scholarly journals The Rise of Lung Ultrasound in the Era of COVID-19

2021 ◽  
Vol 33 (4) ◽  
pp. 5-8
Author(s):  
Shailendra Kumar Motwani ◽  
Helen Saunders
Keyword(s):  
Lung Ultrasound ◽  
Image Interpretation ◽  
Ultrasound Images ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Non Invasive ◽  
Global Pandemic ◽  
Pleural Surface ◽  
Chest X Ray ◽  
Novel Coronavirus ◽  
Huge Challenge

The current global pandemic caused by the novel coronavirus severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-COV-2) presents a huge challenge for physicians. Rapid diagnosis, triage and clinical management of these patients is a challenge for physicians but may be aided using lung ultrasound. Lung ultrasound has been in use for over 10 years mainly by critical care practitioners and emergency physicians with variable uptake, but it has gained popularity during the Coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic as a diagnostic tool and can be easily learned compared to the other ultrasound techniques. Image interpretation is based on identifying artefacts generated by the pleural surface. This technique is non-invasive and can be performed rapidly at the patient’s bedside. It has higher accuracy in diagnosis than auscultation and Chest X-ray (CXR) combined. In this article the authors describe the interpretation of lung ultrasound images, particularly in patients with COVID-19 and discuss indications for this technique. Physicians are recommended to gain familiarity with this technique and use of online resources for guidance.

scholarly journals The use of lung ultrasound during the COVID-19 pandemic

2020 ◽  
Vol 27 (SP1) ◽  
pp. e64-e75
Author(s):  
Aly Youssef ◽  
Marta Cavalera ◽  
Carlotta Azzarone ◽  
Carla Serra ◽  
Elena Brunelli ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health System ◽  
Pulmonary Infection ◽  
Lung Ultrasound ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Chain Reaction ◽  
X Ray ◽  
Rapid Learning ◽  
Chest X Ray ◽  
Polymerase Chain ◽  
Novel Coronavirus

The novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is a challenge to every health system. Unfortunately, it is unlikely that this pandemic will disappear soon. No health system, with its present resources and workflow, is capable enough to deal with a full-blown wave of this pandemic. Acquisition of specific new skills may be fundamental in delivering appropriate health care for our patients. The gold standard for diagnosis of the COVID-19 infection is real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. Radiological investigations (chest X-ray or high-resolution computerized tomography [CT]) can be helpful both for diagnosis and management, but they have many limitations. Ultrasound has been suggested as a reliable and accurate tool for assessing the lungs in COVID-19 patients. Lung ultrasound (LUS) can show specific signs of inter-stitial pneumonia, which is characteristic of COVID-19 pulmonary infection. In addition, nonradiologist specialists with experience in ultrasound can be trained on LUS with a relatively rapid learning curve. In pregnancy, LUS can be particularly useful due to the avoidance of exposure to ionizing radiation. In this review, we present the advantages, techniques, and limitations of the use of LUS during the COVID-19 pandemic, with specific focus on pregnancy.

scholarly journals Multiobjective Genetic Algorithm and Convolutional Neural Network Based COVID-19 Identification in Chest X-Ray Images

2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 ◽  
pp. 1-9
Author(s):  
Prashant Kumar Shukla ◽  
Jasminder Kaur Sandhu ◽  
Anamika Ahirwar ◽  
Deepika Ghai ◽  
Priti Maheshwary ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Algorithm ◽  
Diagnostic Testing ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Screening Process ◽  
X Ray ◽  
Multiobjective Genetic Algorithm ◽  
Global Pandemic ◽  
Chest X Ray ◽  
Novel Coronavirus ◽  
Fold Cross Validation

COVID-19 is a new disease, caused by the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2, that was firstly delineated in humans in 2019.Coronaviruses cause a range of illness in patients varying from common cold to advanced respiratory syndromes such as Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS-CoV) and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS-CoV). The SARS-CoV-2 outbreak has resulted in a global pandemic, and its transmission is increasing at a rapid rate. Diagnostic testing and approaches provide a valuable tool for doctors and support them with the screening process. Automatic COVID-19 identification in chest X-ray images can be useful to test for COVID-19 infection at a good speed. Therefore, in this paper, a framework is designed by using Convolutional Neural Networks (CNN) to diagnose COVID-19 patients using chest X-ray images. A pretrained GoogLeNet is utilized for implementing the transfer learning (i.e., by replacing some sets of final network CNN layers). 20-fold cross-validation is considered to overcome the overfitting quandary. Finally, the multiobjective genetic algorithm is considered to tune the hyperparameters of the proposed COVID-19 identification in chest X-ray images. Extensive experiments show that the proposed COVID-19 identification model obtains remarkably better results and may be utilized for real-time testing of patients.

