Global & Public Health (all articles)
Recommendations for ventilation of indoor spaces to reduce COVID-19 transmission.
2 Sep, 2021 | 10:02h | UTCRelated:
We studied how to reduce airborne COVID spread in hospitals. Here’s what we learnt.
WHO: Roadmap to improve and ensure good indoor ventilation in the context of COVID-19
CDC releases new ventilation guidelines for indoor environments to reduce Covid-19 risk
World leaders and experts call for significant reduction in the use of antimicrobial drugs in global food systems.
2 Sep, 2021 | 08:13h | UTCCommentary: Global group urges limits on antimicrobials in food production – CIDRAP
[Preprint] Randomized trials on non-pharmaceutical interventions for COVID-19 as of August 2021: a meta-epidemiological analysis – “Worldwide, 41 randomized trials assessing NPIs have been initiated with published results available to inform policy decisions for only 7 of them”.
1 Sep, 2021 | 10:01h | UTC
Commentary on Twitter
New Preprint: Randomized trials on non-pharmaceutical interventions for COVID-19 as of August 2021: a meta-epidemiological analysis@BessiCollab @CovidEvidence https://t.co/xZsgqegSRR
1/n
— Lars G. Hemkens (@LGHemkens) August 31, 2021
[Preprint] Pfizer vaccine booster dose protection: A nationwide study from Israel – “Twelve days or more after the booster dose we found an 11.4-fold decrease in the relative risk of confirmed infection, and a >10-fold decrease in the relative risk of severe illness”.
1 Sep, 2021 | 09:59h | UTCBNT162b2 vaccine booster dose protection: A nationwide study from Israel – medRxiv
Perspective | COVID-19 boosters in rich nations will delay vaccines for all.
1 Sep, 2021 | 09:56h | UTCCOVID-19 boosters in rich nations will delay vaccines for all – Nature
Commentaries on Twitter
In @NatureMedicine, @zchagla & I ask:
Are we as a species willing to protect all humankind, or do we mostly care about optimizing protection for people in wealthy nations?https://t.co/LCS5Dxf1II pic.twitter.com/vdn4oRiYyz
— Madhu Pai, MD, PhD (@paimadhu) August 31, 2021
"There remain 3.5 billion people on this earth, nearly half of the world’s population, who have not received even a first dose of vaccine. Only 2% of the African population has received even a single dose." #Equity #COVID19 Via @NatureMedicine https://t.co/k6cG6vyQ5d pic.twitter.com/DsbWVvQ9R7
— Muin J. Khoury (@MuinJKhoury) August 31, 2021
Prioritising COVID booster shots in high income countries is unethical – until health care workers and those at high risk in low and middle income countries have been vaccinated. @paimadhu and @zchagla wrote this much better than I could – thank you! https://t.co/F89o8y9V8P
— Ben Johnson 🦠📝 (@drbenjohnson) August 31, 2021
Why is a third COVID-19 vaccine dose important for people who are immunocompromised?
1 Sep, 2021 | 09:57h | UTCRelated:
RCT: third dose of Moderna mRNA vaccine increases immunity in transplant recipients.
COVID may be most infectious 2 or 3 days around symptom onset.
1 Sep, 2021 | 09:51h | UTCCOVID may be most infectious 2 or 3 days around symptom onset – CIDRAP
Global, regional, and national estimates and trends in stillbirths from 2000 to 2019: a systematic assessment.
1 Sep, 2021 | 08:56h | UTC
RCT: Severe malaria among young African children dramatically reduced through seasonal vaccination and preventative drug combination.
1 Sep, 2021 | 09:02h | UTCOriginal article: Seasonal Malaria Vaccination with or without Seasonal Malaria Chemoprevention – New England Journal of Medicine
Commentary: Malaria trial shows ‘striking’ 70% reduction in severe illness in children – The Guardian
Related: Malaria vaccine becomes first to achieve WHO-specified 75% efficacy goal
WHO Issues COVID-19 Digital ‘Vaccine Pass’ Guidelines – But Stresses These Should Not be Requirements for Travel.
31 Aug, 2021 | 09:02h | UTC
Study shows young children gained weight during the pandemic.
