Epidemiology Commons^™

An Update On The Leading Covid-19 Vaccines, Ahmed A. Eladely, Javaria Anwer Mbbs, Ashwini Gotimukul Mbbs, Manish Kc Mbbs, Jessica Petrey Msls, Alex Glynn Ma, Ruth M. Carrico Phd, Dnp, Julio A. Ramirez Md

The University of Louisville Journal of Respiratory Infections

We reviewed the COVID-19 vaccines that reached phase III of clinical development. For each of the 10 vaccines identified, we described the technology used for vaccine development, the available data from phase III clinical trials, data on vaccine safety, and the role of new SARS-CoV-2 variants on vaccine efficacy.

Detection Of Mutations Associated With Variants Of Concern Via High Throughput 2 Sequencing Of Sars-Cov-2 Isolated From Nyc Wastewater, Davida S. Smyth, Monica Trujillo, Kristen Cheung, Anna Gao, Irene Hoxie, Sherin Kannoly, Nanami Kubota, Michelle Markman, Kaung Myat San, Geena Sompanya, John J. Dennehy

Publications and Research

Monitoring SARS-CoV-2 genetic diversity is strongly indicated because diversifying selection may lead to the emergence of novel variants resistant to naturally acquired or vaccine-induced immunity. To date, most data on SARS-CoV-2 genetic diversity has come from the sequencing of clinical samples, but such studies may suffer limitations due to costs and throughput. Wastewater-based epidemiology may provide an alternative and complementary approach for monitoring communities for novel variants. Given that SARS-CoV-2 can infect the cells of the human gut and is found in high concentrations in feces, wastewater may be a valuable source of SARS-CoV-2 RNA, which can be deep sequenced …

Assessment Of Characteristics And Conditions Before The End Of Lockdown, David San-Martín-Roldán, Francisca Rojo-Lazo, Aracelis Calzadilla-Núñez, Pablo San-Martín-Roldán, Patricia Díaz-Calzadilla, Víctor P. Díaz-Narváez

Kesmas

After months of blockades and restriction, the decision of the best time to end the lockdown after the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic is the big question for health rectors. This study aimed to evaluate the characteristics and conditions for ending the blockade after the first wave of COVID-19. Data on the variables of interest were subjected to linear and non-linear regression studies to determine the curve that best explains the data. The coefficient of determination, the standard deviation of y in x, and the observed curve of the confidence interval were estimated. Regression which was estimated subsequently revealed …

Sars-Cov-2 Early Infection Signature Identified Potential Key Infection Mechanisms And Drug Targets, Yue Li, Ashley Duche, Michael R. Sayer, Don Roosan, Farid G. Khalafalla, Rennolds S. Ostrom, Jennifer Totonchy, Moom Roosan

Pharmacy Faculty Articles and Research

Background

The ongoing COVID-19 outbreak has caused devastating mortality and posed a significant threat to public health worldwide. Despite the severity of this illness and 2.3 million worldwide deaths, the disease mechanism is mostly unknown. Previous studies that characterized differential gene expression due to SARS-CoV-2 infection lacked robust validation. Although vaccines are now available, effective treatment options are still out of reach.

Results

To characterize the transcriptional activity of SARS-CoV-2 infection, a gene signature consisting of 25 genes was generated using a publicly available RNA-Sequencing (RNA-Seq) dataset of cultured cells infected with SARS-CoV-2. The signature estimated infection level accurately in …

Antimicrobial Resistance And Covid-19: Intersections And Implications, Gwenan M. Knight, Rebecca E. Glover, C Finn Mcquaid, Ioana D. Olaru, Karin Gallandat, Quentin J. Leclerc, Naomi M. Fuller, Sam J. Willcocks, Rumina Hasan, Esther Van Kleef, Clare Ir Chandler

Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine

Before the coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic began, antimicrobial resistance (AMR) was among the top priorities for global public health. Already a complex challenge, AMR now needs to be addressed in a changing healthcare landscape. Here, we analyse how changes due to COVID-19 in terms of antimicrobial usage, infection prevention, and health systems affect the emergence, transmission, and burden of AMR. Increased hand hygiene, decreased international travel, and decreased elective hospital procedures may reduce AMR pathogen selection and spread in the short term. However, the opposite effects may be seen if antibiotics are more widely used as standard healthcare pathways break …

Differences In Rapid Increases In County-Level Covid-19 Incidence By Implementation Of Statewide Closures And Mask Mandates — United States, June 1–September 30, 2020, Sharoda Dasgupta, Ahmed M. Kassem, Gregory Sunshine, Tiebin Liu, Charles Rose, Gloria J. Kang, Rachel Silver, Brandy L.Peterson Maddox, Christina Watson, Mara Howard-Williams, Maxim Gakh, Russell Mccord, Regen Weber, Kelly Fletcher, Trieste Musial, Michael A. Tynan, Rachel Hulkower, Amanda Moreland, Dawn Pepin, Lisa Landsman, Amanda Brown, Siobhan Gilchrist, Catherine Clodfelter, Michael Williams, Ryan Cramer, Alexa Limeres, Adebola Popoola, Sebnem Dugmeoglu, Julia Shelburne

Environmental & Global Health Faculty Research

Background and Objective: Community mitigation strategies could help reduce COVID-19 incidence, but there are few studies that explore associations nationally and by urbanicity. In a national county-level analysis, we examined the probability of being identified as a county with rapidly increasing COVID-19 incidence (rapid riser identification) during the summer of 2020 by implementation of mitigation policies prior to the summer, overall and by urbanicity. Methods: We analyzed county-level data on rapid riser identification during June 1–September 30, 2020 and statewide closures and statewide mask mandates starting March 19 (obtained from state government websites). Poisson regression models with robust standard error …

Epidemiology And Outcomes Of Hospitalized Adults With Sars-Cov-2 Community-Acquired Pneumonia In Louisville, Kentucky, Julio A. Ramirez, T'Shura Ali, Thomas Chandler, Stephen P. Furmanek, Daniya Sheikh, Vidyulata Salunkhe, Steven Gootee, Mohammad Tahboub, William A. Mattingly, Demetra Antimisiaris, Jiapeng Huang, Jose Bordon, Rodrigo Cavallazzi, Paul Schulz, William P. Mckinney, Dawn Balcom, Mark Burns, Ruth Carrico, Forest W. Arnold, Cerid Covid-19 Study Group

The University of Louisville Journal of Respiratory Infections

Background: During the ongoing pandemic of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), SARS-CoV-2 community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) has been the primary cause of hospitalization. The objective of this study was to evaluate the clinical characteristics and outcomes of 1,013 patients hospitalized with SARS-CoV-2 CAP from September 2020 through March 2021 in Louisville, Kentucky.

Methods: This was a retrospective observational study of 1,013 patients hospitalized with SARS-CoV-2 CAP at eight of the adult hospitals in the city of Louisville from September 2020 through March 2021. Patients with 1) a positive reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) for SARS-CoV-2, 2) fever, cough, or …

Food Insecurity Measurement And Prevalence Estimates During The Covid-19 Pandemic In A Repeated Cross-Sectional Survey In Mexico, Pablo Gaitán-Rossi, Mireya Vilar-Compte, Graciela Teruel, Rafael Pérez-Escamilla

Department of Public Health Scholarship and Creative Works

Objective: To validate the telephone modality of the Latin American and Caribbean Food Security Scale (ELCSA) included in three waves of a phone survey to estimate the monthly household food insecurity prevalence during the COVID-19 pandemic in Mexico. Design: We examined the reliability and internal validity of the ELCSA scale in three repeated waves of cross-sectional surveys with Rasch models. We estimated the monthly prevalence of food insecurity in the general population and in households with and without children and compared them with a national 2018 survey. We tested concurrent validity by testing associations of food insecurity with socio-economic status …

Prevalence Of Functional Limitation In Covid-19 Recovered Patients Using The Post Covid-19 Functional Status Scale, Pankaj Pant, Aishana Joshi, Babin Basnet, Bibek Man Shrestha, Navindra Raj Bista, Niraj Bam, Santa Kumar Das

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

INTRODUCTION: COVID-19 is an emerging global health pandemic causing tremendous morbidity and mortality worldwide. Chronic symptoms progressing to poor functional status have been reported in a substantial proportion of COVID-19 patients worldwide. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of functional limitation in COVID-19 recovered patients using the post-COVID-19 functional status scale.

