scholarly journals COVID-19 in Continental America

2021 ◽  
Vol In Press (In Press) ◽  
Author(s):  
Leila Moradi

Background: In late December 2019, a coronavirus outbreak first occurred in Wuhan, China, and then spread worldwide, which became a major global emergency. This severe respiratory illness called coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is transmitted through respiratory droplets and contaminated surfaces. Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the epidemiology of COVID-19 in continental America. Methods: This study was an ecological study describing the epidemiological features of COVID-19 in the Americas. The data of identified definitive cases and deaths from this disease and other information were extracted from the reports of the World Health Organization and transferred to SPSS software (version 24). Furthermore, the case fatality rate was separately calculated for each country. Results: The highest number of COVID-19 reported cases and the highest COVID-19 mortality rate were in the United States, with 72,186,963 and 1,896,955 cases, respectively. Moreover, the highest case fatality rate was reported as 9.38% in Peru. Conclusions: The prevention of COVID-19 transmission in countries is possible with general vaccination and observation of social distancing. These measures reduce the transmission of COVID-19 and are effective ways to control this global health problem.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
William A. Barletta

AbstractBackgroundDuring 2021 several new variants of the SARS-CoV-2 virus appeared with both increased levels of transmissibility and virulence with respect to the original wild variant. The Delta (B.1.617.2) variation, first seen in India, dominates COVID-19 infections in several large countries including the United States and India. Most recently, the Lambda variant of interest with increased resistance to vaccines has spread through much of South America.ObjectiveThis research explores the degree to which new variants of concern 1) generate spikes and waves of fluctuations in the daily case fatality rates (CFR) across countries in several regions in the face of increasing levels of vaccination of national populations and 2) may increase the vulnerability of persons with certain comorbidities.MethodsThis study uses new, openly available, epidemiological statistics reported to the relevant national and international authorities for countries across the Americas, Europe, Africa, Asia and the Middle East. Daily CFRs and correlations of fatal COVID-19 infections with potential cofactors are computed for the first half of 2021 that has been dominated by the wide spread of several “variants of concern” as denoted by the World Health Organization.ResultsThe analysis yields a new quantitative measure of the temporal dynamics of mortality due to SARS-CoV-2 infections in the form of variations of a proxy case fatality rate compared on a country to-country basis in the same region. It also finds minimal variation of correlation between the cofactors based on WHO data and on the average apparent case fatality rate.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
William Barletta

BACKGROUND During 2021 several new variants of the SARS-CoV-2 virus appeared with both increased levels of transmissibility and virulence with respect to the original wild variant. The Delta (B.1.617.2) variation, first seen in India, dominates COVID-19 infections in several large countries including the United States and India. Most recently, the Lambda variant of interest with increased resistance to vaccines has spread through much of South America. OBJECTIVE This research explores the degree to which new variants of concern 1) generate spikes and waves of fluctuations in the daily case fatality rates (CFR) across countries in several regions in the face of increasing levels of vaccination of national populations and 2) may increase the vulnerability of persons with certain co-morbidities. METHODS This study uses new, openly available, epidemiological statistics reported to the relevant national and international authorities for countries across the Americas, Europe, Africa, Asia and the Middle East. Daily CFRs and correlations of fatal COVID-19 infections with potential co-factors are computed for the first half of 2021 that has been dominated by the wide spread of several “variants of concern” as denoted by the World Health Organization. RESULTS The analysis yields a new quantitative measure of the temporal dynamics of mortality due to SARS-CoV-2 infections in the form of variations of a proxy case fatality rate compared on a country to-country basis in the same region. It also finds minimal variation of correlation between the co-factors based on WHO data and on the average apparent case fatality rate. CONCLUSIONS The proxy for the daily case fatality rate computed over a smoothed distribution of deaths attributed to COVID-19 infections provides a useful metric to track the national dynamics of the spread of SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern overlaid with a country’s vaccination implementation program. The increases in daily proxy CFR in the US and Germany correspond in timing with the rapid spread of the Delta variant and support the characterization of Delta as being more virulent than the original wild strain of SARS-CoV-2. The new variants of concern lead to minimal quantitative differences with the conclusion of Ref. [2] that most commonly cited co-morbidities do not in and of themselves increase the risk of serious (and possibly fatal) consequences of SARS-CoV-2 infections.