scholarly journals Detection of COVID-19 Patients from CT Scan and Chest X-ray Data Using Modified MobileNetV2 and LIME

Healthcare ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (9) ◽  
pp. 1099
Author(s):  
Md Manjurul Ahsan ◽  
Redwan Nazim ◽  
Zahed Siddique ◽  
Pedro Huebner
Keyword(s):  
High Performance ◽  
Disease Diagnosis ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Deep Convolutional Neural Networks ◽  
X Ray ◽  
Patient Screening ◽  
Global Pandemic ◽  
Chest X Ray ◽  
Interpretable Model ◽  
Novel Coronavirus

The COVID-19 global pandemic caused by the widespread transmission of the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) has become one of modern history’s most challenging issues from a healthcare perspective. At its dawn, still without a vaccine, contagion containment strategies remained most effective in preventing the disease’s spread. Patient isolation has been primarily driven by the results of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing, but its initial reach was challenged by low availability and high cost, especially in developing countries. As a means of taking advantage of a preexisting infrastructure for respiratory disease diagnosis, researchers have proposed COVID-19 patient screening based on the results of Chest Computerized Tomography (CT) and Chest Radiographs (X-ray). When paired with artificial-intelligence- and deep-learning-based approaches for analysis, early studies have achieved a comparatively high accuracy in diagnosing the disease. Considering the opportunity to further explore these methods, we implement six different Deep Convolutional Neural Networks (Deep CNN) models—VGG16, MobileNetV2, InceptionResNetV2, ResNet50, ResNet101, and VGG19—and use a mixed dataset of CT and X-ray images to classify COVID-19 patients. Preliminary results showed that a modified MobileNetV2 model performs best with an accuracy of 95 ± 1.12% (AUC = 0.816). Notably, a high performance was also observed for the VGG16 model, outperforming several previously proposed models with an accuracy of 98.5 ± 1.19% on the X-ray dataset. Our findings are supported by recent works in the academic literature, which also uphold the higher performance of MobileNetV2 when X-ray, CT, and their mixed datasets are considered. Lastly, we further explain the process of feature extraction using Local Interpretable Model-Agnostic Explanations (LIME), which contributes to a better understanding of what features in CT/X-ray images characterize the onset of COVID-19.

Synthetic and semi-synthetic drugs as promising therapeutic option for the treatment of COVID-19

2020 ◽  
Vol 20 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ekta Shirbhate ◽  
Preeti Patel ◽  
Vijay K Patel ◽  
Ravichandran Veerasamy ◽  
Prabodh C Sharma ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Therapeutic Option ◽  
Antiviral Treatment ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Clinical Experiences ◽  
Synthetic Compounds ◽  
Synthetic Drugs ◽  
Global Pandemic ◽  
The World ◽  
Novel Coronavirus

: The novel coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19), a global pandemic that emerged from Wuhan, China has today travelled all around the world, so far 216 countries or territories with 21,732,472 people infected and 770,866 deaths globally (as per WHO COVID-19 update dated August 18, 2020). Continuous efforts are being made to repurpose the existing drugs and develop vaccines for combating this infection. Despite, to date, no certified antiviral treatment or vaccine prevails. Although, few candidates have displayed their efficacy in in vitro studies and are being repurposed for COVID-19 treatment. This article summarizes synthetic and semi-synthetic compounds displaying potent activity in their clinical experiences or studies against COVID-19 and also focuses on mode of action of drugs being repositioned against COVID-19.

scholarly journals Atypical respiratory distress in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. A case report

2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Guy-Quesney Mateso ◽  
Marius Baguma ◽  
Pacifique Mwene-Batu ◽  
Ghislain Maheshe Balemba ◽  
Fabrice Nzabara ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Respiratory Distress ◽  
Democratic Republic ◽  
Atypical Pneumonia ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Republic Of The Congo ◽  
Chest X Ray ◽  
Novel Coronavirus ◽  
Laboratory Changes ◽  
Official Declaration ◽  
Ray Series

