scholarly journals The influence of leprosy-related clinical and epidemiological variables in the occurrence and severity of COVID-19: A prospective real-world cohort study

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 (7) ◽  
pp. e0009635
Author(s):  
Selma Regina Penha Silva Cerqueira ◽  
Patrícia Duarte Deps ◽  
Débora Vilela Cunha ◽  
Natanael Victor Furtunato Bezerra ◽  
Daniel Holanda Barroso ◽  
...  

Background Protective effects of Bacillus Calmette–Guérin (BCG) vaccination and clofazimine and dapsone treatment against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection have been reported. Patients at risk for leprosy represent an interesting model for assessing the effects of these therapies on the occurrence and severity of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). We assessed the influence of leprosy-related variables in the occurrence and severity of COVID-19. Methodology/Principal findings We performed a 14-month prospective real-world cohort study in which the main risk factor was 2 previous vaccinations with BCG and the main outcome was COVID-19 detection by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). A Cox proportional hazards model was used. Among the 406 included patients, 113 were diagnosed with leprosy. During follow-up, 69 (16.99%) patients contracted COVID-19. Survival analysis showed that leprosy was associated with COVID-19 (p<0.001), but multivariate analysis showed that only COVID-19-positive household contacts (hazard ratio (HR) = 8.04; 95% CI = 4.93–13.11) and diabetes mellitus (HR = 2.06; 95% CI = 1.04–4.06) were significant risk factors for COVID-19. Conclusions/Significance Leprosy patients are vulnerable to COVID-19 because they have more frequent contact with SARS-CoV-2-infected patients, possibly due to social and economic limitations. Our model showed that the use of corticosteroids, thalidomide, pentoxifylline, clofazimine, or dapsone or BCG vaccination did not affect the occurrence or severity of COVID-19.

Nutrients ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 39
Author(s):  
Pierre Ménager ◽  
Olivier Brière ◽  
Jennifer Gautier ◽  
Jérémie Riou ◽  
Guillaume Sacco ◽  
...  

Background. Vitamin K concentrations are inversely associated with the clinical severity of COVID-19. The objective of this cohort study was to determine whether the regular use of vitamin K antagonist (VKA) prior to COVID-19 was associated with short-term mortality in frail older adults hospitalized for COVID-19. Methods. Eighty-two patients consecutively hospitalized for COVID-19 in a geriatric acute care unit were included. The association of the regular use of VKA prior to COVID-19 with survival after 7 days of COVID-19 was examined using a propensity-score-weighted Cox proportional-hazards model accounting for age, sex, severe undernutrition, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, prior myocardial infarction, congestive heart failure, prior stroke and/or transient ischemic attack, CHA2DS2-VASc score, HAS-BLED score, and eGFR. Results. Among 82 patients (mean ± SD age 88.8 ± 4.5 years; 48% women), 73 survived COVID-19 at day 7 while 9 died. There was no between-group difference at baseline, despite a trend for more frequent use of VKA in those who did not survive on day 7 (33.3% versus 8.2%, p = 0.056). While considering “using no VKA” as the reference (hazard ratio (HR) = 1), the HR for 7-day mortality in those regularly using VKA was 5.68 [95% CI: 1.17; 27.53]. Consistently, COVID-19 patients using VKA on a regular basis had shorter survival times than the others (p = 0.031). Conclusions. Regular use of VKA was associated with increased mortality at day 7 in hospitalized frail elderly patients with COVID-19.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Miguel I. Paredes ◽  
Stephanie Lunn ◽  
Michael Famulare ◽  
Lauren A. Frisbie ◽  
Ian Painter ◽  
...  

Background: The COVID–19 pandemic is now dominated by variant lineages; the resulting impact on disease severity remains unclear. Using a retrospective cohort study, we assessed the risk of hospitalization following infection with nine variants of concern or interest (VOC/VOI). Methods: Our study includes individuals with positive SARS–CoV–2 RT PCR in the Washington Disease Reporting System and with available viral genome data, from December 1, 2020 to July 30, 2021. The main analysis was restricted to cases with specimens collected through sentinel surveillance. Using a Cox proportional hazards model with mixed effects, we estimated hazard ratios (HR) for the risk of hospitalization following infection with a VOC/VOI, adjusting for age, sex, and vaccination status. Findings: Of the 27,814 cases, 23,170 (83.3%) were sequenced through sentinel surveillance, of which 726 (3.1%) were hospitalized due to COVID–19. Higher hospitalization risk was found for infections with Gamma (HR 3.17, 95% CI 2.15–4.67), Beta (HR: 2.97, 95% CI 1.65–5.35), Delta (HR: 2.30, 95% CI 1.69–3.15), and Alpha (HR 1.59, 95% CI 1.26–1.99) compared to infections with an ancestral lineage. Following VOC infection, unvaccinated patients show a similar higher hospitalization risk, while vaccinated patients show no significant difference in risk, both when compared to unvaccinated, ancestral lineage cases. Interpretation: Infection with a VOC results in a higher hospitalization risk, with an active vaccination attenuating that risk. Our findings support promoting hospital preparedness, vaccination, and robust genomic surveillance.