31 Aug, 2021 | 08:59h | UTCNews release: Young children gained weight during the pandemic – Kaiser Permanente
Original study: Changes in Body Mass Index Among Children and Adolescents During the COVID-19 Pandemic – JAMA
Commentary on Twitter
#KPResearch showed significant weight gain occurred during COVID-19 pandemic among youth in Southern California, especially among youngest kids.
Research: @KPSCalResearch & @UMchear
In @JAMANetwork
Authors incl @CKoebnickPhD @RohmDeborah @MargoSidell https://t.co/IqiUxo75bW pic.twitter.com/8XA7G6J3Bu— Kaiser Permanente Research (@KPSCalResearch) August 27, 2021
Study demonstrates a significantly higher humoral immunogenicity induced by the SARS-CoV-2 Moderna vaccine compared with the Pfizer- BioNTech vaccine.
31 Aug, 2021 | 09:04h | UTCComparison of SARS-CoV-2 Antibody Response Following Vaccination With BNT162b2 and mRNA-1273 – JAMA
Related:
Moderna may be superior to Pfizer against Delta variant — breakthrough odds rise with time.
Do kids get long COVID? And how often? A pediatrician looks at the data – Children also get Long Covid, but much less often than adults.
31 Aug, 2021 | 08:57h | UTCDo kids get long COVID? And how often? A paediatrician looks at the data – The Conversation
Related:
Cohort study: Risk factors for long covid in previously hospitalized children.
M-A: More than 50 long-term effects of COVID-19.
Opinion | COVID vaccines: we need to find out which incentives actually work – the author argues that policies to promote vaccine uptake should be tested in randomized clinical trials.
31 Aug, 2021 | 08:56h | UTCCOVID vaccines: we need to find out which incentives actually work – The Conversation
#ESCCongress – RCT: Influenza vaccination early after a myocardial infarction (MI) or in high-risk coronary heart disease resulted in a lower risk of a composite of all-cause death, MI, or stent thrombosis compared with placebo.
31 Aug, 2021 | 08:52h | UTCCommentaries:
IAMI: Influenza Vaccine Beneficial for Post-MI Patients – TCTMD
Influenza Vaccination After Myocardial Infarction – IAMI – American College of Cardiology
Flu vaccine after heart attack reduces risk of death – Cardiovascular Business
Commentary on Twitter
The IAMI trial showed that #fluvaccine within 72 hours of angiography/PCI/hospitalization among patients with recent #cvMI or high-risk coronary heart disease resulted in a salutary effect on CV outcomes at 12 months compared w/ placebo: https://t.co/csnS3G8vsa #ESCCongress pic.twitter.com/5JB4iUmMbV
— American College of Cardiology (@ACCinTouch) August 30, 2021
Study with over 29 million people in England shows Covid-19, not vaccination, presents biggest blood clot risks.
29 Aug, 2021 | 18:57h | UTCPress release: Covid-19, not vaccination, presents biggest blood clot risks – University of Oxford
Editorial: Strengthening international surveillance of vaccine safety – The BMJ
Commentaries:
Covid: Vaccine complications dwarfed by virus risks – BBC
Commentary on Twitter
#BMJInfographic Fast track research looked at patient level data for ~30 million people vaccinated in England and found that thrombosis risks associated with covid-19 vaccines are lower than that associated with covid-19 infection https://t.co/R0JlcuvMez @JuliaHCox pic.twitter.com/XMzXK6UOBc
— The BMJ (@bmj_latest) August 27, 2021
#ESCCongress – M-A: Polypills with and without aspirin substantially reduce cardiovascular disease, myocardial infarction, stroke, revascularization, and cardiovascular death in primary cardiovascular disease prevention.
31 Aug, 2021 | 08:47h | UTCFixed-dose combination therapies with and without aspirin for primary prevention of cardiovascular disease: an individual participant data meta-analysis – The Lancet (link to abstract – $ for full-text)
Commentary: Combo therapy cuts risk of heart attacks and strokes in half – McMaster University
Related:
Opinion: A new important study supports wider use of the polypill
Perspective: Are Polypills and Population-based Treatment the Next Big Things?
The Polypill Revisited: Why We Still Need Population-Based Approaches in the Precision Medicine Era
Randomized Trial: Polypill for Cardiovascular Disease Prevention in an Underserved Population
Perspective: The Polypill and the Long Journey to Major Impact
Research: Low-Dose ‘Triple Pill’ Lowers Blood Pressure More Than Usual Care
Cohort study: Patients with Covid-19 infected with the Delta variant are twice as likely to need hospital admission or emergency care attendance.
