Diseases Commons^™

Modeling The Spread Of Covid-19 In Spatio-Temporal Context, S.H. Sathish Indika, Norou Diawara, Hueiwang Anna Jeng, Bridget D. Giles, Dilini S.K. Gamage

Mathematics & Statistics Faculty Publications

This study aims to use data provided by the Virginia Department of Public Health to illustrate the changes in trends of the total cases in COVID-19 since they were first recorded in the state. Each of the 93 counties in the state has its COVID-19 dashboard to help inform decision makers and the public of spatial and temporal counts of total cases. Our analysis shows the differences in the relative spread between the counties and compares the evolution in time using Bayesian conditional autoregressive framework. The models are built under the Markov Chain Monte Carlo method and Moran spatial correlations. …

Does The Cdc Covid-19 Exposure Assessment Criteria For Healthcare Personnel Work In A Healthcare Setting In Pakistan?, Imran Hassan, Unab Khan, Shehreen Ali, Asif Hakim, Asad Ali

Department of Family Medicine

Objective: To evaluate the real-world performance of the CDC's "Interim US guidance for risk assessment and work restriction for healthcare personnel with exposure to COVID-19" at a private healthcare system in Pakistan.
Study design: Retrospective observational study.
Place and duration of study: The Aga khan University Hospital, Karachi, and its associated healthcare facilities in all four provinces of Pakistan, from February to September 2020.
Methodology: Healthcare personnel (HCPs) assessed and tested for exposures to COVID-19 were included in the study. An exposure category was assigned to each HCP presenting with exposure to COVID-19 based on the CDC criteria. Percentage positivity …

Adaptive Leadership In Local Responses To Covi D-19: Cases Of The Cities Of Santa Rosa And Valenzuela, Philippines, Miriam Caryl Carada, Therese Pardo, Aileen Lapitan

Journal of Public Affairs and Development

The Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) created a disruption to the global landscape that called for the quick response of key governance actors, specifically an adaptive approach by the local leaders. In this study, we analyze strategies of two local chief executives to draw insights about how adaptive leadership practiced in the context of two cities in the Philippines deemed to excel in managing the pandemic at the height of its onslaught. Owing to COVID restrictions at the time of the study, secondary data from various social media accounts, local government portals, and news websites were utilized together with the accounts from …

The Shortfalls Of Vulnerability Indexes For Public Health Decision-Making In The Face Of Emergent Crises: The Case Of Covid-19 Vaccine Uptake In Virginia, Lydia Cleveland Sa, Erika Frydenlund

VMASC Publications

Equitable and effective vaccine uptake is a key issue in addressing COVID-19. To achieve this, we must comprehensively characterize the context-specific socio-behavioral and structural determinants of vaccine uptake. However, to quickly focus public health interventions, state agencies and planners often rely on already existing indexes of "vulnerability." Many such "vulnerability indexes" exist and become benchmarks for targeting interventions in wide ranging scenarios, but they vary considerably in the factors and themes that they cover. Some are even uncritical of the use of the word "vulnerable," which should take on different meanings in different contexts. The objective of this study is …

A Rapid, Low-Cost, And Highly Sensitive Sars-Cov-2 Diagnostic Based On Whole-Genome Sequencing, Per A Adastra, Neva C Durand, Namita Mitra, Saul Godinez Pulido, Ragini Mahajan, Alyssa Blackburn, Zane L Colaric, Joshua W M Theisen, David Weisz, Olga Dudchenko, Andreas Gnirke, Suhas S P Rao, Parwinder Kaur, Erez Lieberman Aiden, Aviva Presser Aiden

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Early detection of SARS-CoV-2 infection is key to managing the current global pandemic, as evidence shows the virus is most contagious on or before symptom onset. Here, we introduce a low-cost, high-throughput method for diagnosing and studying SARS-CoV-2 infection. Dubbed Pathogen-Oriented Low-Cost Assembly & Re-Sequencing (POLAR), this method amplifies the entirety of the SARS-CoV-2 genome. This contrasts with typical RT-PCR-based diagnostic tests, which amplify only a few loci. To achieve this goal, we combine a SARS-CoV-2 enrichment method developed by the ARTIC Network (https://artic.network/) with short-read DNA sequencing and de novo genome assembly. Using this method, we can reliably ( …

Impact Of The Covid Pandemic On Mental Health And Training Opportunities Of Public Health Residents From 4 European Countries: A Cross-Sectional Study, Giovanna Failla, Marta Caminiti, José Chen-Xu, Giuseppina Lo Moro, Nausicaa Berselli, Madalena Cabral Ferreira, Filipa Malcata, David Peyre-Costa, Roberto Croci, Giorgia Soldà, Angelo Capodici, Caterina Morcavallo, Francesco Traglia, Fabrizio Cedrone, Ilaria Storti, Alfonso Alonso Jaquete, Martina Antinozzi, Anca Vasiliu

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

OBJECTIVES: There is little evidence on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Public Health Residents' (PHR) mental health (MH). This study aims at assessing prevalence and risk factors for depression, anxiety and stress in European PHR during the COVID-19 pandemic.

