Chest Medicine
[Preprint] Randomized trial: Arthritis drugs improve survival in critically ill patients with Covid-19
10 Jan, 2021 | 20:56h | UTCCommentaries: Covid-19: Arthritis drugs improve survival in intensive care patients, shows study – The BMJ AND Arthritis drugs could help save lives of Covid patients, research finds – The Guardian AND Expert comment – Two potentially life-saving drugs for critically ill COVID-19 patients – London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine
Commentary on Twitter
Two rheumatoid arthritis drugs will now be used to treat the patients with severe covid-19 in intensive care, after new findings have shown that they significantly improve survival and cut the time spent in hospital by a week to 10 days https://t.co/cxNM64L5S6
— The BMJ (@bmj_latest) January 8, 2021
New SARS-CoV-2 variants: increased transmissibility likely to cause more deaths and possibly a new wave of the disease
10 Jan, 2021 | 20:54h | UTC- SARS-CoV-2 Variants – World Health Organization
- Why epidemiologists are so worried about the new Covid-19 variants, in 2 charts – Vox
- We lost to SARS-CoV-2 in 2020. We can defeat B-117 in 2021 – STAT
- Transmission of SARS-CoV-2 Lineage B.1.1.7 in England: insights from linking epidemiological and genetic data – Imperial College of London AND Commentary: New COVID-19 variant growing rapidly in England – Imperial College London
- Genetic Variants of SARS-CoV-2—What Do They Mean? – JAMA
- Podcast: Understanding SARS-CoV-2 Genetic Variants – JAMA
- Podcast: Understanding the New SARS-CoV-2 Mutation Found in England – JAMA
- Viral mutations may cause another ‘very, very bad’ COVID-19 wave, scientists warn – Science
- Mutant coronavirus in the United Kingdom sets off alarms, but its importance remains unclear – Science
- New variant of SARS-CoV-2 in UK causes surge of COVID-19 – The Lancet Respiratory Medicine
- Scientists are monitoring a coronavirus mutation that could affect the strength of vaccines – STAT
- Instead of debating ‘first-shot’ vs. ‘set-aside’ vaccine approaches, hospitals’ study should compare them – STAT
- The Mutated Virus Is a Ticking Time Bomb – Vox
- What We Know About The New U.K. Variant Of Coronavirus — And What We Need To Find Out – NPR
- The New Mutations – Science Translational Medicine
- New Virus Strain’s Transmissibility to Cause More Deaths: Study – Bloomberg
- U.K. variant puts spotlight on immunocompromised patients’ role in the COVID-19 pandemic – Science
- When unusually severe COVID is seen, rapid identification-and-virus-sequencing are needed world-wide – Science Speaks: Global ID News
- Covid-19: New coronavirus variant is identified in UK – The BMJ
- The looming questions scientists need to answer about the new variant of the coronavirus – STAT
- With limited surveillance of Covid-19 variant, it’s déjà vu all over again – STAT
- New coronavirus variant: What do we know? – BBC
- Covid-19 in South Africa: Scientists seek to understand new variant – BBC
- New coronavirus variant: what is the spike protein and why are mutations on it important? – The Conversation
Randomized trial: Neutralizing monoclonal antibody not efficacious among hospitalized patients with covid-19
10 Jan, 2021 | 20:55h | UTCCommentaries: Covid-19: Trial of LY-CoV555 Stopped for Futility – Physician’s Weekly AND Results of NIH-sponsored ACTIV-3 trial published – NIH News Releases AND Bamlanivimab Flops in Hospitalized COVID-19 Patients – MedPage Today (free registration required)
Peter Doshi: Pfizer and Moderna’s “95% effective” vaccines—we need more details and the raw data
10 Jan, 2021 | 20:48h | UTC
Moderna COVID-19 vaccine phase III trial results published; it is 94.1% efficacious in preventing symptomatic COVID-19
10 Jan, 2021 | 20:49h | UTCEfficacy and Safety of the mRNA-1273 SARS-CoV-2 Vaccine – New England Journal of Medicine
Commentaries: Peer-reviewed report on Moderna COVID-19 vaccine publishes – NIH News Releases AND Peer-reviewed data show high protection for leading COVID vaccines – CIDRAP AND The Moderna Vaccine’s Antibodies May Not Last As Long As We Hoped – Forbes
Commentary on Twitter
In the phase 3 mRNA-1273 trial participants received 2 doses of vaccine or placebo 28 days apart. The mRNA-1273 vaccine showed 94.1% efficacy in preventing #SARSCoV2, including severe disease. #IDTwitter
— NEJM (@NEJM) December 30, 2020
Debate: Should we delay second vaccine doses to give one dose of the Covid-19 vaccine to more people?
