Challenges of hepatitis B treatment in rural Sub-Saharan Africa: Treatment initiation and outcomes from a public hospital-based clinic in Kono, Sierra Leone.

Despite a high prevalence, there are few successful models for de-centralizing diagnosis and treatment of chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection among rural communities in Sub-Saharan Africa. We report baseline characteristics and 1 year retention outcomes for patients enrolled in a HBV clinic integrated within chronic disease services in a rural district hospital in Sierra Leone. We conducted a retrospective cohort study of patients with HBV infection enrolled between 30 April 2019 and 30 April 2021. Patients were eligible for 1 year follow-up if enrolled before 28 February 2020. Treatment eligibility at baseline was defined as cirrhosis (diagnosed by clinical criteria of decompensated cirrhosis, ultrasonographic findings or aspartate-aminotransferase-to-platelet ratio >2) or co-infection with HIV or HCV. Retention in care was defined as a documented follow-up visit at least 1 year after enrolment. We enrolled 623 individuals in care, median age of 30 years (IQR 23-40). Of 617 patients with available data, 97 (15.7%) had cirrhosis. Treatment was indicated among 113 (18.3%) patients and initiated among 74 (65.5%). Of 39 patients eligible for 1 year follow-up on treatment at baseline, 20 (51.3%) were retained at 1 year, among whom 12 (60.0%) had documented viral suppression. Among the 232 patients not initiated on treatment eligible for 1 year follow-up, 75 (32.3%) were retained at 1 year. Although further interventions are required to improve outcomes, our findings demonstrated feasibility of retention and treatment of patients with HBV infection in a rural district in Sub-Saharan Africa, when integrated with other chronic disease services.

Unique immune and inflammatory cytokine profiles may define long COVID syndrome.

PURPOSE: Long COVID is estimated to occur in 5-10% of individuals after acute SARS-CoV-2 infection. However, the pathophysiology driving the disease process is poorly understood. METHODS: We evaluated urine and plasma inflammatory and immune cytokine profiles in 33 individuals with long COVID compared to 33 who were asymptomatic and recovered, and 34 without prior infection. RESULTS: Mean urinary leukotriene E4 was significantly elevated among individuals with long COVID compared to asymptomatic and recovered individuals (mean difference 774.2 pg/mL; SD 335.7) and individuals without prior SARS-CoV-2 infection (mean difference 503.1 pg/ml; SD 467.7). Plasma chemokine ligand 6 levels were elevated among individuals with long COVID compared to individuals with no prior SARS-CoV-2 infection (mean difference 0.59 units; SD 0.42). We found no significant difference in angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 antibody levels. Plasma tumor necrosis factor receptor-associated factor 2 (TRAF2) levels were reduced among individuals with long COVID compared to individuals who were asymptomatic and recovered (mean difference = 0.6 units, SD 0.46). Similarly, the mean level of Sarcoma Homology 2-B adapter protein 3 was 3.3 units (SD 1.24) among individuals with long COVID, lower than 4.2 units (SD 1.1) among individuals with recovered, asymptomatic COVID. CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that further studies should be conducted to evaluate the role of leukotriene E4 as a potential biomarker for a diagnostic test. Furthermore, based on reductions in TRAF2, long COVID may be driven in part by impaired TRAF2-dependent immune-mediated inflammation and potentially immune exhaustion.

A pilot study: the impact of clinic-provided transportation on missed clinic visits and system costs among teenage mother-child dyads.

Transportation insecurity has profound impacts on the health and wellbeing of teenage parents and their children, who are at particularly high risk for missed clinic visits. In other settings, clinic-offered rideshare interventions have reduced the rates of missed visits. We conducted a one-arm pre-post time series analysis of missed visits before and after a pilot study rideshare intervention within a clinic specializing in the care of teenage parents and their children. We compared the number of missed visits during the study with the number during the preceding year (July 2019-March 2020), as well as the cost difference of missed visits, adjusting for inflation and clinic census. Of 153 rides scheduled, 106 (69.3%) were completed. Twenty-nine (29.9%) of 97 clinic visits were missed during the study period, compared to 145 (32.7%) of 443 comparison period visits (p-value = 0.59). The estimated cost difference of missed visits including intervention costs was a net savings of $90,830.32. However, the standardized cost difference was a net excess of $6.90 per clinic visit. We found no difference in rates of missed visits or costs, though likely impacted by the low census during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. Given the potential to improve health disparities exacerbated by the pandemic, further research is warranted into the impact and utility of clinic-offered rideshare interventions.

Effect of Frequent SARS-CoV-2 Testing on Weekly Case Rates in Long-Term Care Facilities, Florida, USA.

We analyzed 1,292,165 SARS-CoV-2 test results from residents and employees of 361 long-term care facilities in Florida, USA. A 1% increase in testing resulted in a 0.08% reduction in cases 3 weeks after testing began. Increasing SARS-CoV-2 testing frequency is a viable tool for reducing virus transmission in these facilities.

Implementation and first experiences with a multimodal mentorship curriculum for medicine-paediatrics residents.