METHODS: Between March and April 2021, an online survey was administered to PHR from France, Italy, Portugal and Spain. The survey assessed COVID-19 related changes in working conditions, training opportunities and evaluated MH outcomes using the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales-21. Multivariable logistic regressions were applied to identify risk factors.

RESULTS: Among the 443 respondents, many showed symptoms of depression …

Pediatric Otolaryngology Trends In Patient Care Volume During Covid-19: A Survey Study, William R Pellegrini, Anna H Messner, Jessica R Levi

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

PURPOSE: To assess changes in outpatient clinic, inpatient consult, and operative volumes among pediatric otolaryngologists in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: An online questionnaire was distributed to 535 active members of the American Society of Pediatric Otolaryngology from April 21, 2020, to May 4, 2020. The questionnaire assessed operative and clinical volumes during a two-week period between April 6, 2020, to April 20, 2020, while restrictions on elective surgery were in place, as compared to an average two-week period before the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

RESULTS: Both outpatient clinic and inpatient consult visit volume decreased significantly …

Physiologic Profile Associated With Severe Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome In Children: A Retrospective Study, Fabio Savorgnan, Alvaro Moreira, Axel Moreira, Ananth Annapragada, S Kristen Sexson Tejtel, Saul Flores, Craig G Rusin, Lara Shekerdemian, Sebastian Acosta

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to describe the clinical presentation and physiologic profile of individuals with varying degrees of severity of multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C).

METHODS: We performed a retrospective study of children diagnosed with MIS-C admitted to a single quaternary children's hospital from May 2020 to April 2021. We created an MIS-C severity score using the following parameters: hospital admission status (e.g., floor vs intensive care unit), need for inotropic or vasoactive medications, and need for mechanical ventilation. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to associate risk factors corresponding to the MIS-C severity score.

RESULTS: …

Chronic Liver Disease-Related Mortality In Diabetes Before And During The Covid-19 In The United States, Donghee Kim, Omar Alshuwaykh, Brittany B Dennis, George Cholankeril, Joshua W Knowles, Aijaz Ahmed

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

BACKGROUND: Global pandemic of COVID-19 represents an unprecedented challenge. COVID-19 has predominantly targeted vulnerable populations with pre-existing chronic medical diseases, such as diabetes and chronic liver disease.

AIMS: We estimated chronic liver disease-related mortality trends among individuals with diabetes before and during the COVID-19 pandemic.

METHODS: Utilizing the US national mortality database and Census, we determined the quarterly age-standardized chronic liver disease-related mortality and quarterly percentage change (QPC) among individuals with diabetes.

RESULTS: The quarterly age-standardized mortality for chronic liver disease and/or cirrhosis among individuals with diabetes remained stable before the COVID-19 pandemic and sharply increased during the COIVD-19 pandemic …

Covid-19 And Pregnancy: Clinical Outcomes; Mechanisms, And Vaccine Efficacy, Deepak Kumar, Sonam Verma, Indira U Mysorekar

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues into its third year, emerging data indicates increased risks associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection during pregnancy, including pre-eclampsia, intrauterine growth restriction, preterm birth, stillbirth, and risk of developmental defects in neonates. Here, we review clinical reports to date that address different COVID-19 pregnancy complications. We also document placental pathologies induced by SARS-CoV-2 infection, entry mechanisms in placental cells, and immune responses at the maternal-fetal interface. Since new variants of SARS-CoV-2 are emerging with characteristics of higher transmissibility and more effective immune escape strategies, we also briefly highlight the genomic and proteomic features of SARS-CoV-2 investigated to …

Distinct Temporal Trajectories And Risk Factors For Post-Acute Sequelae Of Sars-Cov-2 Infection, Chen Chen, Sairam Parthasarathy, Jacqueline M Leung, Michelle J Wu, Katherine A Drake, Vanessa K Ridaura, Howard C Zisser, William A Conrad, Victor F Tapson, James N Moy, Christopher R Defilippi, Ivan O Rosas, Bellur S Prabhakar, Mujeeb Basit, Mirella Salvatore, Jerry A Krishnan, Charles C Kim

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

BACKGROUND: The understanding of Post-acute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection (PASC) can be improved by longitudinal assessment of symptoms encompassing the acute illness period. To gain insight into the various disease trajectories of PASC, we assessed symptom evolution and clinical factors associated with the development of PASC over 3 months, starting with the acute illness period.