METHODS: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted at Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital. COVID-19 recovered patients with reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction negative status were included and assessed using the post-COVID-19 functional status scale. Data entry and analysis was done in Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 20.0. Descriptive …

Covid-19 Pandemic In Brazil: Clinical Manifestation And Effect Of Comorbidities On Outcomes Of Hospitalized Sari Cases, Mario Keko, Karl E. Peace

Biostatistics, Epidemiology & Environmental Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Hospitalized SARI cases of 2020 reported to the Ministry of Health of Brazil through the SIVEP Gripe system are subject to our analysis. They are classified as COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 and clinical manifestations and comorbidities are reported for each group. The time trend in the number of cases reported in 2020 is compared to the previous year and the performance of the PCR test is explored in each group. The proportion of death is reported among different subgroups of the patients by epidemiological week. Logistic and Poisson regression models are used to check the effect of comorbidities on clinical outcomes.

Antibiotics And Antimicrobial Resistance In The Covid-19 Era: Perspective From Resource-Limited Settings, Mentor Ali Ber Lucien, Michael F. Canarie, Paul E. Kilgore, Gladzin Jean-Denis, Natael Fénélon, Manise Pierre, Mauricio Cerpa, Gerard A. Joseph, Gina Maki, Marcus J. Zervos, Patrick Dely, Jacques Boncy, Hatim Sati, Ana Del Rio, Pilar Ramon-Pardo

Department of Pharmacy Practice

The dissemination of COVID-19 around the globe has been followed by an increased consumption of antibiotics. This is related to the concern for bacterial superinfection in COVID-19 patients. The identification of bacterial pathogens is challenging in low and middle income countries (LMIC), as there are no readily-available and cost-effective clinical or biological markers that can effectively discriminate between bacterial and viral infections. Fortunately, faced with the threat of COVID-19 spread, there has been a growing awareness of the importance of antimicrobial stewardship programs, as well as infection prevention and control measures that could help reduce the microbial load and hence …

Ua19/16/2 Track & Field Press Releases, Wku Athletic Media Relations

WKU Administration Documents

Press releases, photos and meet statistics for WKU track & field team in 2021.

Investigation Of A Sars-Cov-2 B.1.1.529 (Omicron) Variant Cluster - Nebraska, November-December 2021, Lauren Jansen, Bryan Tegomoh, Kate Lange, Kimberly Showalter, Jon Figliomeni, Baha Abdalhamid, Peter C. Iwen, Joseph R. Fauver, Bryan Buss, Matthew Donahue

Journal Articles: Epidemiology

The B.1.1.529 (Omicron) variant of SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19) was first detected in specimens collected on November 11, 2021, in Botswana and on November 14 in South Africa;* the first confirmed case of Omicron in the United States was identified in California on December 1, 2021 (1). On November 29, the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services was notified of six probable cases^† of COVID-19 in one household, including one case in a man aged 48 years (the index patient) who had recently returned from Nigeria. Given the patient's travel history, Omicron infection was suspected. Specimens …

Ua19/16/2 Tennis Press Releases, Wku Athletic Media Relations

WKU Administration Documents

Press releases, photos and game statistics for WKU tennis team in 2021.

Ua19/16/2 Golf Press Releases, Wku Athletic Media Relations

WKU Administration Documents

Press releases, photos and game statistics for WKU golf teams in 2021.