2021 ◽  
Vol 33 (8) ◽  
pp. 1718-1722
Author(s):  
Alberto Boretti

This work summarizes the available evidence of the use of chloroquine/hydroxychloroquine (CQ/HCQ) in SARS-CoV-2 infection. Most of the published works indicate CQ/HCQ is likely effective against SARS-CoV-2 infection, almost 100% in prophylaxis and mild-medium severity cases and 60% in late infection cases. The percentage of positive works is larger if those works conducted under a probable conflict of interest are excluded from the list. Despite this overwhelming evidence from independent studies, the use of CQ/HCQ is currently limited or prevented in many western countries, based on a very singular examination of the science. The case of a work published in late May 2020, despite being openly defective and then retracted, prompted the World Health Organization (WHO) to ban the use of CQ/HCQ. This position has not yet rectified, thanks to the results of the not less questionable RECOVERY trial, where very sick patients were administered more than double the dose, over more than double the time, recommended for asymptomatic patients in current protocols of other countries, where CQ/HCQ are used for asymptomatic and mild but not severe pneumonia critically ill patients. While the case fatality rate does not depend only on therapies, it is finally shown based on the number of cases and fatalities per million and the case fatality rate as the western countries enforcing the ban on CQ/HCQ did not perform better, but much worse, than other countries, also because of therapies.


2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. e05-e05
Author(s):  
Khatereh Anbari ◽  
Seyyed Amir Yasin Ahmadi ◽  
Mitra Elmi

Introduction: One of the unusual aspects in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is changing case fatality rate (CFR) in different time series. Many researchers are trying to find the reasons of this variability. Objectives: This study aimed to present a model for a 30-day trend of CFR in any infectious disease epidemic using the example of COVID-19 in Iran. Patients and Methods: As a case study, we tried to use statistical mining of scientific databases. A descriptive approach with quantitative tools was conducted. The World Health Organization (WHO) database was used to access daily reports of CFR. Funnel plot and Z score were used to study and graph the trend. Results: During this period of time, a total of 20610 cases were confirmed based on real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Among them, 1556 individuals died. Therefore, CFR was calculated as 7.549% (95% confidence intervals 7.189%-7.910%). This frequency was considered as the pooled frequency. Daily CFR with 95% CI was compared with the pooled frequency. Conclusion: In our case, the epidemic was started from high CFR due to low number of cases and testing only highly suspicious individuals. Then, the CFR was reduced due to increased number of patients and improvement in screening. Finally, CFR went back to its moderate rate due to the addition of the death numbers related to the cases of previous days.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
WURI RATNA HIDAYANI

Kasus pneumonia misterius yang belum diketahui etiologinya dilaporkan pada akhir Desember 2019 di Tiongkok. Terjadi lonjakan kasus dalam waktu relative singkat pasien pneumonia berjumlah 44 pasien dan terus meningkat menjadi ribuan kasus. Kasus ini kemudian diidentifikasikan ke dalam kasus Novel Corona Virus Diseases 19 (COVID 19) (Perhimpunan Dokter Paru Indonesia, 2020). Menurut World Health Organization (WHO) menyatakan bahwa hasil diagnosis tes Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) negative dengan tanda klinis infeksi COVID 19 di Kazakhstan dikelompokkan ke dalam perhitungan total COVID 19, pernyataan ini disiarkan sejak tanggal 1 Agustus 2020 dengan laporan adanya kasus pneumonia dengan gejala klinis COVID 19 sebanyak 13.121 kasus dengan kematian sebanyak 152 kematian sehingga Case Fatality Rate (CFR) sebesar 1,16% (Xinshua, 2020). Pada Tahun 2015 di dunia kasus pneumonia mencapai 920.000 jiwa setiap tahunnya dengan arti bahwa ada 2 balita meninggal setiap menitnya. Menurut WHO (2017) menyatakan bahwa terdapat 25.481 kematian karena pernafasan akut atau 17% dari seluruh kematian dunia dan Indonesia merupakan peringkat 7 dunia pada kasus pneumonia (Newswire, 2019).


2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 713
Author(s):  
Evi Diliana Rospia ◽  
Dwi Kartika Cahyaningtyas ◽  
Desi Rofita ◽  
Cahaya Indah Lestari ◽  
Ni Wayan Ari Adi Putri ◽  
...  