10 Jan, 2021 | 20:51h | UTC- Editorial: U.S. COVID-19 Vaccination Challenges Go Beyond Supply – Annals of Internal Medicine
- Speed Versus Efficacy: Quantifying Potential Tradeoffs in COVID-19 Vaccine Deployment – Annals of Internal Medicine
- A Public Health COVID-19 Vaccination Strategy to Maximize the Health Gains for Every Single Vaccine Dose – Annals of Internal Medicine
- Alternative Dose Allocation Strategies to Increase Benefits From Constrained COVID-19 Vaccine Supply – Annals of Internal Medicine
- Delaying the second COVID vaccine dose – a medical expert answers key questions – The Conversation
- Should we give one dose of the Covid-19 vaccine to more people? The debate, explained. – Vox
- Debates intensify over dosing plans for authorized COVID-19 vaccines – Science
- Covid-19 vaccination: What’s the evidence for extending the dosing interval? – The BMJ Opinion
- Covid-19 vaccines: to delay or not to delay second doses – The BMJ Opinion
- Britain takes a gamble with Covid-19 vaccines, upping the stakes for the rest of us – STAT
- UK Delay of Second COVID-19 Vaccine Dose – A Risky Strategy That Could Give Rise To More Virus Mutations, Some Experts Warn – Health Policy Watch
- What’s the scientific basis for delaying the Covid vaccine second dose? – The Guardian
- FDA says people need both doses of coronavirus vaccines – CNN
- WHO experts weigh in on COVID-19 vaccine dose interval – CIDRAP
- For mRNA vaccines, we should stick to the schedule – The Guardian
- Expert comment on whether giving two doses of COVID vaccine separated by a longer period is sensible – Science Media Centre
- How safe is it to switch and space COVID-19 vaccine doses? – Reuters
[Press release – results not published yet] International trials of blood thinners in critically ill COVID-19 patients pause due to futility
10 Jan, 2021 | 20:44h | UTC
Commentary on Twitter
The 3 largest RCTs of therapeutic #anticoagulation for #COVID19 pts in the ICU have ALL been stopped early for futility. (@remap_cap @ATTACC_COVID & #ACTIV4)
Nothing published yet, but given the large n of these RCTs, I'm increasingly skeptical about anticoagulation in COVID19. pic.twitter.com/RrLSoOsp3v
— Nick Mark MD (@nickmmark) December 22, 2020
Sinovac vaccine 78% effective in Brazil trial, experts call for more details
10 Jan, 2021 | 20:46h | UTCSinovac vaccine 78% effective in Brazil trial, experts call for more details – Reuters
Long Covid: 6-month consequences of COVID-19 in patients discharged from hospital
10 Jan, 2021 | 20:43h | UTC6-month consequences of COVID-19 in patients discharged from hospital: a cohort study – The Lancet
Commentaries: Most patients hospitalized for Covid-19 still have symptoms six months later, China study finds AND Long-term follow-up of recovered patients with COVID-19 – The Lancet
Commentary on Twitter
Largest #LongCovid cohort @TheLancet just published:
6 months post-hospital,
—76% still had ≥ 1 symptom
—63% fatigue/muscle weakness
—sleep, anxiety, depression common
—Sig % w/CT lung abnormalities
—13% had abnormal kidney function https://t.co/zfRf7MGdxB pic.twitter.com/LI4DaJPis8— Eric Topol (@EricTopol) January 8, 2021
[Preprint] Characterizing Long COVID in an International Cohort: 7 Months of Symptoms and Their Impact
10 Jan, 2021 | 20:41h | UTCRelated: Explanations for ‘long Covid’ remain elusive. For now, believing patients and treating symptoms is the best doctors can do – STAT AND Long COVID: who is at risk? – The Conversation
Commentary on Twitter
How long is #LongCovid?
