scholarly journals COVID- 19 Screening by RT-PCR: An Epidemiological Modelling

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ali A. Hasab
Keyword(s):  
Clinical Symptoms ◽  
Case Fatality ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Reproductive Rate ◽  
Rt Pcr ◽  
Roc Curve Analysis ◽  
Epidemic Dynamics ◽  
Sir Epidemic ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Higher Sensitivity

Abstract Background: Given the attention on COVID-19 testing and its role in helping to halt the spread of COVID-19 Pandemic, wider testing is urgently needed for successful pandemic control. The level of the test’s performance is also important for effective management of the different stages of the pandemic.Objectives: To study the impact of RT-PCR testing in control of COVID-19 Pandemic and validity of RT-PCR as a predictor for COVID- 19 diseaseMethods: The data was collected essentially by using secondary data. All cases and deaths in WHO Situation Reports and total tests in Worldometer were included in the study. Wolfram Player 12 software was used for the Susceptible Infected Recovered (SIR) epidemic dynamics of COVID-19. Survival analysis was carried out to determine the cumulative proportional survival of COVID-19 in Egypt. Six studies discussing the validity of RT-PCR was also reanalyzed. Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was used to study the diagnostic performance of RT-PCR.Results: There was a negative correlation between both case fatality rate of COVID-19 and reproductive rate with RT-PCR tests performed . This difference is significant (r = - 0.307 and. – 0.361) respectively. RT-PCR had a sensitivity of 61.19%, Specificity 94.75%% and an accuracy of 76.72%. The area under the ROC (AUC) for RT-PCR was 0.780.Conclusion and recommendation: RT-PCR testing will continue to be needed. It reduced the case fatality and reproduction rates of COVID-19 Pandemic. The AUC for RT-PCR is less than optimal. The combination of clinical symptoms, exposure history and CT must be considered to identify COVID-19 with higher sensitivity.

scholarly journals Placental markers of folate-related metabolism in preeclampsia

Reproduction ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 142 (3) ◽  
pp. 467-476 ◽  
Author(s):  
C Mislanova ◽  
O Martsenyuk ◽  
B Huppertz ◽  
M Obolenskaya
Keyword(s):  
Clinical Symptoms ◽  
Total Content ◽  
Plasma Homocysteine ◽  
Positive Relation ◽  
Rt Pcr ◽  
Methylene Tetrahydrofolate Reductase ◽  
Tight Association ◽  
The Impact ◽  
First Time ◽  
Related Compounds

The etiology and degree of clinical symptoms of preeclampsia depend on genotypic and phenotypic maternal and trophoblast factors, and elevated levels of plasma homocysteine (Hcy) are one of the pathogenetic factors of preeclampsia. To assess the impact of the folate-related metabolism, we characterized the indices of this metabolism in 40 samples from uncomplicated term placentas and 28 samples from preeclamptic pregnancies by quantifying the total content of folate, methionine (Met), Hcy and related cysteine, and glutathione (GSH) in compliance with the 677 C/T genotype of methylene tetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR). The prevalence ofMTHFRgenotypes was not significantly different between the two groups. The polymorphism ofMTHFRwas not unambiguously connected with the content of total placental Met, Hcy and related cysteine, and GSH either in uncomplicated or in complicated pregnancies. By contrast, the combination of the heterozygousMTHFRgenotype with folate deficiency in the samples from preeclamptic pregnancies was characterized by a statistically significant decrease in the Met content, a trend toward increased Hcy levels and a tight association between metabolically directly and indirectly related compounds, e.g. positive relation between Hcy versus cysteine and folate versus GSH and negative relation between folate versus Hcy and both Hcy and cysteine versus GSH. We demonstrated the expression of cystathionine-β-synthase (CBS) in human placenta at term by RT-PCR and western blot analysis, for the first time, and confirmed its catalytic activity and the accumulation of cysteine and CBS in placental explants cultivated in the presence of elevated Hcy concentrations. We suggest that disturbance in placental folate-related metabolism may be one of the pathogenetic factors in preeclampsia.

scholarly journals Haemophagocytosis in a patient with Crimean–Congo haemorrhagic fever

2007 ◽  
Vol 56 (8) ◽  
pp. 1126-1128 ◽  
Author(s):  
Atahan Cagatay ◽  
Mahir Kapmaz ◽  
Asli Karadeniz ◽  
Seniha Basaran ◽  
Mustafa Yenerel ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Clinical Symptoms ◽  
Severe Disease ◽  
Case Fatality ◽  
Haemorrhagic Fever ◽  
Rt Pcr ◽  
Patient History ◽  
Endemic Region ◽  
Cchf Virus ◽  
History Of ◽  
Crimean Congo Haemorrhagic Fever