ABSTRAKNovel coronavirus 2019 atau virus corona sindrom pernafasan akut parah yang disebut COVID-19. Gejala klinis utama yang muncul yaitu demam, batuk dan kesulitan bernapas. World Health Organization (WHO) melaporkan 11.84.226 kasus konfirmasi dengan 545.481 kematian di seluruh dunia (Case Fatality Rate/CFR 4,6%). Di Indonesia kasus meningkat dan menyebar dengan cepat, kasus pertama pada tanggal 2 Maret 2020, pada tanggal 9 Juli 2020 Kementerian Kesehatan melaporkan 70.736 kasus konfirmasi COVID-19 dengan 3.417 kasus meninggal (CFR 4,8%). Kegiatan vaksinasi masal ini bertujuan terbentuknya herd immunity (kekebalan kelompok) dan berkurangnya angka kematian akibat COVID-19 pada masyarakat. Kegiatan vaksinasi masal dilaksanakan di Universitas Muhammadiyah Mataram Kota Mataram Nusa Tenggara Barat, dan jenis vaksin yang digunakan pada kegiatan vaksinasi masal ini adalah Sinovac. Jumlah responden yang mengikuti kegiatan ini sebanyak 1.000 orang. Hasil pengabdian didapatkan jumlah yang melakukan vaksinasi sebanyak 1000 orang yang terdiri dari masyarakat umum dan karyawan Universitas Muhammadiyah Mataram. Kata kunci: vaksinasi; covid-19; komunitas; indonesia. ABSTRACTNovel coronavirus 2019 or severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus called COVID-19. The main symptoms that appear are fever, cough and difficulty breathing. The World Health Organization (WHO) reports 11,84,226 confirmed cases with 545,481 deaths worldwide (Case Fatality Rate/CFR 4.6%) In Indonesia cases are increasing and spreading rapidly, the first case on March 2, 2020, on July 9 2020 The Ministry of Health reported 70,736 confirmed cases of COVID-19 with 3,417 deaths (CFR 4.8%). This mass vaccination activity aims to form herd immunity and reduce the death rate due to COVID-19 in the community. The mass vaccination activity was carried out at the Muhammadiyah University of Mataram, and the type of vaccine used in this mass vaccination activity was Sinovac. The number of respondents who participated in this activity was 1,000 people. The results of the service found that the number of people who vaccinated was 1000 people consisting of the general public and employees of the Muhammadiyah University of Mataram. Keywords: vaccination; covid-19; community; indonesia. 


Author(s):  
Daniel Martin Simadibrata ◽  
Cleopas Martin Rumende ◽  
Rahmad Mulyadi ◽  
Marcellus Simadibrata

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is an emerging infectious disease officially declared as a pandemic on 11 March 2020 by the World Health Organization (WHO). Indonesia’s COVID-19 case fatality rate remain consistently high, approximately twice the global case fatality rate available. Patients typically present with fever, dry cough and dyspnea. However, there were reports of atypical COVID-19 symptoms such as myalgia, fatigue, diarrhea, nausea, and vomiting. These atypical presentations were suggested to indicate a more severe COVID-19. Here, we present a case of COVID-19 patient presenting with gastrointestinal-specific symptoms in Indonesia.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Suaad Ameen Moghalles ◽  
Basher Ahmed Aboasba ◽  
Mohammed Abdullah Alamad ◽  
Yousef Saleh Khader

BACKGROUND As a consequence of war and the collapse of the health system in Yemen, which prevented many people from accessing health facilities to obtain primary health care, vaccination coverage was affected, leading to a deadly diphtheria epidemic at the end of 2017. OBJECTIVE This study aimed to describe the epidemiology of diphtheria in Yemen and determine its incidence and case fatality rate. METHODS Data were obtained from the diphtheria surveillance program 2017-2018, using case definitions of the World Health Organization. A probable case was defined as a case involving a person having laryngitis, pharyngitis, or tonsillitis and an adherent membrane of the tonsils, pharynx, and/or nose. A confirmed case was defined as a probable case that was laboratory confirmed or linked epidemiologically to a laboratory-confirmed case. Data from the Central Statistical Organization was used to calculate the incidence per 100,000 population. A <i>P</i> value &lt;.05 was considered significant. RESULTS A total of 2243 cases were reported during the period between July 2017 and August 2018. About 49% (1090/2243, 48.6%) of the cases were males. About 44% (978/2243, 43.6%) of the cases involved children aged 5 to 15 years. Respiratory tract infection was the predominant symptom (2044/2243, 91.1%), followed by pseudomembrane (1822/2243, 81.2%). Based on the vaccination status, the percentages of partially vaccinated, vaccinated, unvaccinated, and unknown status patients were 6.6% (148/2243), 30.8% (690/2243), 48.6% (10902243), and 14.0% (315/2243), respectively. The overall incidence of diphtheria was 8 per 100,000 population. The highest incidence was among the age group &lt;15 years (11 per 100,000 population), and the lowest incidence was among the age group ≥15 years (5 per 100,000 population). The overall case fatality rate among all age groups was 5%, and it was higher (10%) in the age group &lt;5 years. Five governorates that were difficult to access (Raymah, Abyan, Sa'ada, Lahj, and Al Jawf) had a very high case fatality rate (22%). CONCLUSIONS Diphtheria affected a large number of people in Yemen in 2017-2018. The majority of patients were partially or not vaccinated. Children aged ≤15 years were more affected, with higher fatality among children aged &lt;5 years. Five governorates that were difficult to access had a case fatality rate twice that of the World Health Organization estimate (5%-10%). To control the diphtheria epidemic in Yemen, it is recommended to increase routine vaccination coverage and booster immunizations, increase public health awareness toward diphtheria, and strengthen the surveillance system for early detection and immediate response.


