As an important tool for nucleic acid detection of variant strains of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS CoV-2), the mobile air capsule construction laboratory is a key medical resource in the prevention and control of COVID-19. Medical staff, security guards, cleaners, maintenance workers and volunteers in the mobile air capsule construction laboratory have high contact frequency with the samples, so they have a high risk of infection with COVID-19. In order to reduce this risk, this article discusses the infection management measures in the aspects of wearing and taking off personal protective equipment, environmental health management, post use goods management, medical waste management, staff training management and disposal process after occupational exposure, and analyzed the common problems in operation, based on the operation process of Nanchong mobile air capsule construction laboratory. The purpose is to provide a reference for the construction and management of other mobile air capsule construction laboratory.
Objective To explore the timing and safety of limited-period lung cancer surgery in patients with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. Methods Clinical data of of patients infected with COVID-19 undergoing lung cancer surgery (an observation group) in the Department of Thoracic Surgery of Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital, the Department of Thoracic Surgery of General Hospital of Southern Theater Command of PLA, and the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery of the First Affiliated Hospital of Guangdong Pharmaceutical University from December 2022 to January 2023 were retrospectively analyzed and compared with patients who underwent surgery during the same period but were not infected with COVID-19 (a control group), to explore the impact of COVID-19 infection on lung cancer surgery. Results We finally included 110 patients with 73 patients in the observation group (28 males and 45 females at age of 52.62±12.80 years) and 37 patients in the control group (22 males and 15 females at age of 56.84±11.14 years). The average operation time of the observation group was longer than that of the control group, and the incidence of anhelation was higher than that of the control group (P<0.05). There were no statistcal differences in blood loss, length of hospital stay, moderate or above fever rate, degree of cough and chest pain, or blood routine between the two groups. ConclusionIt is safe and feasible to perform lung cancer surgery early after recovery for COVID-19 patients with lung cancer.
Objective To evaluate the clinical features of acute macular neuroretinopathy (AMN) associated with COVID-19. MethodsA retrospective case series studies. A total of 12 eyes of 8 patients diagnosed of AMN associated with COVID-19 at Peking University People’s Hospital from December 5, 2022 to January 5, 2023 were included. Of the 8 patients, 2 were male (4 eyes) and 6 were female (8 eyes), with an average age of (29.38±8.60) years. All patients underwent best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (OCT), and infra-red fundus photography (IR). After definite diagnosis, the patients were given symptomatic treatment such as local vasodilation, anti-inflammatory and systemic circulation improvement and nutritional nerve. Follow-up time was 21-30 days weeks. Clinical manifestations, OCT and IR image characteristics, and treatment outcomes were retrospectively analyzed. ResultsThe time from diagnosis of COVID-19 to the onset of ocular symptoms was (3.00±0.93) days. Among 12 eyes, 6 had complaints of paracentral scotoma, with 2 of them accompanied by visual acuity loss; and 6 had complaints of dark shadows in the vision, with 2 of them accompanied by visual acuity loss. At the initial examination, 2 eyes had a BCVA of less than 0.05, 2 eyes had a BCVA between 0.4 and 0.6, and 8 eyes had a BCVA between 0.8 and 1.0. At the last follow-up, visual symptoms improved in 7 eyes and remained unchanged in 5 eyes. Fundus color photography showed reddish-brown lesions in the macular area. Spectral-domain OCT revealed localized thickening and strong reflection of the outer plexiform layer (OPL) in the macular area, patchy strong reflections in the outer nuclear layer (ONL), and varying degrees of local discontinuity in the adjacent external limiting membrane, ellipsoid zone/interdigitation zone (EZ/IZ), with reduced local reflection in the adjacent retinal pigment epithelium layer in 2 eyes. The strong reflection area of the ONL on corresponding structural OCT was observed more clearly as a lesion range with strong reflection on en-face OCT. The incomplete structure of the EZ/IZ band was observed more clearly as a lesion range with weak reflection on en-face OCT. IR showed several clear-bordered and weakly reflecting lesions at the center of the macula, with the tip pointing to the fovea. ConclusionsAMN associated with COVID-19 tends to occur in young females. The OCT findings of AMN are characterized by strong reflections in the OPL and ONL, and lesion ranges can be observed more clearly at different levels using en-face OCT. The lesions on IR appear as weak reflections.
Objective To determine the independent influencing factors of intraoperative choking during painless gastrointestinal endoscopy (PGIE) after coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Methods The data of patients undergoing PGIE with COVID-19 in Northern Jiangsu People’s Hospital between December 2022 and April 2023 were retrospectively collected. Multiple logistic regression analysis was used to screen the influencing factors of intraoperative coughing events that occurred during the diagnosis and treatment process. Results A total of 948 patients were included, with 93 (9.8%) cases of choking. The results of the multiple logistic regression analysis showed that smoking and unresolved cough were independent risk factors for coughing (P<0.05), while colonoscopy and infection duration beyond 14 days between diagnosis and treatment were independent protective factors for coughing (P<0.05). ConclusionsWhen patients with COVID-19 undergoing PGIE, special attention should be paid to high-risk groups such as smoking and unresolved cough. It is necessary to strengthen intraoperative monitoring and implementation of prevention and control measures to reduce the incidence of coughing and improve the safety of diagnosis and treatment for patients.