Abstract Background Predictions have been made that Africa would be the most vulnerable continent to the novel Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Interestingly, the spread of the disease in Africa seems to have been delayed and initially slower than in many parts of the world. Here we report on two cases of respiratory distress in our region before the official declaration of the disease in December 2019, cases which in the present times would be suspect of COVID-19. Case presentation These two cases (one 55-year-old man and one 25-year-old woman) of acute respiratory distress secondary to atypical pneumonia were seen in Bukavu, in Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), between September and December 2019. One patient had returned from China and the other had close contacts with travellers from China in the 2 weeks prior to the onset of symptoms. In either case, the aetiology could not be accurately determined. However, the two cases presented a clinical picture (progressive dyspnoea, preceded by dry cough and fever) and laboratory changes (procalcitonin within the normal range, slight inflammation, and lymphopenia) compatible with a viral infection. The chest X-ray series of the first patient showed lesions (reticulations, ground glass, and nodules ≤6 mm) similar to those currently found in COVID-19 patients. In addition, unlike the 25-year-old female patient who had no comorbidity, the 55-year-old male patient who had hypertension as comorbidity, developed a more severe acute respiratory distress which progressed to death. Conclusion These cases bring to the attention the fact that COVID-19-like syndromes may have already been present in the region months before the official beginning of the pandemic. This also brings to question whether a prior presence of the disease or infections with related virus may account for the delayed and less extensive development of the pandemic in the region.

FEATURES OF THE COURSE AND TACTICS OF MANAGING CHILDREN WITH KIDNEYS AND URINARY TRACT DISEASES DURING THE PANDEMIC OF NEW CORONAVIRUS INFECTION COVID-19

2021 ◽  
Vol 100 (4) ◽  
pp. 74-79
Author(s):  
I.M. Kagantsov ◽  
◽  
V.V. Sizonov ◽  
V.G. Svarich ◽  
K.P. Piskunov ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Age Groups ◽  
Clinical Manifestations ◽  
Routine Care ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Urinary System ◽  
Death Rates ◽  
Global Pandemic ◽  
Coronavirus Infection ◽  
Novel Coronavirus ◽  
Significant Health

The novel coronavirus infection (SARS-CoV-2), which first appeared in Wuhan, China in December 2019, has been declared a global pandemic by WHO. COVID-19 affects people of all age groups. The disease in children is usually asymptomatic or mild compared to adults, and with a significantly lower death rates. Data on kidney damage in children with COVID-19, as well as the effect of coronavirus infection on the course of diseases of the genitourinary system, are limited, the risks of contracting a new coronavirus infection in children with significant health problems, including those with chronic kidney disease, remain uncertain. The pandemic has affected the activities of surgeons treating diseases of the urinary system in children. Since the prospects for the end of the pandemic are vague, it is necessary to formulate criteria for selecting patients who can and should be provided with routine care in the pandemic. The purpose of this review is to highlight the features of the clinical manifestations and treatment of children with COVID-19, occurring against the background of previous renal pathology or complicating its course.

scholarly journals Emergence of SARS-CoV-2 through recombination and strong purifying selection

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (27) ◽  
pp. eabb9153 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaojun Li ◽  
Elena E. Giorgi ◽  
Manukumar Honnayakanahalli Marichannegowda ◽  
Brian Foley ◽  
Chuan Xiao ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Host Species ◽  
Purifying Selection ◽  
New Drugs ◽  
Evolutionary Constraints ◽  
Binding Motif ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Global Pandemic ◽  
Show Evidence ◽  
Human Coronaviruses ◽  
Novel Coronavirus

COVID-19 has become a global pandemic caused by the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. Understanding the origins of SARS-CoV-2 is critical for deterring future zoonosis, discovering new drugs, and developing a vaccine. We show evidence of strong purifying selection around the receptor binding motif (RBM) in the spike and other genes among bat, pangolin, and human coronaviruses, suggesting similar evolutionary constraints in different host species. We also demonstrate that SARS-CoV-2’s entire RBM was introduced through recombination with coronaviruses from pangolins, possibly a critical step in the evolution of SARS-CoV-2’s ability to infect humans. Similar purifying selection in different host species, together with frequent recombination among coronaviruses, suggests a common evolutionary mechanism that could lead to new emerging human coronaviruses.

scholarly journals Covid-19 and food security: Jeopardy management and posterity deliberations

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 01-05
Author(s):  
Augustine Owusu-Addo ◽  
Atianashie Miracle A ◽  
Chukwuma Chinaza Adaobi ◽  
Larissa Agbemelo-Tsomafo
Keyword(s):  
Food Processing ◽  
Respiratory Illness ◽  
The United States ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Food Handling ◽  
Global Pandemic ◽  
Food Borne ◽  
Novel Coronavirus ◽  
Food Borne Infections ◽  
Safety Guidelines