Crimean–Congo haemorrhagic fever (CCHF) is a severe disease with a case fatality of 2.8 to 80 %. A patient dwelling in an endemic region for CCHF was admitted with fever preceding bleeding diathesis and pancytopenia. Despite no history of tick exposure, CCHF was highly suspected. With an oral ribavirin therapy, clinical and laboratory improvements were obtained. The diagnosis was confirmed by detection of IgM antibody to CCHF virus and positive RT-PCR. Although the main pathogenesis of CCHF infection is not elucidated yet, haemophagocytosis, a symptom rarely reported in viral haemorrhagic fevers, was observed in this case. Haemophagocytosis is suggested to have a role in the development of pancytopenia in CCHF, the mechanism of which still needs to be investigated, probably with cytokine studies. Together with clinical symptoms and patient history, haemophagocytosis may be an indicator for CCHF.

The Impact of Cognitive impairment on Clinical Symptoms, Physical Activity and Care Interactions among Residents in Assisted Living Settings

2021 ◽  
pp. 105477382110406
Author(s):  
Barbara Resnick ◽  
Marie Boltz ◽  
Elizabeth Galik ◽  
Shijun Zhu
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Cognitive Impairment ◽  
Assisted Living ◽  
Clinical Symptoms ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Ongoing Trial ◽  
Trial Testing ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Evidence Integration

The purpose of this study was to describe differences in pain, behavioral symptoms, quality of staff-resident interactions, participation in function focused care and physical activity among residents with and without cognitive impairment in assisted living. This was a secondary data analysis using baseline data from an ongoing trial testing Function Focused Care for Assisted Living using the Evidence Integration Triangle (FFC-AL-EIT). A total of 550 residents were recruited from 59 communities. The average age of participants was 89.30 ( SD = 7.63), the majority were white (98%), female (69%), had evidence of cognitive impairment (75%), and 5.16 ( SD = 1.86) comorbidities. Those with cognitive impairment had more pain, were more sedentary and less likely to engage in function focused care activities. Addressing pain and implementing interventions for those with cognitive impairment to participate in function focused care may help optimize function and physical activity in assisted living residents.

Impact of Lockdown on Tuberculosis Management during SARS-Cov-2 Pandemic: Urban & Rural Scenario of Surat

Healthline ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 13-20
Author(s):  
Parul Vadgama ◽  
Bhoomika Patel ◽  
J K Kosambiya ◽  
Anas Patni ◽  
U. C. Samudyatha ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Drug Resistance ◽  
Treatment Success ◽  
Case Fatality ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Simple Random Sampling ◽  
Analysis Data ◽  
Cross Sectional Survey ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Before And After ◽  
The Impact

Introduction: India has highest burden of tuberculosis cases both drug sensitive as well as drug resistance in the world. Covid 19 pandemic had affected infectious diseases like TB, HIV, Malaria in developing countries like India. Here, we aimed to study the impact of lockdown on diagnosis and management of tuberculosis in Surat, Gujarat, India due to SARS Cov 2. Method: Cross sectional survey of Tuberculosis patients regarding problems faced during lockdown involving all 18 Tb unitof SMC was done, 15 patients were randomly selected by simple random sampling of line list of patients of each unitand secondary data analysis, data was collected from District Tuberculosis centre for rural part and SMC for urban part. Results: In this study we compared data 5 months before and after lockdown i.e. November 2019 to March 2020 and April 2020 to August 2020 , comparison of diagnostic tests like sputum examination by staining, CBNAAT, and first line Line Probe Assay (LPA) which shows significant reduction in number of test. Also the number of cases of pulmonary as well as drug sensitive, drug resistance and no of referral cases too were significantly decreased during and after lockdown. However, treatment success rate and case fatality rate remain the same as five months before and after the lockdown. Conclusion: Comparison of diagnostic test of TB showed significant reduction in number of tests done during and after lockdown. It was also observed that no major issues were faced by patients from health care provider side of National Tuberculosis Elimination Programme.

THE IMPACT OF HUMAN LOCATION-SPECIFIC CONTACT PATTERN ON THE SIR EPIDEMIC TRANSMISSION BETWEEN POPULATIONS

2013 ◽  
Vol 23 (05) ◽  
pp. 1350095 ◽  
Author(s):  
LIN WANG ◽  
YAN ZHANG ◽  
ZHEN WANG ◽  
XIANG LI
Keyword(s):  
Population Model ◽  
Disease Incidence ◽  
Basic Reproductive Number ◽  
Reproductive Number ◽  
Contact Pattern ◽  
Structured Population Model ◽  
Epidemic Dynamics ◽  
Sir Epidemic ◽  
Structured Population ◽  
The Impact

