Caecum perforation and SARS COV-2 infection: More than association?

Respiratory Tract ◽

Respiratory Distress ◽

Bowel Perforation ◽

Infected Female ◽

Chinese Studies ◽

Gi Symptoms

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-COV-2) infection is a worldwide pandemic involving more than 150 million people. The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID19) predominantly presents as a respiratory tract infection that may lead to acute respiratory distress. Gastrointestinal (GI) manifestations have been reported in several Chinese studies about SARS COV-2 infection. The most frequently reported GI symptoms are nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and abdominal pain [1]. Bowel perforation was rarely reported in less than 20 cases [2]. We herein report the case of caecum perforation in severely infected female patient

Immunoinformatics-guided design of a multi-epitope vaccine based on the structural proteins of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2

RSC Advances ◽

10.1039/d1ra02885e ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (29) ◽

pp. 18103-18121

Author(s):

Ahmad J. Obaidullah ◽

Mohammed M. Alanazi ◽

Nawaf A. Alsaif ◽

Hussam Albassam ◽

Abdulrahman A. Almehizia ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Tract Infection ◽

Respiratory Tract ◽

Structural Proteins ◽

Epitope Vaccine

COVID-19 is caused by SARS-CoV-2, resulting in a contagious respiratory tract infection. For designing a multi-epitope vaccine, we utilized the four structural proteins from the SARS-CoV-2 by using bioinformatics and immunoinformatics analysis.

Cultural "latrogenic" Cleft Palate

PEDIATRICS ◽

10.1542/peds.78.3.511 ◽

1986 ◽

Vol 78 (3) ◽

pp. 511-511

Author(s):

AMIN Y. BARAKAT ◽

USAMA ITANI ◽

GEORGE M. ZAYTOUN

Keyword(s):

Tract Infection ◽

Respiratory Tract ◽

Respiratory Distress ◽

Cleft Palate ◽

Upper Respiratory Tract ◽

Difficulty Breathing ◽

Congenital Cleft ◽

Upper Respiratory ◽

Feeding Difficulty

Pediatricians are familiar with congenital cleft palates and those occurring as a part of a multisystem abnormality. We have encountered a child with a cultural "iatrogenic" cleft palate. The patient is a 5-year-old girl who appeared normal until 4 months of age, at which time she became febrile and had difficulty breathing as a result of an upper respiratory tract infection. She was not attended to by a physician, but a uvulectomy, supposedly to prevent respiratory distress, was performed by a laywoman considered by the villagers to be a "specialist" in the procedure. Following the uvulectomy, the infant experienced feeding difficulty, choking on solid and liquid foods.

Thrombocytosis: a predictor of severity in children with lower respiratory tract infection

International Journal of Contemporary Pediatrics ◽

10.18203/2349-3291.ijcp20213725 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 8 (10) ◽

pp. 1658

Author(s):

Chandrakala P. ◽

Vinutha Patil ◽

Kavya V. N. ◽

Sushmitha .

Keyword(s):

Platelet Count ◽

Tract Infection ◽

Respiratory Tract ◽

Respiratory Distress ◽

Lower Respiratory Tract Infection ◽

Lower Respiratory Tract ◽

Tertiary Care ◽

Severe Pneumonia ◽

Care Hospital

Background: Community acquired pneumonia remains a significant cause of morbidity and mortality due to infection all over the world. Thrombocytes are known to be an essential part of immune response to various infectious agents. Platelet count elevated more than normal is often sign of severe pneumonia according to various studies.Methods: This is a retrospective study conducted in Kempegowda Institute of Medical Science, a tertiary care hospital in Bangalore with a study duration of 1 year. All children were classified into two groups based on platelet count that is with thrombocytosis and without thrombocytosis. Respiratory distress was defined as presence of tachypnoea, chest retractions, oxygen saturation <94% in room air. Children with respiratory distress were classified as severe pneumonia and those with no respiratory distress as non-severe pneumonia.Results: A total of 213 children were admitted with lower respiratory tract infection of which 35 children were excluded based on exclusion criteria. Of these 178 children 142 (80%) belonged to non-severe pneumonia group and 36 (20%) belonged to severe pneumonia group. Thrombocytosis is found in 31 (17%) children, 147 (82%) children had platelet count less than 4.5 lakhs/cu mm. Of these children with thrombocytosis 13 (42%) had non severe pneumonia and 18 (58%) had severe pneumonia. The p<0.0000001 which showed statistical significance, that is thrombocytosis was significantly associated with severity of pneumonia.Conclusions: Thrombocytosis can be considered as a marker of severity of pneumonia in day-to-day practice.