2009 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 609-613 ◽  
Author(s):  
Truong-Minh Pham ◽  
Yoshihisa Fujino ◽  
Tatsuhiko Kubo ◽  
Reiko Ide ◽  
Noritaka Tokui ◽  
...  

AbstractObjectiveWe investigated the relationship between the intake of fish and the risk of death from prostate cancer.DesignData were derived from a prospective cohort study in Japan. Fish consumption obtained from a baseline questionnaire was classified into the two categories of ‘low intake’ and ‘high intake’. The Cox proportional hazards model was used to estimate hazard ratios (HR) and 95 % confidence intervals.SubjectsData for 5589 men aged 30–79 years were analysed.ResultsA total of twenty-one prostate cancer deaths were observed during 75 072 person-years of follow-up. Mean age at baseline study of these twenty-one subjects was 67·7 years, ranging from 47 and 79 years old. Results showed a consistent inverse association of this cancer between the high v. low intake groups. The multivariate model adjusted for potential confounding factors and some other food items showed a HR of 0·12 (95 % CI 0·05, 0·32) for the high intake group of fish consumption.ConclusionsThese results support the hypothesis that a high intake of fish may decrease the risk of prostate cancer death. Given the paucity of studies examining the association between prostate cancer and fish consumption, particularly in Asian populations, these findings require confirmation in additional cohort studies.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Keitaro Shimozaki ◽  
Yasutaka Sukawa ◽  
Noriko Beppu ◽  
Isao Kurihara ◽  
Shigeaki Suzuki ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Immune checkpoint inhibitors have been approved for various types of cancer; however, they cause a broad spectrum of immune-related adverse events (irAEs). The association between the development of irAEs and the clinical benefit remains uncertain. We aimed to evaluate the association of irAEs and the treatment efficacy in the real-world practice. Methods We conducted a retrospective study on patients with recurrent or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer, melanoma, renal cell carcinoma, or gastric cancer who received anti-PD-1/PD-L1 antibodies (nivolumab, pembrolizumab, or atezolizumab) at the Keio University Hospital between September 2014 and January 2019. We recorded treatment-related AEs from medical records and graded them using the Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events version 4. We performed an overall survival (OS) analysis using a Cox proportional hazards model. Results Among 212 patients eligible for this study, 108 experienced irAEs and 42 developed multiple irAEs. OS in patients with multiple irAEs was significantly longer than that in patients with single irAE (42.3 months vs. 18.8 months; hazard ratio [HR], 0.48; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.25–0.93; P = 0.03). Moreover, OS from the development of a second irAE in those with multiple irAEs was longer than that from the development of the first irAE in patients with single irAEs (median OS, 26.9 months vs. 17.7 months, respectively; HR, 0.59; 95% CI, 0.30–1.14; P = 0.11). Conclusions Our single-center retrospective study revealed a remarkable tendency associating the development of multiple irAEs with favorable prognoses.


2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (18) ◽  
pp. 4091
Author(s):  
Björn Weiss ◽  
David Hilfrich ◽  
Gerald Vorderwülbecke ◽  
Maria Heinrich ◽  
Julius J. Grunow ◽  
...  

The benzodiazepine, midazolam, is one of the most frequently used sedatives in intensive care medicine, but it has an unfavorable pharmacokinetic profile when continuously applied. As a consequence, patients are frequently prolonged and more deeply sedated than intended. Due to its distinct pharmacological features, including a cytochrome P450-independent metabolization, intravenous lormetazepam might be clinically advantageous compared to midazolam. In this retrospective cohort study, we compared patients who received either intravenous lormetazepam or midazolam with respect to their survival and sedation characteristics. The cohort included 3314 mechanically ventilated, critically ill patients that received one of the two drugs in a tertiary medical center in Germany between 2006 and 2018. A Cox proportional hazards model with mortality as outcome and APACHE II, age, gender, and admission mode as covariates revealed a hazard ratio of 1.75 [95% CI 1.46–2.09; p < 0.001] for in-hospital mortality associated with the use of midazolam. After additionally adjusting for sedation intensity, the HR became 1.04 [95% CI 0.83–1.31; p = 0.97]. Thus, we concluded that excessive sedation occurs more frequently in critically ill patients treated with midazolam than in patients treated with lormetazepam. These findings require further investigation in prospective trials to assess if lormetazepam, due to its ability to maintain light sedation, might be favorable over other benzodiazepines for sedation in the ICU.


