Chest Medicine
M-A: Tocilizumab reduces the need for mechanical ventilation in COVID-19 patients, but the randomized trials included in the analysis showed it has no significant effect on the risk of mortality or adverse events
3 May, 2021 | 05:44h | UTC
RECOVERY trial: In hospitalized COVID-19 patients with hypoxia and systemic inflammation (C-reactive protein ≥75 mg/L), tocilizumab improved survival and other clinical outcomes
3 May, 2021 | 05:47h | UTCInvited commentary: Tocilizumab in COVID-19: some clarity amid controversy – The Lancet
Shift work is associated with positive COVID-19 status in hospitalized patients
3 May, 2021 | 05:36h | UTCShift work is associated with positive COVID-19 status in hospitalised patients – Thorax
Commentary: Shift Work Linked to Increased Risk for COVID-19 Illness – HealthDay
M-A: The viral shedding time (VST) determines disease transmission and the duration of infectiousness in SARS-CoV-2 infections – this study found that symptomatic infections, infected adults, persons with chronic diseases, and persons receiving corticosteroid treatment have longer VST
3 May, 2021 | 05:37h | UTC
Case series of 12 patients with cerebral venous sinus thrombosis with thrombocytopenia after Ad26.COV2.S vaccination – all women younger than 60 years, with symptoms from 6 to 15 days after vaccination
3 May, 2021 | 05:43h | UTCSee also: Safety Monitoring of the Janssen (Johnson & Johnson) COVID-19 Vaccine — United States, March–April 2021 – Centers for Disease Control and Prevention AND Updated Recommendations from the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices for Use of the Janssen (Johnson & Johnson) COVID-19 Vaccine After Reports of Thrombosis with Thrombocytopenia Syndrome Among Vaccine Recipients — United States, April 2021 – Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Study: Patients with heart failure have a much higher incidence of pneumonia than matched individuals in the population. The development of pneumonia in these patients is associated with a 3- to 4-fold higher risk of cardiovascular and all-cause death.
3 May, 2021 | 05:18h | UTCCommentaries: Pneumonia in HF Patients Is Common, Lethal, and Preventable – TCTMD AND Outcomes of Pneumonia in Patients With Heart Failure – American College of Cardiology
M-A: Delayed antibiotic prescribing for respiratory tract infections is a safe and effective strategy for most patients
30 Apr, 2021 | 08:33h | UTCCommentaries: Delayed Antibiotic Prescribing Safe for Respiratory Tract Infection – HealthDay
FDA says it will ban all menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars
30 Apr, 2021 | 08:29h | UTCFDA says it will ban all menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars – STAT
See also: FDA Moves To Ban Cigarettes And Flavored Cigars – NPR
AHA/ASA Guidance: Diagnosis and Management of Cerebral Venous Sinus Thrombosis with Vaccine-Induced Thrombotic Thrombocytopenia – “No heparin products in any dose should be given.”
30 Apr, 2021 | 08:25h | UTCNews release: Guidance on treatment for rare blood clots and low platelets related to COVID-19 vaccine – American Heart Association
Study with 6.9 million people in England shows severe Covid-19 in young people can mostly be explained by obesity – At a BMI of more than 23 kg/m2, there was a linear increase in risk of severe COVID-19
30 Apr, 2021 | 08:22h | UTCCommentaries: Severe COVID in young people can mostly be explained by obesity – new study – The Conversation AND Obesity studies highlight severe COVID outcomes, even in young adults – CIDRAP AND Expert reaction to study looking at a potential link between body weight and risk of severe COVID-19, especially for younger adults – Science Media Centre
Commentary on Twitter (thread – click for more)
NEW—Study of health records of nearly 7 million people in England found that the risk of worse outcomes from #COVID19 starts rising in people with a BMI above 23kg/m2—considered to be in the healthy range.
Read in @TheLancetEndo: https://t.co/5ibn3yb1xO 1/2 pic.twitter.com/4MwnGq95Sz
— The Lancet (@TheLancet) April 29, 2021
Debate: Should masks be worn outdoors?