COVID-19, also known as the ‘novel coronavirus disease 2019’, is a respiratory illness and the causative pathogen is officially named as ‘SARS-CoV-2’. Infections with SARS-CoV-2 have now been amplified to a global pandemic – as of April 3, 2020, nearly 1,018,000 cases have been confirmed in more than 195 countries, including more than 300,000 cases within the United States. Public safety guidelines are followed worldwide to stop the spread of COVID-19 and stay healthy. Despite COVID-19 is a respiratory illness with mode of invasion through the respiratory tract, not the gastrointestinal tract, an average food consumer is anxious and concerned about the food safety. Could an individual catch the deadly contagious COVID-19 from groceries brought home from the supermarket – or from the next restaurant takeout order? This brief review elucidates the epidemiology and pathobiological mechanism(s) of SARS-CoV-2 and its implications in food-borne infections, transmission via food surfaces, food processing and food handling.

scholarly journals The Impact of Armed Conflict on the Epidemiological Situation of COVID-19 in Libya, Syria and Yemen

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohamed A. Daw
Keyword(s):  
Armed Conflict ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
Cumulative Number ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Global Pandemic ◽  
Large Numbers ◽  
Public Data ◽  
Novel Coronavirus ◽  
The Impact

Background: Since the Arab uprising in 2011, Libya, Syria and Yemen have gone through major internal armed conflicts. This resulted in large numbers of deaths, injuries, and population displacements, with collapse of the healthcare systems. Furthermore, the situation was complicated by the emergence of COVID-19 as a global pandemic, which made the populations of these countries struggle under unusual conditions to deal with both the pandemic and the ongoing wars. This study aimed to determine the impact of the armed conflicts on the epidemiology of the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) within these war-torn countries and highlight the strategies needed to combat the spread of the pandemic and its consequences.Methods: Official and public data concerning the dynamics of the armed conflicts and the spread of SARS-COV-2 in Libya, Syria and Yemen were collected from all available sources, starting from the emergence of COVID-19 in each country until the end of December 2020. Datasets were analyzed by a set of statistical techniques and the weekly resolved data were used to probe the link between the intensity levels of the conflict and the prevalence of COVID-19.Results: The data indicated that there was an increase in the intensity of the violence at an early stage from March to August 2020, when it approximately doubled in the three countries, particularly in Libya. During that period, few cases of COVID-19 were reported, ranging from 5 to 53 cases/day. From September to December 2020, a significant decline in the intensity of the armed conflicts was accompanied by steep upsurges in the rate of COVID-19 cases, which reached up to 500 cases/day. The accumulative cases vary from one country to another during the armed conflict. The highest cumulative number of cases were reported in Libya, Syria and Yemen.Conclusions: Our analysis demonstrates that the armed conflict provided an opportunity for SARS-CoV-2 to spread. The early weeks of the pandemic coincided with the most intense period of the armed conflicts, and few cases were officially reported. This indicates undercounting and hidden spread during the early stage of the pandemic. The pandemic then spread dramatically as the armed conflict declined, reaching its greatest spread by December 2020. Full-blown transmission of the COVID-19 pandemic in these countries is expected. Therefore, urgent national and international strategies should be implemented to combat the pandemic and its consequences.

Teledentistry Platforms for Orthodontics

2021 ◽  
Vol 45 (1) ◽  
pp. 48-53
Author(s):  
Jae Hyun Park ◽  
Leah Rogowski ◽  
Janet H Kim ◽  
Sumayah Al Shami ◽  
Scott E I Howell
Keyword(s):  
Orthodontic Treatment ◽  
Healthcare Providers ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Interpersonal Interactions ◽  
Global Pandemic ◽  
Novel Coronavirus

Technology has transformed almost every aspect of our lives. Smartphones enable patients to request, receive, and transmit information irrespective of the time and place. The global pandemic has forced healthcare providers to employ technology to aid in ‘flattening the curve. The Novel Coronavirus, which is responsible for COVID-19, is transmitted primarily through person-to-person contact but may also be spread through aerosol generating procedures, so many clinics have severely limited interpersonal interactions. The purpose of this article is to provide helpful information for those orthodontists considering some form of remote practice. Various HIPAA-compliant telecommunication or teledentistry systems that can be used for orthodontic treatment are introduced and discussed. Detailed information about each platform that can potentially be used for orthodontics is provided in Figure 1. The authors do not endorse any of the products listed and the included software is not all inclusive but instead is a glimpse into the options available.

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