METHODS: We conducted a prospective cohort study to identify parameters associated with PASC. We performed cluster and case control analyses of clinical data, including symptomatology collected over 3 months following infection.

RESULTS: We identified three phenotypic clusters associated with PASC that could be characterized as …

Stressors And Hormone Levels: Predictors Of Covid-19 Health Outcomes In Latine Adults, Wendy Rodriguez

CMC Senior Theses

The Coronavirus 2019 Disease (COVID-19) has been shown by multiple studies to have disproportionate impacts on some individuals, especially minority populations. These may be attributed to differences in biological (sex), gender, social or cultural factors. In this study, we aim to identify and investigate the gender and social predictors that may be involved in the pathogenesis of the virus and its health outcomes. To achieve this, a literature review expands on relevant topics that better contextualize COVID-19’s complex nature. The potential role of hormones, estrogen, and testosterone is considered across different sexes and genders as protective agents against COVID-19. This …

An Xai Approach For Covid-19 Detection Using Transfer Learning With X-Ray Images, Salih Sarp, Ferhat Ozgur Catak, Murat Kuzlu, Umit Cali, Huseyin Kusetogullari, Yanxiao Zhao, Gungor Ates, Ozgur Guler

Engineering Technology Faculty Publications

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has continued to cause severe challenges during this unprecedented time, affecting every part of daily life in terms of health, economics, and social development. There is an increasing demand for chest X-ray (CXR) scans, as pneumonia is the primary and vital complication of COVID-19. CXR is widely used as a screening tool for lung-related diseases due to its simple and relatively inexpensive application. However, these scans require expert radiologists to interpret the results for clinical decisions, i.e., diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis. The digitalization of various sectors, including healthcare, has accelerated during the pandemic, with the use …

Diagnostic Accuracy Of Autoverification And Guidance System For Covid-19 Rt-Pcr Results, Yingmu Cai, Mengyu Liu, Zhiyuan Wu, Cuihong Tian, Song Qiu, Zhen Li, Feng Xu, Wei Li, Yan Zheng, Aijuan Xu, Longxu Xie, Xuerui Tan

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Background:

To date, most countries worldwide have declared that the pandemic of COVID-19 is over, while the WHO has not officially ended the COVID-19 pandemic, and China still insists on the personalized dynamic COVID-free policy. Large-scale nucleic acid testing in Chinese communities and the manual interpretation for SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acid detection results pose a huge challenge for labour, quality and turnaround time (TAT) requirements. To solve this specific issue while increase the efficiency and accuracy of interpretation, we created an autoverification and guidance system (AGS) that can automatically interpret and report the COVID-19 reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) results relaying …

Genetic And Immunological Insights Into Covid-19 With Acute Myocardial Infarction: Integrated Analysis Of Mendelian Randomization, Transcriptomics, And Clinical Samples, Zequn Zheng, Yueran Zhou, Yongfei Song, Pengxiang Ying, Xuerui Tan

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Background: Globally, most deaths result from cardiovascular diseases, particularly ischemic heart disease. COVID-19 affects the heart, worsening existing heart conditions and causing myocardial injury. The mechanistic link between COVID-19 and acute myocardial infarction (AMI) is still being investigated to elucidate the underlying molecular perspectives. Methods: Genetic risk assessment was conducted using two-sample Mendelian randomization (TSMR) to determine the causality between COVID-19 and AMI. Weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) and machine learning were used to discover and validate shared hub genes for the two diseases using bulk RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) datasets. Additionally, gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) and single-cell RNA-seq …

“So Many Extra Safety Layers:” Virtual Service Provision And Implementing Social Distancing In Interpersonal Violence Service Agencies During Covid-19, Rachel J Voth Schrag, Sarah Leat, Bethany Backes, Saltanat Childress, Leila Wood