The structured-population model is extensively used to study the complexity of epidemic dynamics. In many seminal researches, the impact of human mobility on the outbreak threshold has been profoundly studied, with the general assumption that the human contact pattern is mixing homogeneously. As the individual contact is assumed uniform among different subpopulations, the basic reproductive number, R0, which relates to the stability at the disease-free equilibrium, is equal to the same constant on separate locations. However, recent studies have shown that there may exist location-related factors driving the variance of disease incidence between populations, in reality. Therefore, in this study, the location-specific heterogeneous contact pattern has been introduced into a famous phenomenological structured-population model, where bidirectional recurrent commuting flows couple two typical subpopulations, to study the complex dynamics behaviors of spatial transmission of epidemics. Besides the usual SIR epidemic dynamics with birth and death processes, we take into account the contact process by assigning each member from a given subpopulation with a characteristic contact rate. Through theoretical arguments and agent-based computer simulations, we unveil that the stressed element dramatically affects the epidemic threshold of the system.

scholarly journals Clinical evolution of COVID-19 during pregnancy at different altitudes: a population-based study

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juan Alonso Leon-Abarca ◽  
Maria Teresa Pena-Gallardo ◽  
Jorge Soliz ◽  
Roberto Alfonso Accinelli
Keyword(s):  
Pregnant Women ◽  
Case Fatality ◽  
Population Based ◽  
Reproductive Age ◽  
Rt Pcr ◽  
Population Based Study ◽  
Icu Admission ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Prevalence Ratios ◽  
Binomial Models

Background: The impact of influenza and various types of coronaviruses (SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV) on pregnancy has been reported. However, the current pandemic caused by SARS-CoV-2 continues to reveal important data for understanding its behavior in pregnant women. Methods: We analyzed the records of 326,586 non-pregnant women of reproductive age and 7,444 pregnant women with no other risk factor who also had a SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR result to estimate adjusted prevalence (aP) and adjusted prevalence ratios (aPR) of COVID-19 and its requirement of hospitalization, intubation, ICU admission and case-fatality rates. Adjustment was done through Poisson regressions for age and altitude of residence and birth. Generalized binomial models were used to generate probability plots to display how each outcome varied across ages and altitudes. Results: Pregnancy was independently associated with a 15% higher probability of COVID-19 (aPR: 1.15), a 116% higher probability of its following admission (aPR: 2.169) and a 127% higher probability of ICU admission (aPR: 2.275). Also, pregnancy was associated with 84.2% higher probability of developing pneumonia (aPR: 1.842) and a 163% higher probability of its following admission (aPR: 2.639). There were no significant differences in COVID-19 case-fatality rates between pregnant and non pregnant women (1.178, 95% CI: 0.68-1.67). Conclusion: Pregnancy was associated with a higher probability of COVID-19, developing of pneumonia, hospitalization, and ICU admission. Our results also suggest that the risk of COVID-19 and its related outcomes, except for intubation, decrease with altitude. Keywords: COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, pregnancy, reproductive age, altitude

scholarly journals Standardization and Age-Distribution of COVID-19: Implications for Variability in Case Fatality and Outbreak Identification

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
David N. Fisman ◽  
Amy L. Greer ◽  
Ashleigh R. Tuite
Keyword(s):  
Data Analysis ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Age Distribution ◽  
Case Fatality ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Secondary Data Analysis ◽  
Apparent Size ◽  
Older Individuals ◽  
Indirect Standardization ◽  
The Impact

AbstractBackgroundEpidemiological data from the COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated variability in attack rates by age, and country-to-country variability in case fatality ratio (CFR).ObjectiveTo use direct and indirect standardization for insights into the impact of age-specific under-reporting on between-country variability in CFR, and apparent size of COVID-19 epidemics.DesignPost-hoc secondary data analysis (“case studies”), and mathematical modeling.SettingChina, global.InterventionsNone.MeasurementsData were extracted from a sentinel epidemiological study by the Chinese Center for Disease Control (CCDC) that describes attack rates and CFR for COVID-19 in China prior to February 12, 2020. Standardized morbidity ratios (SMR) were used to impute missing cases and adjust CFR. Age-specific attack rates and CFR were applied to different countries with differing age structures (Italy, Japan, Indonesia, and Egypt), in order to generate estimates for CFR, apparent epidemic size, and time to outbreak recognition for identical age-specific attack rates.ResultsSMR demonstrated that 50-70% of cases were likely missed during the Chinese epidemic. Adjustment for under-recognition of younger cases decreased CFR from 2.4% to 0.8% (assuming 50% case ascertainment in older individuals). Standardizing the Chinese epidemic to countries with older populations (Italy, and Japan) resulted in larger apparent epidemic sizes, higher CFR and earlier outbreak recognition. The opposite effect was demonstrated for countries with younger populations (Indonesia, and Egypt).LimitationsSecondary data analysis based on a single country at an early stage of the COVID-19 pandemic, with no attempt to incorporate second order effects (ICU saturation) on CFR.ConclusionDirect and indirect standardization are simple tools that provide key insights into between-country variation in the apparent size and severity of COVID-19 epidemics.FundingThe research was supported by a grant to DNF from the Canadian Institutes for Health Research (2019 COVID-19 rapid researching funding OV4-170360).