Ghana and the COVID-19 pandemic

Ghana Medical Journal ◽

10.4314/gmj.v54i4s.1 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 54 (4s) ◽

pp. 1-2

Author(s):

David Ofori-Adjei ◽

Margaret Lartey ◽

Kwadwo A. Koram

Keyword(s):

Tract Infection ◽

Respiratory Tract ◽

World Health Organisation ◽

World Health ◽

Virus Spread ◽

Global Pandemic ◽

The World

A new virus causing predominantly respiratory tract infection was described in China late 2019. The virus was subsequently named the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and the disease it causes as COVID-19. Subsequently the virus spread to many parts of the world. This resulted in the World Health Organisation declaring COVID-19 a global pandemic on 11th March 2020.

Features associated with SARS-COV-2 positivity among people presenting with acute respiratory tract infections to public Hospitals in Harari region, Ethiopia

SAGE Open Medicine ◽

10.1177/20503121211062793 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 9 ◽

pp. 205031212110627

Author(s):

Abdi Birhanu ◽

Galana Mamo Ayana ◽

Miesso Bayu ◽

Ahmed Mohammed ◽

Yadeta Dessie

Keyword(s):

Tract Infection ◽

Respiratory Tract ◽

Marital Status ◽

Acute Respiratory Tract Infection ◽

Public Hospitals ◽

Upper Respiratory Tract ◽

Resource Limited ◽

Tract Infections

Background: Despite investigating coronavirus among respiratory tract infected cases is a top priority to prevent further transmission, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 positivity among this group of patients remains unexplored in resource-limited settings. Therefore, this study intended to assess the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 positivity among patients presenting with acute respiratory tract infection from 1 July to 31 December 2020 in Harar Region, Ethiopia, from 15 February to 10 March 2021. Methods: A facility-based cross-sectional study design was used. Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 was tested by assaying oropharyngeal swabs using reverse transcriptase–polymerase chain reaction among patients presenting with acute respiratory tract infection in Harari Public Hospitals. A binary logistic regression was used to identify factors associated with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 positivity with an adjusted odds ratio at a 95% confidence interval. Results: Out of a total of 1692 study participants, 388 (22.9%) of them tested positive for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2. Of these severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 positive patients, 364 (21.6%) patients presented with lower respiratory tract infection, while the rest only 24 (1.4%) presented with upper respiratory tract infection. Independent variables included separated/divorced in marital status (AOR = 0.53, 95% CI: 0.29–0.95), presenting with cough, fever, and difficulty of breathing (AOR = 2.5, 95% CI: 1.22–4.7), age group of 30–39 years (AOR = 0.35, 95% CI: 0.15–0.79), 40–49 years (AOR = 0.37, 95% CI: 0.14–0.94), and 50–59 years (AOR = 0.31, 95% CI: 0.13–0.76) compared to patients with the age of ⩾ 60 years, had statistically significant association with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 positivity. Conclusion: Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 was positive among 388 (22.9%) acute respiratory tract infected people. Elder age, particular symptoms, such as cough, fever, and difficulty of breathing, and married marital status were associated with a severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 positive test. In resource-limited setups, where a shortage of testing equipment is common, these findings could contribute to boosting targeted symptom-oriented screening schemes. Moreover, this study could have paramount clinical importance for further studies in the country.

Alpha-1 adrenergic receptor antagonists to prevent hyperinflammation and death from lower respiratory tract infection

eLife ◽

10.7554/elife.61700 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 ◽

Author(s):

Allison Koenecke ◽

Michael Powell ◽

Ruoxuan Xiong ◽

Zhu Shen ◽

Nicole Fischer ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Tract Infection ◽

Respiratory Tract ◽

Respiratory Distress ◽

Lower Respiratory Tract Infection ◽

Adrenergic Receptor ◽

Lower Respiratory Tract ◽

Sensitivity Analyses ◽

Replication Phase ◽

Prophylactic Use

In severe viral pneumonia, including Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), the viral replication phase is often followed by hyperinflammation, which can lead to acute respiratory distress syndrome, multi-organ failure, and death. We previously demonstrated that alpha-1 adrenergic receptor (⍺1-AR) antagonists can prevent hyperinflammation and death in mice. Here, we conducted retrospective analyses in two cohorts of patients with acute respiratory distress (ARD, n = 18,547) and three cohorts with pneumonia (n = 400,907). Federated across two ARD cohorts, we find that patients exposed to ⍺1-AR antagonists, as compared to unexposed patients, had a 34% relative risk reduction for mechanical ventilation and death (OR = 0.70, p = 0.021). We replicated these methods on three pneumonia cohorts, all with similar effects on both outcomes. All results were robust to sensitivity analyses. These results highlight the urgent need for prospective trials testing whether prophylactic use of ⍺1-AR antagonists ameliorates lower respiratory tract infection-associated hyperinflammation and death, as observed in COVID-19.