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

The coronavirus pandemic necessitated rapid shifts in approach for service providers working with survivors of interpersonal violence. To reduce the spread of the virus, providers and agencies implemented a rapid and unplanned expansion of virtual services while also developing new protocols to support safe and socially distant in-person services. To understand how these shifts have impacted victim service professionals and the survivors they serve, to provide guidance for on-going efforts, and to inform planning for future public health emergencies, this study asks the question: What approaches did the interpersonal violence workforce use to address social distancing needs during COVID-19? Semi-structured …

Trends In Disease Severity Among Critically Ill Children With Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2: A Retrospective Multicenter Cohort Study In The United States, Catherine E Ross, Jeffrey P Burns, Anne V Grossestreuer, Pallav Bhattarai, Christine A Mckiernan, Jennifer D Franks, Sonja Lehmann, Jill L Sorcher, Matthew P Sharron, Kitman Wai, Haitham Al-Wahab, Konstantinos Boukas, Mark W Hall, George Ru, Anita I Sen, Hariprem R Rajasekhar, Lawrence C Kleinman, John K Mcguire, Amy S Arrington, Flor Munoz-Rivas, Christopher M Osborne, Lara S Shekerdemian

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

OBJECTIVES: To describe trends in critical illness from severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection in children over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic. We hypothesized that PICU admission rates were higher in the Omicron period compared with the original outbreak but that fewer patients needed endotracheal intubation.

DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study.

SETTING: This study took place in nine U.S. PICUs over 3 weeks in January 2022 (Omicron period) compared with 3 weeks in March 2020 (original period).

PATIENTS: Patients less than or equal to 21 years old who screened positive for SARS-CoV-2 infection by polymerase chain reaction or …

Control Of Sars-Cov-2 Infection By Mt1-Mmp-Mediated Shedding Of Ace2, Xuanming Guo, Jianli Cao, Jian-Piao Cai, Jiayan Wu, Jiangang Huang, Pallavi Asthana, Sheung Kin Ken Wong, Zi-Wei Ye, Susma Gurung, Yijing Zhang, Sheng Wang, Zening Wang, Xin Ge, Hiu Yee Kwan, Aiping Lyu, Kui Ming Chan, Nathalie Wong, Jiandong Huang, Zhongjun Zhou, Zhao-Xiang Bian, Shuofeng Yuan, Hoi Leong Xavier Wong

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has caused a global pandemic. Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) is an entry receptor for SARS-CoV-2. The full-length membrane form of ACE2 (memACE2) undergoes ectodomain shedding to generate a shed soluble form (solACE2) that mediates SARS-CoV-2 entry via receptor-mediated endocytosis. Currently, it is not known how the physiological regulation of ACE2 shedding contributes to the etiology of COVID-19 in vivo. The present study identifies Membrane-type 1 Matrix Metalloproteinase (MT1-MMP) as a critical host protease for solACE2-mediated SARS-CoV-2 infection. SARS-CoV-2 infection leads to increased activation of MT1-MMP that is colocalized with ACE2 in human lung …

Improving Glycemic Control During The Covid-19 Pandemic: A Quality Improvement Project, Megan Henderson

Doctors of Nursing Practice (DNP) Final Projects, 2020-current

Diabetes is a costly, chronic health condition. The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted the delivery of health care and exacerbated chronic health conditions, such as diabetes. Diabetes is one of the most significant comorbid conditions associated with poor COVID-19 outcomes (Cariou et al., 2020). Control of blood glucose levels during the COVID-19 pandemic has proved challenging to maintain. The purpose of this quality improvement project is to identify gaps in diabetic self-care and then implement a diabetic toolkit to improve self-efficacy of diabetes self-management. According to the American Diabetes Association (2022), self-management of diabetes, education, and support from providers is …

The Prevalence Of Sars-Cov-2 Antibodies Within The Community Of A Private Tertiary University In The Philippines: A Serial Cross Sectional Study, Lourdes S. Tanchanco, Jenica Clarisse Y. Sy, Angel Belle C. Dy, Myla D. Levantino, Arianna Maever L. Amit, John Wong, Kirsten Angeles, John Paul Vergara

Ateneo School of Medicine and Public Health Publications

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused a public health emergency in all sectors of society, including universities and other academic institutions. This study determined the seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies among administrators, faculty, staff, and students of a private tertiary academic institution in the Philippines over a 7 month period. It employed a serial cross-sectional method using qualitative and quantitative COVID-19 antibody test kits. A total of 1,318 participants were tested, showing 47.80% of the study population yielding IgG antibodies to SARS-CoV-2 virus. A general increase in seroprevalence was observed from June to December 2021, which coincided with the vaccine roll-out of …

