Use of convalescent plasma in pregnant women with early stage COVID-19 infection in a tertiary care hospital in Dubai, February to March 2021: a case series study.

BACKGROUND: The use of COVID-19 convalescent plasma (CCP) for the treatment of SARS-CoV-2 infection in pregnancy is intriguing in view of its safety profile in pregnancy and historical precedence of the use of plasma for other viral illnesses. This study aimed to evaluate the use of CCP in pregnant women with early COVID-19 infection. METHODS: This is a retrospective case series study. We have included seven pregnant women admitted with early COVID-19 infection to a tertiary care hospital, Latifa Maternity Hospital in Dubai, United Arab Emirates between 12 February and 04 March 2021 and who consented to receive COVID-19 convalescent plasma as part of their treatment plan. Main outcomes measured were clinical and radiological features, laboratory tests, WHO clinical progression scale pre and post treatment, and maternal, fetal outcomes. COVID-19 clinical severity was classified according to the NIH guidelines for criteria of SARS-CoV-2. For the radiological features, a modified chest X-ray scoring system was used where each lung was divided into 6 zones (3 on each side upper, middle, and lower). Opacities were classified into reticular, ground glass, patchy and dense consolidations patterns. RESULTS: Seven pregnant women with early COVID-19 were enrolled in this study, their mean age was 28 years (SD 3.6). Four had comorbidities: 2 with diabetes, 1 with asthma, and 1 was obese. Five patients were admitted with a WHO clinical progression score of 4 (hospitalized; with no oxygen therapy) and 2 with a score of 5 (hospitalized; oxygen by mask/nasal prongs). Upon follow up on day 10, 6 patients had a WHO score of 1 or 2 (asymptomatic/mild symptoms) indicating clinical recovery. Adverse reactions were reported in 2 patients, one reported a mild skin rash, and another developed transfusion related circulatory overload. All patients were discharged alive. CONCLUSION: CCP seems to be a promising modality of treating COVID-19 infected pregnant women. However, further studies are needed to ascertain the efficacy of CCP in preventing progressive disease in the management of COVID-19 infection in pregnant women.

Photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue using polyaniline-based silver-doped zinc sulfide (PANI-Ag/ZnS) composites.

This study set out to determine the photocatalytic degradation potential of polyaniline-based silver-doped zinc sulfide composite (PANI-Ag/ZnS) for effective degradation of methylene blue. The heterogeneous photocatalytic experiments were carried out by irradiating aqueous dye solutions with ultraviolet light (UV-254 nm). The catalysts (ZnS, Ag/ZnS, PANI-ZnS, and PANI-Ag/ZnS) were prepared successfully and characterized by Fourier Transforms Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), and Energy-dispersive X-ray diffraction (EDX). Combined with density functional theory calculations, a set of calculations has been performed for optimization, computation, and accuracy of the structure. After the optimization, the equilibrium lattice were a=b= (0.54447 nm), in good agreement with experimental results (a=b=c=0.54093 nm). Fermi energy levels Ef, indicating Ag-doped in ZnS as the impurity acceptor and for better visible-light photo-catalysis, narrow bandgap, and acceptor states are beneficial. The optimization of effective parameters like pH, catalyst dose, oxidant dose, dye concentration, and reaction time was carried out. The best degradation efficiency (> 95%) of PANI-Ag/ZnS composite against methylene was achieved within 60 min of reaction time under optimized conditions. The optimized conditions were recoded as follows: pH = 7, catalysts dose = 30 mg/L, oxidant dose = 3 mM, and irradiation time = 60 min under UV-254 nm for all catalysts. The central composite design (CCD) under the Response Surface Methodology (RSM) was chosen as a statistical tool to obtain the correlation of influential parameters. Five successive reusability trials were carried out to check the stability of catalysts.

Clinical presentation of atrial myxomas does it differ in left or right sided tumor?

OBJECTIVE: This paper reports a 20 years' experience in the management of atrial myxomas at our institution. Apart from presenting our experience of their clinical presentation, surgical management, post-operative complication, and long-term follow-up we investigated any correlation between left and right sided tumor with their symptom of presentation. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The data were retrospectively collected for patients between the period 1995 and 2015 from the hospital database. The follow-up was conducted by questionnaire received from the patients describing their current status. RESULTS: Fifty four consecutive patients underwent surgical resection for atrial myxomas. The mean age was 62 years (standard deviation [SD]: ±14 years) with a larger number of female (55.5%) patients. The most common location for the tumor was the left atrium (70.3%) with the atrial septum being the most common (63%) site of attachment. The tumors presented in a variety of ways, namely, as shortness of breath (37.03%), transient ischemic attack (24.07%), and chest pains (22.2%) being the more common modes of presentation. Left heart tumors presented 6 years earlier with more severe shortness of breath as compared to right-sided tumors. Post-operative atrial fibrillation occurred in 22.2% of patients. Concomitant surgical procedures were required in 26% of patient. The median length of post-operative hospital stay was 6 days (IQR: 5; 9). There were 2 (3.7%) in-hospital mortalities and 4 (7.4%) later deaths at 2, 3, 7, and 15 years, respectively. Long-term follow-up actuarial Kaplan-Meire survival for the whole group was 92.6 ± 3.6% at 20 years with a significant reduction in the severity of shortness of breath. CONCLUSION: Cardiac myxoma is the most common form of the cardiac tumor with a slight female preponderance. Left-sided tumors present earlier than right-sided tumors with more severe shortness of breath. Excellent long-term results can be achieved with surgical intervention for cardiac myxomas, including any concomitant interventions. In particular, a sustained reduction in shortness of breath is observed.