2020 ◽  
Vol 38 (15_suppl) ◽  
pp. 5537-5537 ◽  
Author(s):  
Umang Swami ◽  
Jennifer Anne Sinnott ◽  
Ben Haaland ◽  
Benjamin Louis Maughan ◽  
Nityam Rathi ◽  
...  

5537 Background: NHT (A and E) are approved first-line (1L) treatment (Rx) for mPC. After progression on NHT, Rx include either alternate NHT or D. However, OS from a randomized trial comparing NHT vs D after progression on 1L NHT has not been reported. Methods: Pts data were extracted from the Flatiron Health EHR-derived de-identified database. Inclusion: diagnosis of mPC; 1L Rx with single agent A or E only, single-agent Rx with alternate NHT (E or A) or D in second line (2L). Exclusion: > 180 days between date of diagnosis of mPC and date of next visit to ensure Pts were actively engaged in care at data-providing site; Rx with NHT in non-metastatic setting, any prior exposure to D. OS was compared using Cox proportional hazards model stratified by Rx propensity score. Each Pts’ probability of receiving D (rather than NHT) was modeled via a random forest based on Pts and disease characteristics which may drive treatment selection. These included pre-2L Rx ECOG scores, PSA, LDH, ALPH, Hb, age, ICD codes for liver metastasis, diabetes, neuropathy, and heart failure; insurance payer, year of start of 2L Rx, time on 1 L NHT, Gleason score, PSA at the original diagnosis of mPC. Subgroup analyses included 1L Rx duration < 12 mos. Results: 1165 Pts between 2/5/2013 to 9/27/2019 were eligible. Median follow up 8 mos (range 0.1-64.5). Median OS after 1L A was higher with E as compared to D (15.7 vs. 9.4 mos). Median OS after 1L E was higher with A as compared to D (13.3 vs. 9.7 mos) (table). Propensity distributions were overlapping among Rx arms and showed only modest imbalance. In 2L, D had a worse adjusted hazard ratio of 1.29 and 1.35 as compared to E and A respectively (p < 0.05). Similar results were seen with 1L Rx duration of < 12 mos (p < 0.05). Conclusions: These hypothesis-generating data provide real-world OS estimates with 2L D & NHT in mPC. In propensity-stratified analyses, mPC Pts who progressed on NHT had a worse OS with 2L D as compared to alternate NHT. Results were consistent in unadjusted analysis & subgroup analyses of 1L Rx < 12 mos. Results are subject to residual confounding and missingness. After prospective validation these data may aid in Rx sequencing, Pts counselling, and design of future clinical trials in this setting. [Table: see text]


Circulation ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 129 (suppl_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Michikazu Nakai ◽  
Makoto Watanabe ◽  
Kunihiro Nishimura ◽  
Misa Takegami ◽  
Yoshihiro Kokubo ◽  
...  

Objective: The positive relation between body mass index (BMI) and risk of incident hypertension (HT) has been reported mainly in the Western subjects with high BMI. However, there are a few reports in the Asian with relatively lower BMI. This study investigated the relation of BMI with risk of incident HT in the population-based prospective cohort study of Japan, the Suita study. Methods: Participants who had no HT at baseline (1,591 men and 1,973 women) aged 30-84 years were included in this study. BMI categories were defined as following: underweight (BMI<18.5), normal (18.5≤BMI<25.0), and overweight (BMI ≥ 25.0). The Cox proportional hazards model was used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) of BMI categories for incident HT by sex. HRs were adjusted for age, cigarette smoking and alcohol drinking. The HRs according to quartiles of BMI were also estimated, using the lowest quartile of BMI as a reference. Results: During median follow-up of 7.2 years, 1,325 participants (640 men and 685 women) developed HT. The HR (95% CI) of 1kg/m2 increment of BMI for HT in men and women was 1.08 (1.05-1.11) and 1.10 (1.07-1.12), respectively. When we set a normal BMI as a reference, HR of overweight BMI in men and women was 1.37 (1.13-1.67) and 1.45 (1.18-1.77), whereas HR of underweight BMI in men and women was 0.63 (0.45-0.90) and 0.60 (0.45-0.80), respectively. In addition, compared to the lowest quartile, HR of the highest quartile of BMI in men and women was 1.67 (1.33-2.10, trend p<0.001) and 2.10 (1.67-2.64, trend p<0.001), respectively. Conclusion: In this study, we showed that higher BMI was associated with increased risk of hypertension in both Japanese men and women.