30 Apr, 2021 | 08:21h | UTCShould masks be worn outdoors? – The BMJ
Commentaries: Experts debate on wearing masks outdoors – News Medical AND Do masks need to be worn outdoors? – Advanced Science News
Commentary on Twitter (thread – click for more)
Who do so many of us go off about outdoor masking?
Because if governments can show its people that it's taking #COVID19 seriously by focusing on outdoor masking while ignoring the living and working conditions driving so many infections, we'll get nowhere.#endpandemictheatre
— Stefan Baral (@sdbaral) April 29, 2021
Household COVID-19 risk and in-person schooling – “While in-person schooling is associated with household COVID-19 risk, this risk can likely be controlled with properly implemented school-based mitigation measures”
30 Apr, 2021 | 08:19h | UTCHousehold COVID-19 risk and in-person schooling – Science
Commentary on Twitter
After analyzing responses from the #COVID19 Symptom Survey, @JustinLessler et al. find support for the idea that in-person schooling increases COVID-19 risk to household members; but also evidence that common mitigation measures can reduce this risk. https://t.co/DFtCoN0FEE pic.twitter.com/gxt7nkhdMb
— Science Magazine (@ScienceMagazine) April 29, 2021
Study in England showed one dose of COVID-19 vaccine can cut household transmission by up to half – This protection is on top of the reduced risk of a vaccinated person developing symptomatic infection, which is around 60 to 65% after the first dose
29 Apr, 2021 | 08:44h | UTCNews release: One dose of COVID-19 vaccine can cut household transmission by up to half – Public Health England
Original study (preprint): Impact of vaccination on household transmission of SARS-COV-2 in England – Public Health England
Commentaries: Covid-19: One dose of vaccine cuts risk of passing on infection by as much as 50%, research shows – The BMJ AND Covid: One dose of vaccine halves transmission – study – BBC
Review: COVID-19-associated coagulopathy and antithrombotic agents – In non-critically ill hospitalized patients, therapeutic dose anticoagulation may improve clinical outcomes. In critically ill patients, this same treatment does not improve outcomes, and prophylactic dose anticoagulation is recommended
29 Apr, 2021 | 08:46h | UTCRelated: Full-dose Heparin best for moderate COVID-19 regardless of D-dimer — Data released from ACTIV-4a, ATTACC, and REMAP-CAP trials AND RCT: Intermediate-dose enoxaparin (1 mg/kg/d) not better than standard-dose prophylactic anticoagulation in patients with Covid-19 admitted to the intensive care unit
Commentary on Twitter
🆕💥💥State of the Art Review Article @TheLancetHaem by @MiddeldorpS
COVID-19-associated coagulopathy
Excellent explanation for the pathophysiology and great summary for the major RCTs and clinical guidelines https://t.co/NxP06KP2Hm pic.twitter.com/qHzyDsUZpt— Antibiotic Steward Bassam Ghanem 🅱️C🆔🅿️🌟 (@ABsteward) April 28, 2021
CDC Study: Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines reduce Covid-19 hospitalization risk by 64% after the first dose and 94% after the second dose among adults aged ≥65 years
29 Apr, 2021 | 08:42h | UTCCommentaries: Pfizer/Moderna Vaccine Protection: 64% at First Dose, 94% at Second – HealthDay AND Pfizer and Moderna vaccines reduce Covid-19 hospitalization risk by 94% among older adults, CDC study says – CNN
Commentary on Twitter
New @CDCMMWR has good news: mRNA COVID-19 vaccines (Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna) reduced the risk of #COVID19-related hospitalization by 94% among fully vaccinated people 65+. CDC recommends getting a COVID-19 vaccine to prevent severe COVID-19 illness: https://t.co/W4SFuV6wQp. pic.twitter.com/Jf4ph2rl4s
— CDC (@CDCgov) April 28, 2021
