Skin lesions associated with the use of N95 respirators among health professionals in Brazil in 2020. / Lesiones cutáneas asociadas con el uso de respiradores N95 en profesionales de la salud de Brasil durante 2020.

OBJECTIVE: to investigate the prevalence of skin lesions and factors associated with the use of N95 respirators among health professionals in Brazil. METHOD: cross-sectional study conducted with 11,368 health professionals using a respondent-driven sampling method adapted for online environments. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to investigate the association between the "skin lesions with the use of N95 respirators" variable and gender, professional category, workplace, training, COVID-19 diagnosis, and availability of sufficient and high-quality Personal Protective Equipment. RESULTS: the prevalence of skin lesions was 61.8%. Women were 1.203 times (95% CI: 1.154-1.255) more likely to develop a lesion than men. The chances of skin lesions in psychologists (PR=0.805; 95% CI: 0.678-0.956) and dentists (PR=0.884; 95% CI: 0.788-0.992), were lower when compared to Nursing professionals. Professionals with a positive COVID-19 diagnosis and working in the Intensive Care Unit have an increased chance of presenting skin lesions (PR=1.074; 95% CI: 1.042-1.107); (PR=1.203; 95% CI: 1.168-1.241), respectively. CONCLUSION: the prevalence of skin lesions caused by the use of N95 respirators was 61.8% and was associated with female gender, professional category, workplace, training, COVID-19 diagnosis, and availability of sufficient and highquality Personal Protective Equipment. (1) The overall prevalence of skin lesions was 61.8%. (2) The most affected professional category was Nursing. (3) Women were more likely to develop skin lesions than men.

Long-Term Symptoms after Mild Coronavirus Disease in Healthy Healthcare Professionals: A 12-Month Prospective Cohort Study.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has changed the course of human history and killed millions of people worldwide. Its long-term consequences remain uncertain. This study aimed to describe the short- and long-term symptoms of COVID-19 among individuals in Goiás, central Brazil, who experienced acute mild or non-symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection during the first wave of the pandemic. This prospective cohort study included 110 healthcare workers, 18 safety workers, and 19 administrative support workers, who were followed up for 12 months after the onset of COVID-19. Most participants were healthy adult female healthcare professionals. At the onset of infection, the major symptoms were headache, myalgia, nasal congestion, cough, coryza, anosmia, ageusia, sore throat, fatigue, diarrhea, and dyspnea. Furthermore, 20.3% of the participants had three or more COVID-19 symptoms that persisted for at least 12 months. These included coryza, congestion, hair loss, sore throat, headache, myalgia, cough, memory loss, anosmia, and fatigue. This study revealed a high prevalence of persistent symptoms of COVID-19 in healthy individuals from central Brazil, which may present an additional burden on healthcare services. Further studies are required to investigate the sequelae of COVID-19 over periods greater than 12 months.

RT-LAMP Multicenter Study for SARS-CoV-2 Genome Molecular Detection in Brazilian Swab and Saliva Samples.

Reverse transcription loop-mediated isothermal amplification (RT-LAMP) is a rapid method that can replace RT-qPCR. A simple molecular assay for SARS-CoV-2 RNA detection in gold-standard diagnosis through swabs and alternative specimens such as saliva could be helpful in promoting genomic surveillance. A multicenter study was conducted to evaluate the RT-LAMP assay method as an alternative for the molecular detection of SARS-CoV-2 lineages in swab and saliva samples. A total of 350 swabs from individuals with (n = 276) or without (n = 74) COVID-19 tested by RT-qPCR were collected. Paired saliva was also collected from 90 individuals who had SARS-CoV-2 RNA that was detectable (n = 30) or undetectable (n = 60) via RT-qPCR. For the RT-LAMP methodology, six primers were used for ORF1 gene amplification. As for SARS-CoV-2 genotyping, 39 swabs had the whole genome sequenced by MinION. The sensitivity of RT-LAMP to the swab was 90.2%. For the swab samples with Ct ≤ 30, the sensitivity improved by 96%. Considering saliva with Ct ≤ 30 in RT-qPCR testing, the RT-LAMP sensitivity was 100%. The RT-LAMP specificity was 100% for both the swab and saliva samples. This RT-LAMP assay was capable of detecting all the SARS-CoV-2 lineages circulating in the Brazilian swab samples. The RT-LAMP method has significant potential for use in clinical routines since it was capable of detecting SARS-CoV-2 RNA in swab and saliva samples.