A New Chapter In An Evolving Pandemic: Successful Pediatric Liver Transplantation With Sars-Cov-2+ Donors, Matthew Benjamin Goss, Daniel Hao Bin Leung, Stephanie Marie Pouch, Flor M Munoz, Elizabeth Andrea Moulton, Tyler Malcolm Mccann Lambing, Sarah Koohmaraie, Nicolas Fernando Moreno, Christine A O'Mahony, John A Goss, Nhu Thao Nguyen Galván

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

BACKGROUND: Amid a viral pandemic with poorly understood transmissibility and pathogenicity in the pediatric patient, we report the first pediatric liver transplants utilizing allografts from SARS-CoV-2+ donors.

METHODS: We describe the outcomes of two pediatric liver transplant recipients who received organs from SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acid test-positive (NAT+) donors. Data were obtained through the respective electronic medical record system and UNet DonorNet platform.

RESULTS: The first donor was a 3-year-old boy succumbing to head trauma. One of four nasopharyngeal (NP) swabs and 1 of 3 bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) NAT tests demonstrated SARS-CoV-2 infection before organ procurement. The second donor was a …

Abnormalities In Cardiac And Inflammatory Biomarkers In Ambulatory Subjects After Covid-19 Infection, Joshua A Keefe, Vasanthi Avadhanula, Erin G Nicholson, Sridevi Devaraj, Pedro A Piedra, Biykem Bozkurt, Xander H T Wehrens

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

BACKGROUND: Coronavirus-2019 (COVID-19) is known to affect the heart and is associated with a pro-inflammatory state. Most studies to date have focused on clinically sick subjects. Here, we report cardiac and proinflammatory biomarkers levels in ambulatory young adults with asymptomatic or mild COVID-19 infection compared to those without infection 4-8 weeks after severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-COV-2) testing.

METHODS: 131 asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic subjects were enrolled following testing for SARS-COV-2. Fifty subjects tested negative, and 81 subjects tested positive. Serum samples were collected for measurement of C-reactive protein, ferritin, interleukin-6, NT-pro-B-type natriuretic peptide, and cardiac troponin 28-55 …

Association Of Initial Sars-Cov-2 Test Positivity With Patient-Reported Well-Being 3 Months After A Symptomatic Illness, Lauren E Wisk, Michael A Gottlieb, Erica S Spatz, Huihui Yu, Ralph C Wang, Benjamin H Slovis, Sharon Saydah, Ian D Plumb, Kelli N O'Laughlin, Juan Carlos C Montoy, Samuel A Mcdonald, Zhenqiu Lin, Jin-Mann S Lin, Katherine Koo, Ahamed H Idris, Ryan M Huebinger, Mandy J Hill, Nicole L Gentile, Anna Marie Chang, Jill Anderson, Bala Hota, Arjun K Venkatesh, Robert A Weinstein, Joann G Elmore, Graham Nichol, Inspire Group

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

IMPORTANCE: Long-term sequelae after symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection may impact well-being, yet existing data primarily focus on discrete symptoms and/or health care use.

OBJECTIVE: To compare patient-reported outcomes of physical, mental, and social well-being among adults with symptomatic illness who received a positive vs negative test result for SARS-CoV-2 infection.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: This cohort study was a planned interim analysis of an ongoing multicenter prospective longitudinal registry study (the Innovative Support for Patients With SARS-CoV-2 Infections Registry [INSPIRE]). Participants were enrolled from December 11, 2020, to September 10, 2021, and comprised adults (aged ≥18 years) with acute symptoms suggestive …

Airway Mucus Dysfunction In Covid-19, Burton F Dickey, Jichao Chen, R Stokes Peebles

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

No abstract provided.

Massive Macroglossia, A Rare Side Effect Of Covid-19: Clinical, Histologic, And Genomic Findings In Covid-19-Positive Versus Covid-19-Negative Patients, Victoria A Mañón, David Chubb, Laura S Farach, Rachid Karam, Mary C Farach-Carson, Nadarajah Vigneswaran, Karan Saluja, Simon Young, Mark Wong, James C Melville

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

PURPOSE: The primary purpose of this study is to identify if there is an underlying genetic predisposition for COVID-related macroglossia and if this susceptibility is higher among individuals of African heritage. Secondary objectives include determining if genetic testing of COVID-infected patients who are intubated and prone could identify patients with higher susceptibility to the development of macroglossia.

