scholarly journals Age-specific Contribution of Contacts to Transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in Germany

Author(s):  
Isti Rodiah ◽  
Patrizio Vanella ◽  
Alexander Kuhlmann ◽  
Veronika Jaeger ◽  
Manuela Harries ◽  
...  

Introduction: Current estimates of pandemic spread using infectious disease models in Germany for SARS-CoV-2 often do not use age-specific infection parameters and are not always based on known contact matrices of the population. They also do not usually include setting-based information of reported cases and do not account for age-specific underdetection of reported cases. Here, we report likely pandemic spread using an age-structured model to understand the age- and setting-specific contribution of contacts to transmission during all phases of the COVID-19 pandemic in Germany. Methods: We developed a deterministic SEIRS model using a pre-pandemic contact matrix. The model is optimized to fit reported age-specific SARS-CoV-2 incidences from the Robert Koch Institute, includes information on setting-specific reported cases in schools and integrates age and pandemic period-specific parameters for underdetection of reported cases deduced from a large population-based seroprevalence study. Results: We showed that taking underreporting into account, younger adults and teenagers are the main contributors to infections during the first three pandemic waves in Germany. Overall, the contribution of contacts in schools to the total cases in the population was below 10% during the third wave. Discussion: Accounting for the pandemic phase and age-specific underreporting seems important to correctly identify those parts of the population where quarantine, testing, vaccination, and contact-reduction measures are likely to be most effective and efficient. In the future, we will aim to compare current model estimates with currently emerging during-pandemic age-specific contact survey data.

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aurélie Choucair ◽  
Diana Malaeb ◽  
Souheil Hallit ◽  
Elissar Dagher

Abstract Background : To date, there has been no large population-based study associated with public awareness in Lebanon about sleep apnea. Our study investigated the prevalence of, associated factors and knowledge of Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) among a representative sample of Lebanese adults. Methods: A cross-sectional study, conducted between June and August 2019, enrolled 472 people aged above 18 years. A proportionate random sample from all Lebanese Mohafazat was applied. Results: The study results showed that a higher number of cigarettes per day, having diabetes mellitus, myocardial infarction, hypertension and arrhythmia were associated with higher daytime sleepiness. Participants living in the North had less daytime sleepiness, whereas those living in Beqaa had higher daytime sleepiness compared to those living in Beirut. Concerning knowledge, having heard about sleep apnea and having a university level of education were associated with a higher score, whereas having cerebrovascular accidents was associated with lower knowledge scores. Conclusion Complications of OSA are still poorly known, as are certain suggestive symptoms. Given the local relevance of OSA, ongoing health campaigns and innovative educational programs should be assigned to target the general community.


PLoS ONE ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 10 (7) ◽  
pp. e0133203 ◽  
Author(s):  
Guillaume Béraud ◽  
Sabine Kazmercziak ◽  
Philippe Beutels ◽  
Daniel Levy-Bruhl ◽  
Xavier Lenne ◽  
...  

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fu-Rong Li ◽  
Pei-Liang Chen ◽  
Xin Cheng ◽  
Hai-Lian Yang ◽  
Wen-Fang Zhong ◽  
...  

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-8
Author(s):  
Charles Kassardjian ◽  
Jessica Widdifield ◽  
J. Michael Paterson ◽  
Alexander Kopp ◽  
Chenthila Nagamuthu ◽  
...  

Background: Prednisone is a common treatment for myasthenia gravis (MG), and osteoporosis is a known potential risk of chronic prednisone therapy. Objective: Our aim was to evaluate the risk of serious fractures in a population-based cohort of MG patients. Methods: An inception cohort of patients with MG was identified from administrative health data in Ontario, Canada between April 1, 2002 and December 31, 2015. For each MG patient, we matched 4 general population comparators based on age, sex, and region of residence. Fractures were identified through emergency department and hospitalization data. Crude overall rates and sex-specific rates of fractures were calculated for the MG and comparator groups, as well as rates of specific fractures. Adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated using Cox regression. Results: Among 3,823 incident MG patients (followed for a mean of 5 years), 188 (4.9%) experienced a fracture compared with 741 (4.8%) fractures amongst 15,292 matched comparators. Crude fracture rates were not different between the MG cohort and matched comparators (8.71 vs. 7.98 per 1000 patient years), overall and in men and women separately. After controlling for multiple covariates, MG patients had a significantly lower risk of fracture than comparators (HR 0.74, 95% CI 0.63–0.88). Conclusions: In this large, population-based cohort of incident MG patients, MG patients were at lower risk of a major fracture than comparators. The reasons for this finding are unclear but may highlight the importance osteoporosis prevention.


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