2009 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 45-51 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hanne Stensheim ◽  
Bjørn Møller ◽  
Tini van Dijk ◽  
Sophie D. Fosså

Purpose To assess if cancers diagnosed during pregnancy or lactation are associated with increased risk of cause-specific death. Patients and Methods In this population-based cohort study using data from the Cancer Registry and the Medical Birth Registry of Norway, 42,511 women, age 16 to 49 years and diagnosed with cancer from 1967 to 2002, were eligible. They were grouped as not pregnant (reference), pregnant, or lactating at diagnosis. Cause-specific survival for all sites combined, and for the most frequent malignancies, was investigated using a Cox proportional hazards model. An additional analysis with time-dependent covariates was performed for comparison of women with and without a postcancer pregnancy. The multivariate analyses were adjusted for age at diagnosis, extent of disease, and diagnostic periods. Results For all sites combined, no intergroup differences in cause-specific death were seen, with hazard ratio (HR) of 1.03 (95% CI, 0.86 to 1.22) and HR 1.02 (95% CI, 0.86 to 1.22) for the pregnant and lactating groups, respectively. Patients with breast (HR, 1.95; 95% CI, 1.36 to 2.78) and ovarian cancer (HR, 2.23; 95% CI, 1.05 to 4.73) diagnosed during lactation had an increased risk of cause-specific death. Diagnosis of malignant melanoma during pregnancy slightly increased this risk. For all sites combined, the risk of cause-specific death was significantly decreased for women who had postcancer pregnancies. Conclusion In general, the diagnosis of most cancer types during pregnancy or lactation does not increase the risk of cause-specific death. Breast and ovarian cancer diagnosed during lactation represents an exception. We confirmed the “healthy mother effect” for women with a postcancer pregnancy.


BMJ Open ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (7) ◽  
pp. e021187 ◽  
Author(s):  
Te-Chun Shen ◽  
Chia-Hung Chen ◽  
Yu-Jhen Huang ◽  
Cheng-Li Lin ◽  
Ting-Chang Chang ◽  
...  

ObjectiveThoracic infection and pneumonia are prevalent in patients with schizophrenia; however, it is unclear whether patients with schizophrenia are at an increased risk of developing pleural empyema.DesignA retrospective cohort study with propensity-matched cohorts with and without schizophrenia.SettingUsing the National Health Insurance Research Database of Taiwan.ParticipantsWe identified 55 888 patients with schizophrenia newly diagnosed in 2000–2011 and same number of individuals without schizophrenia as the comparison cohort, frequency matched by propensity scores estimated using age, sex, occupation, income, urbanisation, year of diagnosis and comorbidities.Primary outcome measuresWe assessed incident pleural empyema by the end of 2011 and used the Cox proportional hazards model to calculate the schizophrenia cohort to comparison cohort HR of pleural empyema.ResultsThe overall incidence of pleural empyema was 2.44-fold greater in the schizophrenia cohort than in the comparison cohort (4.39vs1.80 per 10 000 person-years), with an adjusted HR of 2.87(95% CI 2.14 to 3.84). Stratified analyses by age, sex, occupation, income, urbanisation and comorbidity revealed significant hazards for pleural empyema associated with schizophrenia in all subgroups.ConclusionsPatients with schizophrenia are at an increased risk of developing pleural empyema and require greater attention and appropriate support.


2019 ◽  
Vol 98 (12) ◽  
pp. 2749-2760 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gilles Salles ◽  
Emmanuel Bachy ◽  
Lukas Smolej ◽  
Martin Simkovic ◽  
Lucile Baseggio ◽  
...  

AbstractAfter analyzing treatment patterns in chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) (objective 1), we investigated the relative effectiveness of ibrutinib versus other commonly used treatments (objective 2) in patients with treatment-naïve and relapsed/refractory CLL, comparing patient-level data from two randomized registration trials with two real-world databases. Hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated using a multivariate Cox proportional hazards model, adjusted for differences in baseline characteristics. Rituximab-containing regimens were often prescribed in clinical practice. The most frequently prescribed regimens were fludarabine + cyclophosphamide + rituximab (FCR, 29.3%), bendamustine + rituximab (BR, 17.7%), and other rituximab-containing regimens (22.0%) in the treatment-naïve setting (n = 604), other non-FCR/BR rituximab-containing regimens (38.7%) and non-rituximab–containing regimens (28.5%) in the relapsed/refractory setting (n = 945). Adjusted HRs (95% CI) for progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS), respectively, with ibrutinib versus real-world regimens were 0.23 (0.14–0.37; p < 0.0001) and 0.40 (0.22–0.76; p = 0.0048) in the treatment-naïve setting, and 0.21 (0.16–0.27; p < 0.0001) and 0.29 (0.21–0.41; p < 0.0001) in the relapsed/refractory setting. When comparing real-world use of ibrutinib (n = 53) versus other real-world regimens in relapsed/refractory CLL (objective 3), adjusted HRs (95% CI) were 0.37 (0.22–0.63; p = 0.0003) for PFS and 0.53 (0.27–1.03; p < 0.0624) for OS. This adjusted analysis, based on nonrandomized patient data, suggests ibrutinib to be more effective than other commonly used regimens for CLL.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document