scholarly journals Point-of-Care PCR Assays for COVID-19 Detection

Biosensors ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 141
Author(s):  
Niharika Gupta ◽  
Shine Augustine ◽  
Tarun Narayan ◽  
Alan O’Riordan ◽  
Asmita Das ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Point Of Care ◽  
Digital Pcr ◽  
Rt Pcr ◽  
Chain Reaction ◽  
Polymerase Chain ◽  
Pcr Assays ◽  
Antigen Tests ◽  
Distinct Features ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Higher Sensitivity

Molecular diagnostics has been the front runner in the world’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Particularly, reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and the quantitative variant (qRT-PCR) have been the gold standard for COVID-19 diagnosis. However, faster antigen tests and other point-of-care (POC) devices have also played a significant role in containing the spread of SARS-CoV-2 by facilitating mass screening and delivering results in less time. Thus, despite the higher sensitivity and specificity of the RT-PCR assays, the impact of POC tests cannot be ignored. As a consequence, there has been an increased interest in the development of miniaturized, high-throughput, and automated PCR systems, many of which can be used at point-of-care. This review summarizes the recent advances in the development of miniaturized PCR systems with an emphasis on COVID-19 detection. The distinct features of digital PCR and electrochemical PCR are detailed along with the challenges. The potential of CRISPR/Cas technology for POC diagnostics is also highlighted. Commercial RT–PCR POC systems approved by various agencies for COVID-19 detection are discussed.

A PROPOSED EVALUATION PLAN TO ASSESS THE IMPACT OF A YOUTH DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME FACILITATED BY THE STATE INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AGENCY (SITA) IN RURAL SOUTH AFRICA

2017 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 174-181
Author(s):  
Maura Mbunyuza-deHeer Menlah
Keyword(s):  
Information Technology ◽  
Youth Development ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
The State ◽  
State Information ◽  
Evaluation Plan ◽  
Lessons Learnt ◽  
Slow Development ◽  
The Impact

This article reports on a proposed evaluation plan that has been developed to assess the work done by the State Information Technology Agency (SITA). The SITA programme was implemented in response to the South African government’s call to improve the lives of the populations in some rural areas through technology. The programme was meant to address slow development in  rural  areas  that  lack  technological  innovations  and  advances.  In  the proposed evaluation plan a review is made of secondary data, deciding how strategic priorities are to be determined, as well as analysis of the rural context environment. The researcher gives an account of how the evaluation strategies are to be piloted and rolled out thereafter. Lessons learnt are recorded and reported upon. A proposed evaluation plan will be developed, based on the lessons learnt in line with the objectives of the project.

PENGARUH PELATIHAN, KOMPETENSI, MOTIVASI DAN KEPEMIMPINAN TERHADAP KINERJA PEGAWAI DENGAN PENDIDIKAN SEBAGAI PEMODERATOR PADA BALAI PENDIDIKAN DAN PELATIHAN APARATUR KEMENTERIAN KELAUTAN DAN PERIKANAN

2018 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 37-49
Author(s):  
Wahyu Yulianto
Keyword(s):  
Job Satisfaction ◽  
Performance Appraisal ◽  
Structural Equation ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Primary Data ◽  
Equation Modeling ◽  
Training Centre ◽  
Competence Motivation ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Mediator Variable

The study purpose is to analyse the impact of training, competence, motivation and leadership towards performance either directly or through job satisfaction as a mediator variable. As many as 55 staff are considered as respondents in this research, and census method is used as the sampling method. Primary data in this study were collected through questionnaires and analyzed using Likert Scale. Secondary data are obtained from the organization structure Sukamandi Apparatus Training Centre (BDA), performance appraisal, staff attendance, information system and personnel management. Structural Equation Modeling Analisis of Moment Structures (SEM-AMOS) is used to process and analyze data. This study shows staff with high education, competence and leadership have a significant effect on performance, While the job satisfaction is significant in mediating the influence of training, competence and leadership on performance. Next on the employee with low education, training, competence, motivation and leadership have a significant influence on performance, while job satisfaction is significant in mediating the effect of competence and leadership on staff performance.   Keywords:  training, competence, motivation, leadership, job satisfaction, performance

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