The most extensive symptom assessment and longest duration (7 months) of nearly 3,800 individuals shows how debilitating this is in young, predominantly women, w/ most unable to return to full prior work https://t.co/o0YUNse1EA @ahandvanish @AthenaAkrami pic.twitter.com/3miXJFdVp0— Eric Topol (@EricTopol) December 29, 2020
NICE Guideline: Managing the long-term effects of COVID-19
18 Dec, 2020 | 10:27h | UTC
NICE Guideline: Do not use Vitamin D to prevent or treat COVID 19
18 Dec, 2020 | 10:03h | UTCCOVID-19 rapid guideline: vitamin D – National Institute for Health and Care Excellence
News release: NICE, PHE and SACN publish rapid COVID-19 guidance on vitamin D
Commentaries: Covid and vitamin D: ‘Not enough evidence’ for treatment – BBC AND Covid-19: Evidence is lacking to support vitamin D’s role in treatment and prevention – The BMJ
Commentary on Twitter
https://twitter.com/onisillos/status/1339485382501666816
Vaccines are here. We have to talk about side effects
18 Dec, 2020 | 09:59h | UTCVaccines Are Here. We Have to Talk About Side Effects – Wired
Commentary on Twitter
All vaccines have side effects and trust comes from freely discussing them. Nice piece by @marynmck https://t.co/eUISXTiFVP
— Madhu Pai, MD, PhD (@paimadhu) December 17, 2020
“Racial Bias in Pulse Oximetry Measurement”. In two large cohorts, Black patients had nearly three times the frequency of occult hypoxemia that was not detected by pulse oximetry as White patients
18 Dec, 2020 | 10:01h | UTCRacial Bias in Pulse Oximetry Measurement – New England Journal of Medicine
Commentary: Devices Used In COVID-19 Treatment Can Give Errors For Patients With Dark Skin – NPR
Commentary on Twitter (thread – click for more)
1/ Our research letter on racial bias in pulse oximetry measurement, out today in NEJM https://t.co/6dLuNGosxp pic.twitter.com/XXsfWfc5dv
— Michael Sjoding (@msjoding) December 17, 2020
COVID 5 times deadlier than flu for hospital patients, study finds
18 Dec, 2020 | 09:53h | UTCCOVID 5 times deadlier than flu for hospital patients, study finds – CIDRAP
Commentary on Twitter
Among people admitted to hospital, #COVID19 was associated with increased risk of various extrapulmonary clinical manifestations, compared with seasonal influenza #BMJResearch https://t.co/R0J9HCvsH2
— The BMJ (@bmj_latest) December 16, 2020
Studies reveal deadliness of COVID-19, even in young adults
18 Dec, 2020 | 09:57h | UTCData reveal deadliness of COVID-19, even in young adults – CIDRAP
Survey: Around 1 in 5 COVID-19 patients exhibit symptoms for a period of 5 weeks or longer; Around 1 in 10 COVID-19 patients exhibit symptoms for a period of 12 weeks or longer
18 Dec, 2020 | 09:49h | UTCThe prevalence of long COVID symptoms and COVID-19 complications – Office of National Statistics
Commentary on Twitter
The prevalence of long COVID symptoms & COVID-19 complications published by @ONS
10% of covid positive patients exhibit symptoms for a period of > 12 weeks
20% for > 5 weeksGreat work by @DanAyoubkhani @Vnafilyan https://t.co/8YgxkCG847
@martinmckee pic.twitter.com/Itizxkk8xC
— Prof Kamlesh Khunti (@kamleshkhunti) December 17, 2020
Meta-analysis: Lung cancer screening using low-dose computed tomography reduces lung cancer–specific mortality, albeit with a tradeoff of likely overdiagnosis
16 Dec, 2020 | 10:08h | UTC
COVID-19 is 10 times deadlier for people with Down syndrome, raising calls for early vaccination
17 Dec, 2020 | 08:51h | UTC
Study: Filtration efficiency of face masks used by the public during the COVID-19 pandemic are, in many cases, nearly equivalent to or better than their non-N95 respirator medical mask counterparts
17 Dec, 2020 | 08:43h | UTCEditorial: Filtration Efficiency of Face Masks Used by the Public During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Commentary on Twitter
Marked reassurance on the value of cloth masks.
A new @JAMAInternalMed assessment today https://t.co/bTrurKeG71 Attention to fit is key, such as aluminum nose bridge, ties, no beard, etc 😷😷 @Phillip_Clapp @UNC_SOM pic.twitter.com/ZCMTT2OWXc— Eric Topol (@EricTopol) December 11, 2020
Individual and community-level risk predictor for COVID-19 mortality in the US, with risk calculator
16 Dec, 2020 | 09:42h | UTCIndividual and community-level risk for COVID-19 mortality in the United States – Nature Medicine
Calculator: Covid-19 risk
Commentary on Twitter
New @NatureMedicine
What is your individualized risk of dying from covid19?https://t.co/Bg61t3raVNhttps://t.co/tQGH0ilsmR (1.1X for me) pic.twitter.com/9pkwyCUAVw— Eric Topol (@EricTopol) December 11, 2020
COVID-19 mimics on chest CT: a pictorial review and radiologic guide
17 Dec, 2020 | 08:37h | UTC
Video (5min): Ivermectin for COVID-19 | A Doctor Explains
16 Dec, 2020 | 09:43h | UTCIvermectin For COVID-19 | A Doctor Explains – ZDoggMD
ACR Guidance for pediatric patients with multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children associated with SARS‐CoV‐2
16 Dec, 2020 | 09:32h | UTC
Report: Lung transplantation for 3 patients with severe COVID-19
16 Dec, 2020 | 09:34h | UTCLung transplantation for patients with severe COVID-19 – Science Translational Medicine
Commentaries: COVID-19 can damage lungs so badly that ‘only hope’ is transplant – MedicalXpress
Commentary on Twitter
Case reports from 3 patients with severe #COVID19 who received lung transplants show the disease can cause extensive lung damage similar to that seen in pulmonary #fibrosis, and hints transplantation may be a viable treatment. @NUFeinbergMed @ScienceTM https://t.co/wXi0tx8gFg pic.twitter.com/vyerJLlJxi
— Science Magazine (@ScienceMagazine) November 30, 2020