Recession and recovery from the pandemic

We develop an SIR-macroeconomic model with virus detection and inequality to study their implications for economic and health consequences during a pandemic crisis. We find a two-way relationship between the pandemic recession and inequality that exacerbate each other although such a vicious circle could be broken by accurate and extensive testing. This mitigation effect can be improved given complementary arrangements such as social protection. The extensive virus detection could not only be a better alternative intervention to lock-down to break the "life-or-economy” trade-off, but also prevent the economy to be permanently damaged if there is reinfection.

A Meta-Analysis of the Effectiveness of Telemedicine in Glycemic Management among Patients with Type 2 Diabetes in Primary Care.

Introduction: Telemedicine interventions are gradually being used in primary health care to help patients with type 2 diabetes receive ongoing medical guidance. The purpose of this study was to analyze the effectiveness of using telemedicine in primary health care for the management of patients with type 2 diabetes. Methods: A systematic search was conducted from database inception to August 2021 in nine databases, including PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, EMBASE, EBSCO, CNKI, Wanfang Data, VIP, and CBM. Data extraction and quality assessment were performed for studies that met the inclusion criteria. The meta-analysis was performed using Review Manager 5.4 (Cochrane) and Stata v.16.0SE (College Station, TX, USA). Results: A total of 32 articles were included in this study. Analysis showed a reduction in glycated hemoglobin, fasting glucose, and postprandial glucose after the telemedicine intervention. Systolic blood pressure and self-efficacy improved significantly, but there was no significant improvement in weight, lipid metabolism, or diabetes awareness. Subgroup analysis based on the duration of intervention showed significant improvement in glycated hemoglobin at 6 months of intervention. Conclusions: Telemedicine interventions may help patients with type 2 diabetes to effectively control blood glucose and improve self-management in primary health care. There is only moderate benefit, and the benefit may not be sustained beyond 6 months. However, the evidence for the improvement in lipid metabolism is insufficient and further studies are needed.

Population migration, spread of COVID-19, and epidemic prevention and control: empirical evidence from China.

BACKGROUND: This study applied the susceptible-exposed-infectious-removed (SEIR) model to analyze and simulate the transmission mechanisms of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in China. METHODS: The population migration was embedded in the SEIR model to simulate and analyze the effects of the amount of population inflow on the number of confirmed cases. Based on numerical simulations, this study used statistical data for the empirical validation of its theoretical deductions and discussed how to improve the effectiveness of epidemic prevention and control considering population migration variables. Statistics regarding the numbers of infected people in various provinces were obtained from the epidemic-related data reported by China's National Health Commission. RESULTS: This study explored how the epidemic should be prevented and controlled from the perspective of population migration variables. It found that the combination of a susceptible population, an infected population, and transmission media were important routes affecting the number of infections and that the migration of a Hubei-related infected population played a key role in promoting epidemic spread. Epidemic prevention and control should focus on regions with better economic conditions than the epidemic region. Prevention and control efforts should focus on the more populated neighboring provinces having convenient transportation links with the epidemic region. To prevent and control epidemic spread, priority should be given to elucidating the destinations and directions of population migration from the domestic origin of infections, and then controlling population migration or human-to-human contact after such migration. CONCLUSIONS: This study enriched and expanded on simulations of the effects of population migration on the COVID-19 epidemic and China-based empirical studies while offering an epidemic evaluation and warning mechanism to prevent and control similar public health emergencies in the future.

An Asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2-Infected Infant With Persistent Fecal Viral RNA Shedding in a Family Cluster: A Rare Case Report.

An outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has become pandemic worldwide. A better understanding of asymptomatic infections is crucial to prevent and control this epidemic. Here, we report the epidemiological and clinical characteristics of a family cluster with SARS-CoV-2 infection. In the family cluster, a 32-year-old male (case 1) and a 53-year-old female (case 2, the mother-in-law of case 1) exhibited clinical symptoms of COVID-19, while case 1's 32-year-old wife (case 3) and their 11-month-old daughter (case 4) were both asymptomatic. Notably, case 4's nasopharyngeal swab samples was negative for nearly 80 days, and her immune system has been boosted for at least 57 days, but the fecal samples have tested positive for 100 days (May 13, 2020), suggesting SARS-CoV-2 may invade enterocytes and may exist in individuals with low antiviral immunity for a long term. This report highlights that asymptomatic infections should be managed with caution and vigilance. For SARS-CoV-2 testing of asymptomatic cases, besides the normally used nasopharyngeal swab, fecal sample testing is also needed.