Cutaneous manifestations of COVID-19 in a tertiary COVID-19 referral hospital in the Philippines.

BACKGROUND: Reports on COVID-19 skin manifestations and associated clinical outcomes are limited. Like viral diseases, cutaneous findings may be present and can help in confirmation and prognostication among those suspected or diagnosed with COVID-19. OBJECTIVE: To determine COVID-19 cutaneous manifestations and their association with disease severity and course. METHODS: This study was conducted in a designated COVID-19 referral hospital from January 1 to March 31, 2021. Skin manifestations recorded from January 1 to February 17 were retrospectively gathered. Reports from February 18 to March 31 were prospectively collected using a dermatologic checklist which was incorporated into all official medical records. RESULTS: A total of 507 confirmed patients with COVID-19 were included. COVID-19 skin signs were detected in 39 patients (7.7%). Morbilliform lesions were most common. Skin signs were significantly associated with severe or critical cases (odds ratio, 3.4; 95% CI, 1.3-8.7) and mortality (relative risk, 2.9; 95% CI, 2.0-4.2). LIMITATIONS: Underestimation of prevalence of COVID-19 skin signs due to exclusion of outpatient and discharged patients and the subjective assessment in the retrospective part. CONCLUSION: Cutaneous signs were significantly associated with severe/critical COVID-19 as well as death among 507 hospitalized patients in a Philippine COVID-19 referral hospital.

Impact of ureteral stenting on urological complications after kidney transplantation surgery: a single-center experience.

BACKGROUND: Urological complications such as ureteral strictures and ureteral leakage can affect the outcome of kidney transplantation by increasing morbidity and mortality, including graft loss. Controversy still exists regarding the role of stents in renal transplantation. The aim of this study was to evaluate the role of ureteral stenting in kidney transplantation. METHODS: We performed a retrospective study on a series of 798 consecutive renal transplants performed in our center between January 1, 2004, and December 31, 2011. Ureteral stents were used in 152 cases (19.1%) of the total (stent group) and were removed 2 weeks postoperatively. Donor and recipient age, sex, type of ureteroneocystostomy, stent and non-stent patients, cold and warm ischemia time, and urological complications were analyzed. RESULTS: The overall incidence of urological complications was 7.8% (62 cases). Ureteral stenosis (3.1%) and ureteral leakage (2.4%) were the most common complications; 39.7% (25 cases) of complications were recorded in the first month after transplantation. Major urological complication rate was 3.3% in the stent group compared with 8.8% in the non-stent group (P = .04). However, stent use was associated with the increase of urinary tract infections rate in the stent group (51.3%) compared with the non-stent group (17.9%) (P = .03). CONCLUSIONS: In our study, the use of ureteral stents significantly decreased urological complications in kidney transplant recipients but increased the risk for development of urinary tract infections.