Ethics Commission Position Statement: Admission criteria and management of critical care patients in a pandemic context – “Age cannot be used as the sole criterion for admission nor denial of access to ICU settings”
29 Apr, 2021 | 08:36h | UTC
ACP Guideline: Appropriate Use of High-Flow Nasal Oxygen in Hospitalized Patients – “use high-flow nasal oxygen rather than noninvasive ventilation in hospitalized adults for the management of acute hypoxemic respiratory failure”
29 Apr, 2021 | 08:34h | UTC
Review: Systemic and organ-specific immune-related manifestations of COVID-19 – over 70 different systemic and organ-specific immune-related disorders have been reported
28 Apr, 2021 | 08:42h | UTCSystemic and organ-specific immune-related manifestations of COVID-19 – Nature Reviews Rheumatology
CDC says fully vaccinated Americans can go outside without masks – but masks still needed in crowds
28 Apr, 2021 | 08:44h | UTCCDC Guidance: Choosing Safer Activities – Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Commentaries: CDC: If You’re Vaccinated, You Don’t Need To Mask Outdoors (Unless You’re In A Crowd) – NPR AND CDC: Fully vaccinated Americans can go maskless outdoors – CIDRAP
Commentary on Twitter (thread – click for more)
If you are fully vaccinated against #COVID19, you can start doing many things that you had stopped doing because of the pandemic. If you haven’t been vaccinated yet, get a vaccine as soon as you can. See full details: https://t.co/s5kXwg65fB pic.twitter.com/fvhehUiiCi
— CDC (@CDCgov) April 27, 2021
How the UK found the first effective Covid-19 treatment — and saved a million lives (about the RECOVERY trial and the effects of Dexamethasone)
28 Apr, 2021 | 08:36h | UTCHow the UK found the first effective Covid-19 treatment — and saved a million lives – Vox
Related: Covid-19: The Inside Story of the RECOVERY Trial AND Covid: The London bus trip that saved maybe a million lives – BBC
Tracking the Evolution of a ‘Variant of Concern’ in Brazil – “P.1 may be 1.7 to 2.4 times more transmissible than earlier variants”
28 Apr, 2021 | 08:38h | UTCTracking the Evolution of a ‘Variant of Concern’ in Brazil – NIH Director’s Blog
Related: Genomics and epidemiology of the P.1 SARS-CoV-2 lineage in Manaus, Brazil – Science
Overview of SARS-CoV-2 infection in adults living with HIV – Low CD4 cell counts, or untreated HIV infection is associated a more severe clinical course
28 Apr, 2021 | 08:32h | UTCOverview of SARS-CoV-2 infection in adults living with HIV – The Lancet HIV
Commentary on Twitter
New Review: Overview of SARS-CoV-2 infection in adults living with HIV: https://t.co/xXTntfIYPF pic.twitter.com/6w6MUSbo3n
— The Lancet HIV (@TheLancetHIV) April 27, 2021
ACP Guideline: Appropriate Use of Point-of-Care Ultrasonography in Patients With Acute Dyspnea in Emergency Department or Inpatient Settings
27 Apr, 2021 | 09:31h | UTC
Study in nursing homes shows rapid antigen testing could be a useful tool to identify contagious people at risk for transmitting SARS-CoV-2
27 Apr, 2021 | 08:35h | UTCEditorial: Utility of Rapid Antigen Tests in Nursing Homes
Commentary on Twitter
💥🆕 Despite lower positive agreement compared with RT-PCR, antigen test positivity had higher agreement with shedding of replication-competent virus. These results suggest that antigen testing could be a useful tool to rapidly identify contagious people. https://t.co/Dlw7ttLlSL pic.twitter.com/sGmfVIy02H
— Antibiotic Steward Bassam Ghanem 🅱️C🆔🅿️🌟 (@ABsteward) April 26, 2021
M-A: Prophylaxis against Covid-19: 1 – no benefit from Hydroxychloroquine; 2 – as studies on ivermectin so far have been small, it remains very uncertain whether ivermectin reduces SARS-CoV-2 infection
27 Apr, 2021 | 08:44h | UTCProphylaxis against covid-19: living systematic review and network meta-analysis – The BMJ