METHODS: A retrospective chart review was completed for each patient, and prospectively, genetic and histopathologic analyses were completed. Whole-exome sequencing was completed on two patients; immunohistochemistry was completed on the COVID-positive tissue samples.

RESULTS: Histopathology of the COVID-positive patient revealed significant peri-lymphocytic infiltrate, …

Genetic Liability Between Covid-19 And Heart Failure: Evidence From A Bidirectional Mendelian Randomization Study, Huachen Wang, Zheng Guo, Yulu Zheng, Bing Chen

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Background: Previous studies have observed inconsistent associations between coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and heart failure (HF), but these studies were prone to bias based on reverse causality and residual confounding factors. We aimed to investigate genetic liability between COVID-19 and heart failure using a bidirectional Mendelian randomization study. Methods: The causal relationship between COVID-19 (including COVID-19, hospitalized COVID-19 compared with the general population, and severe COVID-19) and HF are determined by using a bidirectional Mendelian randomization analysis. We drew on summary statistics from the largest HF genome-wide association study (GWAS) meta-analysis on individuals of European ancestry, which included 47,309 HF …

Effects Of Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation On Adults With Post-Acute Covid-19 Syndrome, Isaac Min, Aaron Schurger

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

Since its detection in December 2019, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), the viral disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 novel coronavirus, has had prominent effects on human health and mortality. Studies in previous infections of SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV have found evidence of persistent symptoms in recovered patients, such as lethargy and shortness of breath. Similar residual symptoms have also been seen in recovered COVID-19 patients beyond four weeks of the initial onset of symptoms — collectively termed post-acute COVID-19 syndrome (PACS). These symptoms include deficits in working memory. Preliminary studies done in the United States and Europe have shown a significant portion …

"Everything…Fell Apart Once Covid-19 Hit"-Leveraging The Covid-19 Response To Strengthen Public Health Activities Toward Ending The Hiv Epidemic: A Qualitative Study, Samantha A Devlin, Moctezuma Garcia, Kayo Fujimoto, Camden Hallmark, Marlene Mcneese, John Schneider, Moira C Mcnulty

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

COVID-19 caused widespread disruption of activities for Ending the HIV Epidemic (EHE). In this study we assessed public health perspectives on leveraging the COVID-19 response to advance the goals of EHE. We conducted a qualitative study with 33 public health partners in the Midwestern and Southern United States from October 2020 to February 2022. Participants were asked how the strategies developed for COVID-19 could be applied to the HIV epidemic. Interviews were recorded, transcribed, and examined using rapid qualitative analysis. Four themes emerged: (1) Rebuilding teams and adapting culture for success in EHE activities; (2) Recognizing and modernizing the role …

Assessment During Covid-19: Quality Assurance Of An Online Open Book Formative Examination For Undergraduate Medical Students, Javeria Rehman, Rahila Ali Mazhar, Azam Afzal, Sara Shakil, Amber Shahmim Sultan, Romana Idress, Syeda Sadia Fatima

Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine

Background: The spread of COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020 compelled all the educational activities, including medical education to be shifted from face-to-face interaction to a virtual platform. This shift provided opportunities for exploring online assessment modalities. One such assessment method is an online open book exam which is a unique concept in medical education of Pakistan. Limited information is available in literature regarding open book exam for the basic science subjects. Hence, the objective of the study was to determine the quality of the open book exam administered as a pilot project to the first-year medical students.
Methods: It was …

Simultaneous Onset Of Haematological Malignancy And Covid: An Epicovideha Survey, Chiara Cattaneo, Jon Salmanton-García, Francesco Marchesi, Shaimaa El-Ashwah, Federico Itri, Barbora Weinbergerová, Maria Gomes Da Silva, Michelina Dargenio, Julio Dávila-Valls, Natasha Ali

Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine

Background: The outcome of patients with simultaneous diagnosis of haematological malignancies (HM) and COVID-19 is unknown and there are no specific treatment guidelines.
Methods: We describe the clinical features and outcome of a cohort of 450 patients with simultaneous diagnosis of HM and COVID-19 registered in the EPICOVIDEHA registry between March 2020 to February 2022.
Results: Acute leukaemia and lymphoma were the most frequent HM (35.8% and 35.1%, respectively). Overall, 343 (76.2%) patients received treatment for HM, which was delayed for longer than one month since diagnosis in 57 (16.6%). An overall response rate was observed in 140 (40.8%) patients …