Race, rhetorical veneers and the virulence of colonial violence during COVID

COVID has exposed how health and racial inequities are deeply entangled. This article seeks to examine how race is made present but also erased in words, bodies and institutions. It takes as its point of departure two Australian health campaigns and their use of the promotional rhetoric of ‘the race' to urgently increase immunisations and organ donation registrations at the time of COVID. In a critical analysis of the public policy and political discourse that emerged in and around these promotions, I show how racialised oppression materialised and was obscured in linguistic veneers of inclusivity and diversity. The race to improve health outcomes articulated social imaginaries of the ‘level playing field' in a projection to the future that omitted the historical production of uneven terrains. Reorienting this temporal direction, the article historicises the present, tracing back racial inequities from the frontline and dividing lines of coronavirus, to the frontiers and foundations of the Australian nation. In so doing, it argues for a more critical engagement with health discourse and promotions that target racialised groups and (re)present histories of violence. © The Author(s) 2023.

COVID-19 Is a Confounder of Increased Candida Airway Colonisation.

An increased incidence of invasive fungal infection was reported in SARS-CoV-2-infected patients hospitalised in the intensive care unit. However, the impact of COVID-19 on Candida airway colonisation has not yet been assessed. This study aimed to test the impact of several factors on Candida airway colonisation, including SARS-CoV-2 infection. We conducted a two-pronged monocentric retrospective study. First, we analysed the prevalence of positive yeast culture in respiratory samples obtained from 23 departments of the University Hospital of Marseille between 1 January 2018 and 31 March 2022. We then conducted a case-control study, comparing patients with documented Candida airway colonisation to two control groups. We observed an increase in the prevalence of yeast isolation over the study period. The case-control study included 300 patients. In the multivariate logistic regression, diabetes, mechanical ventilation, length of stay in the hospital, invasive fungal disease, and the use of antibacterials were independently associated with Candida airway colonisation. The association of SARS-CoV-2 infection with an increased risk of Candida airway colonisation is likely to be a consequence of confounding factors. Nevertheless, we found the length of stay in the hospital, mechanical ventilation, diabetes, and the use of antibacterials to be statistically significant independent risk factors of Candida airway colonisation.

Colonization and decolonization of global health: which way forward?

Despite taking on several forms throughout history such as colonial medicine, tropical medicine, and international health, the field of global health continues to uphold colonialist structures. History demonstrates that acts of colonialism inevitably lead to negative health outcomes. Colonial powers promoted medical advancements when diseases affected their own people, and only did so for locals when in the colonies' best interests. Numerous medical advancements in the United States also relied on the exploitation of vulnerable populations. This history is critical in evaluating the actions of the United States as a proclaimed leader in global health. A significant barrier to progress in the field of global health is that most leaders and leading institutions are located in high-income countries, thereby defining the global standard. This standard fails to meet the needs of most of the world. In times of crisis, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, colonial mentalities may be more evident. In fact, global health partnerships themselves are often ingrained in colonialism and may be counterproductive. Strategies for change have been called into question by the recent Black Lives Matter movement, particularly in evaluating the role that less privileged communities should have in their own fate. Globally, we can commit to evaluating our own biases and learning from one another.

Effect of Microwave Sterilisation on the Dimensional Property of Complete Denture: A Review

The Covid-19 pandemic over the past year has raised concern regarding the precautions needed to be taken to prevent cross-infection in the field of dentistry, as the virus is highly contagious and life-Threatening. At least half of the population above the age of 50 years are denture wearers. These dentures act as a base for the colonization of microorganisms, hence raise the chances of cross-contamination. When the patient wears contaminated dentures, the most common manifestation it may cause is oral candidiasis or denture-related stomatitis, this fungal infection leads to white or red sores, bleeding, swelling and burning sensations in the oral cavity. As the patient s oral cavity is a sterile tissue with mucous membranes, incompetent sterilisation of dentures bears the risk associated with the break of host barriers and carrying of environmental pathogens (e.g., Pseudomonas aeruginosa). The application of an improper sterilisation method in the maintenance of dental appliance mainly the complete denture concerns not only the patients but also the dental personnel and prosthesis laboratory. The first studies on microwave sterilisation of dentures were performed to confirm the potent of microwave sterilisation in preventing microorganisms attached to complete dentures prosthesis. Using different methods, definite results were obtained by studies, confirming that microwave irradiation can be an efficient technique in sterilizing the complete dentures prosthesis. Thus, executing microwave irradiation of a complete denture before it is brought to a lab, and immediately before it is placed in the patient s mouth, acts as a means of infection prevention system for all individuals. Microwave sterilisation of dentures has been recommended for denture sterilisation but its effect on the dimensional property of a complete denture still needs to be focused on. Hence, the current review presents the effect of microwave sterilisation on the physical properties, mainly the dimensional stability of the complete denture base. © (2022) Society for Biomaterials & Artificial Organs #20051922.

A review of significance of Aspergillus detection in airways of ICU COVID-19 patients.

It is now well known that patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection admitted in ICU and mechanically ventilated are at risk of developing invasive pulmonary aspergillosis (IPA). Nevertheless, symptomatology of IPA is often atypical in mechanically ventilated patients, and radiological aspects in SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia and IPA are difficult to differentiate. In this context, the significance of the presence of Aspergillus in airway specimens (detected by culture, galactomannan antigen or specific PCR) remains to be fully understood. To decipher the relevance of the detection of Aspergillus, we performed a comprehensive review of all published cases of respiratory Aspergillus colonisation and IPA in COVID-19 patients. The comparison of patients receiving or not antifungal treatment allowed us to highlight the most important criteria for the decision to treat. The comparison of surviving and non-surviving patients made it possible to unveil criteria associated with mortality that should be taken into account in the treatment decision.

Epidemiology of bacteria and viruses in the respiratory tract of humans and domestic pigs.

Bacteria and viruses were analysed in the upper respiratory tract of symptomatic pig farmers and their domestic pigs. Eighty six human nasal and 495 (50 pools) porcine snout swabs were collected in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. Staphylococcus (S.) aureus (62.8%, 54/86), human rhino- and coronaviruses (HRV, 29.1%, 25/86; HCoV, 16.3%, 14/86) were frequently detected in humans, while Haemophilus parasuis (90.0%, 45/50), Mycoplasma hyorhinis (78.6%, 11/14), Enterovirus G (EV-G, 56.0%, 28/50) and S. aureus (36.0%, 18/50), respectively, were highly prevalent in pigs. The detection of S. aureus in human follow-up samples indicates a carrier status. The methicillin-resistant phenotype (MRSA) was identified in 33.3% (18/54) of nasal swabs and in one of 18 (5.6%) pooled snout swabs that were tested positive for S. aureus. Strains were indicative of the livestock-associated clonal complex CC398, with t011 being the most common staphylococcal protein A type. Enterobacterales and non-fermenters were frequently isolated from swabs. Their detection in follow-up samples suggests a carrier status. All were classified as being non-multiresistant. There was no example for cross-species transmission of viruses. In contrast, transmission of S. aureus through occupational contact to pigs seems possible. The study contributes to the 'One Health' approach.