Ua19/16/2 Athletic Media Relations Press Releases, Wku Athletic Media Relations

WKU Administration Documents

General WKU athletic press releases for 2021.

Ua19/16/2 Baseball Press Releases, Wku Athletic Media Relations

WKU Administration Documents

Press releases, photos and game statistics for WKU baseball team in 2021.

Ua19/16/2 Softball Press Releases, Wku Athletic Media Relations

WKU Administration Documents

Press releases, photos and game statistics for WKU softball team in 2021.

Ua19/16/2 Volleyball Press Releases, Wku Athletic Media Relations

WKU Administration Documents

Press releases, photos and game statistics for WKU volleyball team in 2021.

Viral Dynamics Of Acute Sars-Cov-2 Infection And Applications To Diagnostic And Public Health Strategies, Stephen M. Kissler, Joseph R. Fauver, Christina Mack, Scott W. Olesen, Caroline Tai, Kristin Y. Shiue, Chaney C. Kalinich, Sarah Jednak, Isabel M. Ott, Chantal B. F. Vogels, Jay Wohlgemuth, James Weisberger, John Difiori, Deverick J. Anderson, Jimmie Mancell, David D. Ho, Nathan D. Grubaugh, Yonatan H. Grad

Journal Articles: Epidemiology

SARS-CoV-2 infections are characterized by viral proliferation and clearance phases and can be followed by low-level persistent viral RNA shedding. The dynamics of viral RNA concentration, particularly in the early stages of infection, can inform clinical measures and interventions such as test-based screening. We used prospective longitudinal quantitative reverse transcription PCR testing to measure the viral RNA trajectories for 68 individuals during the resumption of the 2019-2020 National Basketball Association season. For 46 individuals with acute infections, we inferred the peak viral concentration and the duration of the viral proliferation and clearance phases. According to our mathematical model, we found …

Covid-19 Governance, Legitimacy, And Sustainability: Lessons From The Australian Experience, Michael Lester, Marie Dela Rama, Julie Crews

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

During 2020, Australia managed the global and systemic COVID-19 crisis successfully as measured by health and economic indicators. It marshalled the government’s delivery capacity to control the health crisis and put in place measures to offset the induced economic and social costs. At the same time, the crisis revealed long-standing structural weaknesses in a small, democratic, wealthy, and economically successful country that raised questions about post COVID resilience and sustainability. This paper examines that experience by applying a “co-production” governance model that sees success in “crisis management” as the striking of a balance between government capacity and its legitimacy in …

Covid-19 Vaccine Acceptance: We Need To Start Now, Krutika Kuppalli, David Brett-Major, Tara C. Smith

Journal Articles: Epidemiology

In this perspective, we discuss the importance of developing a vaccine to help curb transmission of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2. The question remains: Once a safe and effective vaccine is developed, will the public be willing to get it? We present information from one of the first tracking polls to assess public attitudes and perceptions toward a possible coronavirus disease 2019 vaccine that suggests public hesitancy over a potential vaccine, concern regarding accelerating clinical trials, and unease over the vaccine approval process. Public health experts, government officials, advocates, and others in the scientific community should respect the signals …

The Relationship Between Social Vulnerability And Covid-19 Incidence Among Louisiana Census Tracts, Erin N. Biggs, Patrick M. Maloney, Ariane L. Rung, Edward S. Peters, William T. Robinson

Journal Articles: Epidemiology

Objective: To examine the association between the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)'s Social Vulnerability Index (SVI) and COVID-19 incidence among Louisiana census tracts. Methods: An ecological study comparing the CDC SVI and census tract-level COVID-19 case counts was conducted. Choropleth maps were used to identify census tracts with high levels of both social vulnerability and COVID-19 incidence. Negative binomial regression with random intercepts was used to compare the relationship between overall CDC SVI percentile and its four sub-themes and COVID-19 incidence, adjusting for population density. Results: In a crude stratified analysis, all four CDC SVI sub-themes were significantly …