29 Aug, 2021 | 19:02h | UTCCommentaries:
Covid: Delta variant patients twice as likely to need hospital care – BBC
Covid-19 hospitalization risk doubles with Delta variant, UK study suggests – CNN
Commentary on Twitter
The Delta variant is bad enough, but there has been debate as to whether it, per se, carries a higher risk of hospitalization (H) beyond its very high contagiousness. A new, rigorous study shows a doubling of the H rate https://t.co/qom8l6fw4v pic.twitter.com/CwXPOU0YWi
— Eric Topol (@EricTopol) August 27, 2021
Opinion | 10 Images That Illustrate The Shameful Global Vaccine Inequity – “This series of 10 images tell the story behind the great vaccine apartheid – the single biggest moral and scientific failure during this global crisis”.
29 Aug, 2021 | 18:53h | UTC10 Images That Illustrate The Shameful Global Vaccine Inequity – by Madhukar Pai
Commentary on Twitter
Please don't look away!
My new post @NatureMicrobiol offers
10 Images That Illustrate The Shameful Global Vaccine Inequityhttps://t.co/5iwINN1IeN #COVID19 #vaccinequity
— Madhu Pai, MD, PhD (@paimadhu) August 28, 2021
Many predicted some kind of ‘Covid slide’ in learning. Test results show how bad it is.
29 Aug, 2021 | 18:55h | UTCMany predicted some kind of ‘Covid slide’ in learning. Test results show how bad it is – CNN
Report: Learning during COVID-19: Reading and math achievement in the 2020-21 school year – NWEA
Related:
Unvaccinated, unmasked teacher infected more than half of students in class with Covid-19, CDC reports.
29 Aug, 2021 | 18:52h | UTC
M-A: Factors associated with household transmission of SARS-CoV-2 – recent studies showed higher household secondary attack rates than earliest reports (13.4% vs. 31.1%); more transmissible variants and vaccines may lead to further changes.
29 Aug, 2021 | 18:48h | UTCCommentary: 1 in 5 people with COVID-19 pass it to others in household, study finds – UPI
Commentary on Twitter
The findings of this meta-analysis suggest that the household remains an important site of #SARSCoV2 transmission, and recent studies have higher household secondary attack rates estimates compared with the earliest reports. https://t.co/lFmkaz0zUe
— JAMA Network Open (@JAMANetworkOpen) August 27, 2021
New CDC Guidance says influenza and Covid vaccines can be given together – “COVID-19 vaccines and other vaccines may now be administered without regard to timing”
29 Aug, 2021 | 18:51h | UTCCommentary: Flu shot and a COVID jab? New 2021-2022 flu vaccine guidance points to both – McKnight’s
#ESCCongress – Cluster RCT: Among patients at increased risk for stroke, salt substitution (75% sodium chloride and 25% potassium chloride by mass) reduced the rates of stroke, major cardiovascular events, and death from any cause.
29 Aug, 2021 | 19:21h | UTCEffect of Salt Substitution on Cardiovascular Events and Death – New England Journal of Medicine (link to abstract – $ for full-text)
News release: Low-sodium salt prevents stroke – European Society of Cardiology
Commentary: Massive SSaSS Study Shows Switch to Salt Substitute Cuts Stroke, CVD – TCTMD
Commentary on Twitter
SSaSS: In RCT that compared salt substitute w/ regular salt, rates of stroke, major CV events, death lower with salt sub. #ESCCongress https://t.co/Yt6vMrYSDh pic.twitter.com/jtymS36zqs
— NEJM (@NEJM) August 29, 2021
It’s not just SARS-CoV-2: Most respiratory viruses spread by aerosols.
27 Aug, 2021 | 10:18h | UTCOriginal article: Airborne transmission of respiratory viruses – Science
Commentary on Twitter (thread – click for more)
1/ AIRBORNE TRANSMISSION OF RESPIRATORY VIRUSES
A new peer-reviewed paper in @ScienceMagazine, reviewing the scientific literature on this topic. We conclude it is important not just for COVID-19, but also for other respiratory diseases such as the fluhttps://t.co/vik1deBzeB
— Prof. Jose-Luis Jimenez (@jljcolorado) August 26, 2021