INTRODUCTION: Mentorship increases trainee productivity, promotes career satisfaction and reduces burnout. Beginning in 2016, our Medicine-Paediatrics residency program developed and implemented a longitudinal mentorship curriculum among trainees. We report initial experiences with that program and discuss potential future directions. CURRICULUM STRUCTURE AND METHOD OF IMPLEMENTATION: We implemented and adapted a peer mentorship model and expanded it to include guest lectures and workshops centred around 13 core topics. Our expanded model included five longitudinal components: (1) peer mentorship; (2) virtual check-ins with residency leadership; (3) focussed didactics and workshops; (4) small-group dinners highlighting different career paths; and (5) dedicated faculty who pair residents with mentors based on common interests. We compared annual survey results on resident satisfaction with program mentorship, using chi-square and fisher's exact tests to assess statistically significant differences pre- (2012-2016) and post-intervention (2016-2020). RESULTS: We analysed 112 responses with annual response rate varying between 41.2% and 100%. Overall satisfaction with mentorship improved from 57.6% to 73.4% (p = .53), satisfaction with emotional support improved from 63.1% to 71.6% (p = .21), and satisfaction with career-specific mentorship improved from 48.5% to 59.5% (p = .70). Residents reported consistently high satisfaction with peer mentorship (77.8%-100%). The percent of residents reporting they had identified a career mentor increased from 60.0% in 2017 to 88.9% in 2019, which was sustained at 90.0% in 2020. CONCLUSION: We report our experience in implementing and adapting a mentorship curriculum for resident physicians in a single training program, including transitioning to a primarily online-based platform at the outset of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. Our results showed a trend towards improvement in resident satisfaction with overall and career-specific mentorship, as well as improved emotional support. Future work is needed using more objective outcome markers among a larger and more diverse group of residents. KEY MESSAGESAmong resident physicians in a single training program, a mix of mentor-mentee dyads, group-based peer mentoring and a structured curriculum has shown promise in improving resident-reported satisfaction with programmatic mentorshipWhile we attempted to adapt the mentorship curriculum to an online platform with the development of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, reported satisfaction in overall mentorship and emotional support decreased in comparison to the prior year, an important focus for future work.

A Real-World Comparison of SARS-CoV-2 Rapid Antigen Testing versus PCR Testing in Florida.

The reported sensitivity of rapid, antigen-based diagnostics for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection varies. Few studies have evaluated rapid antigen tests in real-world settings or among large populations. Beginning October 2020, Florida offered individuals presenting for SARS-CoV-2 testing PCR testing if they tested positive by the Abbott BinaxNOW COVID-19 antigen (Ag) card, were symptomatic, or required or requested PCR testing. We compared results among individuals who received both types of tests at four publicly accessible testing sites across Florida. We calculated the positive percent agreement (PPA) between the two test types by symptom status. Subsequently, we evaluated the PPA among individuals regardless of symptoms with lower cycle threshold values (<30). Overall, 18,457 individuals were tested via both methods, of which 3,153 (17.1%) were positive by PCR. The PPA for the Abbott BinaxNOW COVID-19 Ag card using the PCR comparator was 49.2% (95% confidence interval [CI], 47.4% to 50.9%). Among symptomatic individuals the PPA was 51.9% (95% CI, 49.7% to 54.0%). When restricted to positive PCR tests with a cycle threshold value of <30, regardless of symptom status, the PPA was 75.3% (95% CI, 72.8% to 77.6%). The PPA of the Abbott BinaxNOW COVID-19 Ag card compared with PCR was lower than that previously reported. Our findings may reflect the performance of the BinaxNOW antigen test in real-world settings.

Heterogeneity in SARS-CoV-2 Positivity by Ethnicity in Los Angeles.

Recent studies have identified notable disparities in SARS-CoV-2 infection risk among ethnic minorities. We evaluated SARS-CoV-2 test results from individuals presenting for testing in Los Angeles between June and December, 2020. We calculated prevalence ratios for various employment categories. Among 518,914 test results, of which 295,295 (56.9%) were from individuals reporting Hispanic ethnicity, SARS-CoV-2 positivity was 16.5% among Hispanic individuals compared to 5.0% among non-Hispanic individuals (p-value <0.01). The prevalence ratios comparing Hispanic and non-Hispanic individuals were highest for members of the media (PR = 6.7; 95% CI 4.3-10.4), government employees (PR = 4.0; 95% CI 3.3-4.9), and agricultural workers (PR = 4.0; 95% CI 3.2-5.0). Such heterogeneity warrants further investigation in order to develop targeted public health interventions towards specific drivers of SARS-CoV-2 transmission.

Association of Lower Socioeconomic Status and SARS-CoV-2 Positivity in Los Angeles, California.

OBJECTIVES: Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) spreads heterogeneously, disproportionately impacting poor and minority communities. The relationship between poverty and race is complex, with a diverse set of structural and systemic factors driving higher rates of poverty among minority populations. The factors that specifically contribute to the disproportionate rates of SARS-CoV-2 infection, however, are not clearly understood. METHODS: We evaluated SARS-CoV-2 test results from community-based testing sites in Los Angeles, California, between June and December, 2020. We used tester zip code data to link those results with United States Census report data on average annual household income, rates of healthcare coverage, and employment status by zip code. RESULTS: We analyzed 2 141 127 SARS-CoV-2 test results, of which 245 154 (11.4%) were positive. Multivariable modeling showed a higher likelihood of SARS-CoV-2 test positivity among Hispanic communities than among other races. We found an increased risk for SARS-CoV-2 positivity among individuals from zip codes with an average annual household income