Characteristics Of Sars-Cov-2 Transmission Among Meat Processing Workers In Nebraska, Usa, And Effectiveness Of Risk Mitigation Measures, Jocelyn J. Herstein, Abraham Degarege, Derry Stover, Christopher Austin, Michelle M. Schwedhelm, James V. Lawler, John Lowe, Athena K. Ramos, Matthew Donahue

Journal Articles: Epidemiology

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has severely impacted the meat processing industry in the United States. We sought to detail demographics and outcomes of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infections among workers in Nebraska meat processing facilities and determine the effects of initiating universal mask policies and installing physical barriers at 13 meat processing facilities. During April 1-July 31, 2020, COVID-19 was diagnosed in 5,002 Nebraska meat processing workers (attack rate 19%). After initiating both universal masking and physical barrier interventions, 8/13 facilities showed a statistically significant reduction in COVID-19 incidence inspecifically, high attack rates among meat processing industry …

Applied Methodologies Demonstrated Through Three Independent Studies For Assessing The Effects Of Socioeconomic, Environmental Chemical Exposure, And Therapeutic Factors On Oncological Diseases And Covid-19, Bayarmagnai Maggie Munkhjargal

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

When trying to understand risk factors for a disease, even before we know the causal agents, it is necessary to create a surveillance data set that answers the questions of who, when, and where, and includes any potential covariates which may either promote or prevent the disease. There are a wide variety of surveillance data. For example, hospital discharge data, such as the New York Statewide Planning and Research Cooperative System (SPARCS) data, encompass all hospitalized cases in the state, while clinical datasets cover a specially constructed population in pursuit of research of a certain disease type. Analysis of surveillance …

Protocol For Safe, Affordable, And Reproducible 1 Isolation And Quantitation 2 Of Sars-Cov-2 Rna From Wastewater, Monica Trujillo, Kristen Cheung, Anna Gao, Irene Hoxie, Sherin Kannoly, Nanami Kubota, Kaung Myat San, Davida S. Smyth, John J. Dennehy

Publications and Research

The following protocol describes our workflow for processing wastewater with the goal of detecting the genetic signal of SARS-CoV-2. The steps include pasteurization, virus concentration, RNA extraction, and quantification by RT-qPCR. We include auxiliary steps that provide new users with tools and strategies that will help troubleshoot key steps in the process. This protocol is one of the safest, cheapest, and most reproducible approaches for the detection of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in wastewater. Furthermore, the RNA obtained using this protocol, minus the pasteurization step, can be sequenced both using a targeted approach sequencing specific regions or the whole genome. The protocol …

Association Between Race/Ethnicity And Covid-19 Disease Outcomes In The United States: A Qualitative Systematic Review Of The Literature, Jacob Smith

MEDI 9331 Scholarly Activities Clinical Years

Background/Objective: As studies have shown disparities in coronavirus disease-19 prevalence and severity, we sought to evaluate differences in outcomes of acute SARS-CoV-2 infection by race/ethnicity.

Design: Systematic review

Data Source: Studies from PubMed were included.

Review methods: Articles published in English language from January 1, 2019 through March 22, 2020. Studies included were observational studies that examined racial or ethnic disparities in SARS-CoV-2 infection outcomes in the United States. One reviewer performed data extraction.

Results: Out of a possible 1,944 articles, 99 observational studies (82 individual-level and 17 population-level) were included. Differential rates of hospitalization or otherwise severe illness …

Nutritional Approach For Increasing Public Health During Pandemic Of Covid-19: A Comprehensive Review Of Antiviral Nutrients And Nutraceuticals, Vahideh Ebrahimzadeh-Attari, Ghodratollah Panahi, James R. Hébert Scd, Alireza Ostadrahimi, Maryam Saghafi-Asl, Neda Lotfi-Yaghin, Behzad Baradaran

Faculty Publications

Background: The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) is considered as the most life-threatening pandemic disease during the last decade. The individual nutritional status, though usually ignored in the management of COVID-19, plays a critical role in the immune function and pathogenesis of infection. Accordingly, the present review article aimed to report the effects of nutrients and nutraceuticals on respiratory viral infections including COVID-19, with a focus on their mechanisms of action.