Author(s):  
Anamaria Ioana PAȘTIU ◽  
Vlad COCOSTÎRC ◽  
Carmen TURCU ◽  
Felix LUCACI ◽  
Dana Liana PUSTA

December 2019 was marked by the emergence of a novel human coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) in Wuhan, China, which causes a variety of symptoms, commonly known as COVID-19. The high contagiousness, rapid worldwide spread and case fatality rate have led to a sharp increase in number of infected persons and related deaths, which subsequently resulted in the recognition of the COVID-19 outbreak as a pandemic by the World Health Organization. SARS-CoV-2 is an ongoing challenge not only for the healthcare professional but also for the general population. The aim of this literature review is to summarize the currently available data on COVID-19 regarding the origins, pathogenesis and epidemiology.


Author(s):  
Ibrahim S. Baffa ◽  
Yahaya Mohammed ◽  
Rabi Usman ◽  
Aisha Abubakar ◽  
Patrick Nguku

ObjectiveWe reviewed measles specific Integretaged Disease Surveillance and Response (IDSR) data from Nigeria over a five-year period to highlights its burden and trends, and make recommendations for improvements.IntroductionMeasles is a vaccine preventable, highly transmissible viral infection that affects mostly under-five year children. The disease is caused by a Morbillivirus; member of the Paramyxovirus family.MethodsWe conducted a secondary data analysis of measles specific IDSR records of all States in Nigeria from January 2012 to September 2016. The record had reported measles cases with laboratory outcomes from all the States. IDSR weekly epidemiological data were obtained from Surveillance Unit, Nigerian Centre for Disease Control (NCDC).ResultsA total of 131,732 cases were recorded within the period. Highest number of cases 57,892(43.95%) were recorded in 2013 while the least number of cases 11,061(8.4%) were recorded in 2012. A total of 817 deaths were recorded, given a case fatality rate (CFR) of 0.62%. The CFR showed a decreasing trend over the years with the highest CFR (1.43%) recorded in 2012 and the least CFR (0.44%) recorded in 2016. Only 8,916 (6.7%) cases were confirmed by laboratory investigation. The Northwest region recorded the highest attack rate (AR) of 149.7 cases per 100,000 population, followed by the Northeast region with 140.2 cases per 100,000 population, while the South-south region recorded the least AR of 15.8 cases per 100,000 population. Case Fatality Rate per region followed similar pattern, with the Northcentral region having the highest CFR of 4.38%. The trend of measles cases followed the same pattern. Cases peaked at March, then gradually reduced to lowest level at June.ConclusionsMeasles infection remains a burden especially in the northern region of Nigeria. Though measles fatalities were on decline over the years, laboratory diagnosis of cases has been suboptimal. We recommended improvement on routine immunization and measles case management, and strengthening of regional laboratories capacity for measles diagnosis.References1. WHO | Measles. WHO [Internet]. World Health Organization; 2017 [cited 2017 Apr 10]; Available from: http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs286/en/2. Akande TM. A review of measles vaccine failure in developing countries. Niger. Med. Pract. SAME Ventures; 2007;52:112–6.3. Ibrahim BS, Gana GJ, Mohammed Y, Bajoga UA, Olufemi AA, Umar AS, et al. Outbreak of measles in Sokoto State North-Western Nigeria, three months after a supplementary immunization campaign: An investigation report 2016. Australas. Med. J. AUSTRALASIAN MEDICAL JOURNAL PTY LTD HILLARYS, GPO BOX 367, PERTH, WA 6923, AUSTRALIA; 2016;9:324–35. 


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document