Objective To provide experience for clinical diagnosis and treatment through exploring the perioperative characteristics and short-term treatment outcomes of adult cardiac surgery in patients with prior coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19). MethodsA retrospective analysis was performed on patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) or valve surgery in the Department of Cardiac Surgery of Beijing Anzhen Hospital from December 26, 2022 to December 31, 2022, and previously diagnosed with COVID-19 before surgery. ResultsFinally 108 patients were collected, including 81 males and 27 females, with an average age of 60.73±8.66 years. Two (1.9%) patients received emergency surgery, and the others received elective surgery. The 86.1% of patients had been vaccinated, and the duration of COVID-19 was 5.0 (4.0, 7.0) days. The time from COVID-19 to operation was 15.0 (12.0, 17.8) days. Eighty-nine patients received CABG, of which off-pump CABG was dominant (92.1%). Nineteen patients received valve surgery. The rate of delayed extubation of ventilator was 17.6%. The ICU stay was 21.0 (17.3, 24.0) hours, and the postoperative hospital stay was 7.0 (6.0, 8.0) days. Three (2.8%) patients were treated with intra-aortic balloon pump (IABP), one (0.9%) patient was treated with extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), one (0.9%) patient was treated with continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) due to acute renal insufficiency, three (2.8%) patients were treated with temporary pacemaker, and one (0.9%) patient underwent rethoracotomy. In terms of postoperative complications, the incidence of cerebrovascular accident, acute renal insufficiency, gastrointestinal bleeding and septicemia was 0.9%, respectively, and the incidence of acute heart failure, lung infection, and liver insufficiency was 1.9%, respectively. All patients recovered and were discharged from hospital, and no in-hospital death occurred. Conclusion The utilization rate of postoperative IABP, ECMO, CRRT, temporary pacemaker and the incidence of serious complications in patients with prior COVID-19 are not higher than those of normal patients, and the short-term treatment outcome is good.
Objective To provide theoretical basis for the reasonable selection of personal protective equipment by analyzing the willingness of protection and the contamination of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 of medical staff in the designated hospital for treatment of coronavirus disease 2019. Methods The medical staff of Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine who entered the contaminated area from May 1 to 31, 2022 were collected as the study subjects. A simple random sampling method was adopted to investigate the willingness of protection of different medical staff leaving the cabin. Contamination of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus2 was detected by fluorescence polymerase chain reaction. Results A total of 70 medical staff were included. There were 61 nurses and 38 in intensive care unit. The survey showed that 47 medical staff chose disposable isolation clothes, 44 medical staff chose protective face screen and 69 medical staff chose double-layer shoe cover/boot cover. A total of 640 specimens were collected. Six positive samples for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus2 nucleic acid test were detected, with a positive rate of 0.94%. All the positive samples were sampled from the sole of a protective clothing. Six positive samples were willing to choose double-layer shoe cover/boot cover. Conclusions The medical staff in designated hospital for treatment of coronavirus disease 2019 tend to take high protection during daily medical activities. However, personal protective equipment is less likely to be contaminated by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus2, and it should be selected rationally to avoid excessive protection.
The master protocol platform trial is a trial in which multiple treatments or different combinations of treatments are consistently evaluated in the context of a single disease, possibly within several sub-studies for different disease subtypes, allowing multiple treatments to enter or exit the trial platform based on a certain decision algorithm. Compared with the traditional clinical trial design, the master protocol platform trial as a scientific innovative model of clinical trial can accelerate drug evaluation to deal with the contradiction between the awaited evaluation of numerous drugs and lack of effective therapy for diseases. By using the large-scale randomized controlled clinical trial for COVID-19 inpatients (RECOVERY) led by the University of Oxford in the UK in 2020 as an illustration, this paper introduced the concept, design principle, and basic trial process of the master protocol platform trial to provide methodological references for clinical research of drugs.
COVID-19 associated fundus lesions are mostly vascular occlusion or inflammatory changes. The affected vessels include both retinal macrovessels and microvessels, and the inflammatory changes are mainly autoimmune lesions. Clinically, the different lesions present as various fundus diseases, with varying degrees of impact on visual function. The mechanism of these lesions is considered to be related to direct injury of SARS-CoV-2, abnormal coagulation or inflammatory response caused by SARS-CoV-2. Awareness of fundus lesions associated to COVID-19 is helpful to figure out the pathophysiological mechanism of COVID-19 and promote in-depth studies for a deeper and complete understanding of the occurrence and full impact of COVID-19, emphasizing the importance of early prevention and control of the disease, and highlighting the significance of early intervention of the fundus diseases caused by COVID-19.
ObjectiveTo explore the predictive value of a simplified signs scoring system for the severity and prognosis of patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Methods Clinical data of 1 605 confirmed patients with COVID-19 from January to May 2020 in 45 hospitals of Sichuan and Hubei Provinces were retrospectively analyzed. The patients were divided into a mild group (n=1150, 508 males, average age of 51.32±16.26 years) and a severe group (n=455, 248 males, average age of 57.63±16.16 years). ResultsAge, male proportion, respiratory rate, systolic blood pressure and mean arterial pressure in the severe group were higher than those in the mild group (P<0.05). Peripheral oxygen saturation (SpO2) and Glasgow coma scale (GCS) were lower than those in the mild group (P<0.05). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that age, respiratory rate, SpO2, and GCS were independent risk factors for severe patients with COVID-19. Based on the above indicators, the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis showed that the area under the curve of the simplified signs scoring system for predicting severe patients was 0.822, which was higher than that of the quick sequential organ failure assessment (qSOFA) score and modified early warning score (MEWS, 0.629 and 0.631, P<0.001). The ROC analysis showed that the area under the curve of the simplified signs scoring system for predicting death was 0.796, higher than that of qSOFA score and MEWS score (0.710 and 0.706, P<0.001). ConclusionAge, respiratory rate, SpO2 and GCS are independent risk factors for severe patients with COVID-19. The simplified signs scoring system based on these four indicators may be used to predict patient's risk of severe illness or early death.