Methods: Studies were identified via systematic searches of the databases including PubMed/ MEDLINE, ScienceDirect, Scopus, and Google Scholar from 2000 until April 2020, using keywords. All relevant clinical and experimental studies …

Examining Social Vulnerability And The Association With Covid-19 Incidence In Harris County, Texas, Guillermo A Tortolero, Marcia De Oliveira Otto, Ryan Ramphul, Jose-Miguel Yamal, Alison Rector, Michael Brown, Melissa F Peskin, Dania Mofleh, Eric Boerwinkle

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Studies have investigated the association between social vulnerability and SARS-CoV-2 incidence. However, few studies have examined small geographic units such as census tracts, examined geographic regions with large numbers of Hispanic and Black populations, controlled for testing rates, and incorporated stay-at-home measures into their analyses. Understanding the relationship between social vulnerability and SARS-CoV-2 incidence is critical to understanding the interplay between social determinants and implementing risk mitigation guidelines to curtail the spread of infectious diseases. The objective of this study was to examine the relationship between CDC's Social Vulnerability Index (SVI) and SARS-CoV-2 incidence while controlling for testing rates and …

Awareness And Preparedness Of Healthcare Workers Against The First Wave Of The Covid-19 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Survey Across 57 Countries, Nguyen Tien Huy, R Matthew Chico, Vuong Thanh Huan, Hosam Waleed Shaikhkhalil, Vuong Ngoc Thao Uyen, Ahmad Taysir Atieh Qarawi, Shamael Thabit Mohammed Alhady, Nguyen Lam Vuong, Le Van Truong, Mai Ngoc Luu, Shyam Prakash Dumre, Atsuko Imoto, Peter N Lee, Dao Ngoc Hien Tam, Sze Jia Ng, Mohammad Rashidul Hashan, Mitsuaki Matsui, Nguyen Tran Minh Duc, Sedighe Karimzadeh, Nut Koonrungsesomboon, Chris Smith, Sharon Cox, Kazuhiko Moji, Kenji Hirayama, Le Khac Linh, Kirellos Said Abbas, Tran Nu Thuy Dung, Tareq Mohammed Ali Al-Ahdal, Emmanuel Oluwadare Balogun, Nguyen The Duy, Mennatullah Mohamed Eltaras, Trang Huynh, Nguyen Thi Linh Hue, Bui Diem Khue, Abdelrahman Gad, Gehad Mohamed Tawfik, Kazumi Kubota, Hoang-Minh Nguyen, Dmytro Pavlenko, Vu Thi Thu Trang, Le Thuong Vu, Tran Hai Yen, Nguyen Thi Yen-Xuan, Luong Thi Trang, Vinh Dong, Akash Sharma, Vu Quoc Dat, Mohammed Soliman, Jeza Abdul Aziz, Jaffer Shah, Pham Dinh Long Hung, Yap Siang Jee, Dang Thuy Ha Phuong, Tran Thuy Huong Quynh, Hoang Thi Nam Giang, Vy Thi Nhat Huynh, Nguyen Anh Thi, Nacir Dhouibi, Truc Phan, Vincent Duru, Nguyen Hai Nam, Sherief Ghozy, Tmgh-Global Covid-19 Collaborative

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, there have been concerns related to the preparedness of healthcare workers (HCWs). This study aimed to describe the level of awareness and preparedness of hospital HCWs at the time of the first wave.

METHODS: This multinational, multicenter, cross-sectional survey was conducted among hospital HCWs from February to May 2020. We used a hierarchical logistic regression multivariate analysis to adjust the influence of variables based on awareness and preparedness. We then used association rule mining to identify relationships between HCW confidence in handling suspected COVID-19 patients and prior COVID-19 case-management training.

RESULTS: We surveyed 24,653 …