackle the current war-like health situation. In India, the Ministry of AYUSH released a self-care advisory for immunomodulation measures during the COVID-19 and this review article discusses the detailed scientific rationale associated with this advisory. Authors have spotted and presented in-depth insight of advisory in terms of immunomodulatory, antiviral, antibacterial, co-morbidity associated actions, and their probable mechanism of action. Immunomodulatory actions of advised herbs with no significant adverse drug reaction/toxicity strongly support the extension of advisory for COVID-19 prevention, prophylaxis, mitigations, and rehabilitation capacities. This advisory also emphasized Dhyana (meditation) and Yogasanas as a holistic approach in enhancing immunity, mental health, and quality of life. The present review may open-up new meadows for research and can provide better conceptual leads for future researches in immunomodulation, antiviral-development, psychoneuroimmunology, especially for COVID-19.Copyright © 2021, Institute of Korean Medicine, Kyung Hee University.
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Aim: To investigate the impact of Covid-19 on daily activity, maximal physical performance, and clinical frailty of people living with diabetes (any type) 1-year post-hospitalisation for Covid-19 in the UK. Method(s): This study is part of PHOSP-Covid, a multicentre long-term cohort study that recruited adults (>=18 years) who were discharged from one of the 83 NHS hospitals across the four UK nations following a clinical diagnosis of Covid-19 before March 31, 2021. We compared The Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy (FACIT)-Fatigue, Incremental shuttle walk test (ISWT) distance (m), and clinical frailty (Rockwood frailty level), 5-month and 1-year after discharge in patients with and without diabetes. Result(s): Out of 2545 individuals (538 (21%) with diabetes), the proportion of individuals who classified as either 'mildly frail' or 'moderately or higher frail severity' was higher in individuals with diabetes (month 5: diabetes 9.9%, no diabetes 4.7%;month 12: diabetes 8%, no diabetes 4.9%). ISWT distance in patients with diabetes were significantly lower at both follow-ups but this measure improved from 5-months to 1-year (290 [95% CI: 190-440] vs 370 [250-560] for diabetes and 340 [210-450] vs 420 [270-590] for those without, both p < 0.01). At both time points, people with diabetes reported higher levels of fatigue (36 [24-44] vs 39 [25-46] at 5-month (p = 0.03);37 [26-45] vs 40 [28-47] at 1-year visit (p < 0.01)). Conclusion(s): One year after hospitalisation long Covid is more observed in people with diabetes.
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The decrease of memory abilities is one of the main problems in the elderly exacerbated by psychological factors such as anxiety. Therefore, the present study was to investigate the relationship between Corona anxiety and daily memory in the elderly through the mediating role of anxiety sensitivity. This was a descriptive-correlational research of path analysis kind. The statistical population of the study included all the education retirees over 60 years old living in Shiraz, Iran, 250 of whom were selected using convenience sampling. In this study, Alipour's Corona anxiety, Sunderland's daily memory and Floyd's anxiety sensitivity questionnaires were filled out online by the participants. Data were analyzed using SPSS-26 software and Lisrel-8.32. The results of path analysis demonstrated that there is a negative direct relationship between Corona anxiety and daily memory, a positive direct relationship between Corona anxiety and anxiety sensitivity, and a negative direct relationship between anxiety sensitivity and daily memory. Corona anxiety also had an indirect and significant relationship with daily memory through the mediating role of anxiety sensitivity. According to the results, anxiety caused by the outbreak of Corona disease can affect memory function in the elderly. Hence, in addition to physical health, providing mental health of the elderly seems to be crucial as well in pandemic conditions. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)
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Social virtual reality (VR) platforms have increased in popularity with many people turning to these platforms to experience social connection, including a rapid influx of users during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, there is limited understanding of how people appropriate and use emerging social VR applications to actively support their mental health and wellbeing in daily life. Through an online questionnaire and exploratory interviews conducted within the social VR app VRChat during the COVID-19 pandemic, we document how social VR is being used explicitly as a mental health support tool. Participants reported positive wellbeing benefits, mostly attributed to the anonymity provided by avatars and perceived safety within digital worlds and communities of practice. We also report how people use social VR to practice social interaction, reduce negative thoughts and form strong social bonds and connections with others. © 2023 ACM.
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In December 2022, the Council of Experts was held. It purpose was to determine the place of virus-neutralizing monoclonal antibodies (NMA) in the ethiotropic treatment of COVID-19 in vulnerable categories of patients. The main issues were identified and their solutions were proposed. At the first visit of pregnant women due to COVID-19, proactive identification of risk factors and early prescription of NMA are recommended, preferably - with published safety data in this category of patients (casirivimab + imdevimab). In patients with oncological and other chronic (rheumatology, pulmonology, gastroenterology) diseases, prophylactic use of NMA is recommended. regardless of the severity of the disease. For patients with chronic pathology regardless of the severity of the disease an early prescription of ethiotropic therapy must be provided, combating the long-term circulation of the virus. To solve the problem of late treatment prescription, it is necessary to: use rapid tests, prescribe NMA if indicated, even if the patient presents late, introduce digital technologies to transfer information about COVID-19 cases between healthcare institutions (HI), create call centers for primary triage of patients, daily hospitals to reduce the burden on the HI. The issue of NMA using related to changes in their activity against new variants of SARS-CoV-2 remains relevant. Among the proposed solutions are: priority of indications over information about the activity of NMA, the diversification of the choice of NMA in HI, taking into account clinical experience, indications for use and prognosis of NMA activity, the use of combined forms of NMA (for example, casirivimab + imdevimab) or a combination of NMA with other means of ethiotropic therapy.Copyright © 2023, Dynasty Publishing House. All rights reserved.
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The COVID-19 pandemic has forced people worldwide to modify their daily activities, including travel plans. To help individuals make informed decisions about visiting public places, Cheng [2] first proposed a real-time COVID-19 risk assessment system called RT-CIRAM and implemented prototypes for two U.S. metropolitan locations. The system calculates a COVID-19 risk score and categorizes the risk levels into high, medium, and low, recommends the safe travel destination using the users' location and the specified distance the user is willing to travel, thereby helping users make informed decisions about their travel plans. © 2023 ACM.
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The outbreak of the recent Covid-19 pandemic changed many aspects of our daily life, such as the constant wearing of face masks as protection from virus transmission risks. Furthermore, it exposed the healthcare system's fragilities, showing the urgent need to design a more inclusive model that takes into account possible future emergencies, together with population's aging and new severe pathologies. In this framework, face masks can be both a physical barrier against viruses and, at the same time, a telemedical diagnostic tool. In this paper, we propose a low-cost, 3D-printed face mask able to protect the wearer from virus transmission, thanks to internal FFP2 filters, and to monitor the air quality (temperature, humidity, CO2) inside the mask. Acquired data are automatically transmitted to a web terminal, thanks to sensors and electronics embedded in the mask. Our preliminary results encourage more efforts in these regards, towards rapid, inexpensive and smart ways to integrate more sensors into the mask's breathing zone in order to use the patient's breath as a fingerprint for various diseases. © The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2023.