Convalescent plasma therapy in patients with COVID-19

IntroductionPassive antibody therapy has been used to immunize vulnerable people against infectious agents. In this study, we aim to investigate the efficacy of convalescent plasma (CP) in the treatment of severe and critically ill patients diagnosed with COVID-19.MethodThe data of severe or critically ill COVID-19 patients who received anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibody-containing CP along with the antiviral treatment (n = 888) and an age-gender, comorbidity, and other COVID-19 treatments matched severe or critically ill COVID-19 patients at 1:1 ratio (n = 888) were analyzed retrospectively.ResultsDuration in the intensive care unit (ICU), the rate of mechanical ventilation (MV) support and vasopressor support were lower in CP group compared with the control group (p = 0.001, p = 0.02, p = 0.001, respectively). The case fatality rate (CFR) was 24.7 % in the CP group, and it was 27.7 % in the control group. Administration of CP 20 days after the COVID-19 diagnosis or COVID-19 related symptoms were associated with a higher rate of MV support compared with the first 3 interval groups (≤5 days, 6?10 days, 11?15 days) (p=0.001).ConclusionCP therapy seems to be effective for a better course of COVID-19 in severe and critically ill patients.     

Occurrence of a mosquito vector in bird houses: Developmental consequences and potential epidemiological implications

Even with continuous vector control, dengue is still a growing threat to public health in Southeast Asia. Main causes comprise difficulties in identifying productive breeding sites and inappropriate targeted chemical interventions. In this region, rural families keep live birds in backyards and dengue mosquitoes have been reported in containers in the cages. To focus on this particular breeding site, we examined the capacity of bird fecal matter (BFM) from the spotted dove, to support Aedes albopictus larval growth. The impact of BFM larval uptake on some adult fitness traits influencing vectorial capacity was also investigated. In serial bioassays involving a high and low larval density (HD and LD), BFM and larval standard food (LSF) affected differently larval development. At HD, development was longer in the BFM environment. There were no appreciable mortality differences between the two treatments, which resulted in similar pupation and adult emergence successes. BFM treatment produced a better gender balance. There were comparable levels of blood uptake and egg production in BFM and LSF females at LD; that was not the case for the HD one, which resulted in bigger adults. BFM and LSF females displayed equivalent lifespans; in males, this parameter was shorter in those derived from the BFM/LD treatment. Taken together these results suggest that bird defecations successfully support the development of Ae. albopictus. Due to their cryptic aspects, containers used to supply water to encaged birds may not have been targeted by chemical interventions.     

Magnetic and Tunable Sound Absorption Properties of an In-Situ Prepared Magnetorheological Foam

Conventional polyurethane foam has non-tunable sound absorption properties. Here, a magneto-induced foam, called magnetorheological (MR) foam, was fabricated with the feature of being able to tune sound absorption properties, primarily from the middle- to higher-frequency ranges. Three different samples of MR foams were fabricated in situ by varying the concentration of Carbonyl Iron Particles (CIPs) (0, 35, and 75 wt.%). The magnetization properties and tunable sound absorption characteristics were evaluated. From the magnetic saturation properties, the results showed very narrow and small coercivity of hysteresis loops relative to the soft magnetic properties of the CIPs. MR foam with 75 wt.% CIPs showed a higher magnetic saturation at 91.350 emu/g compared to MR foam with 35 wt.% CIPs at 63.896 emu/g. For tunable sound absorption testing, the effect of ‘shifting’ to higher frequency was also observed when the magnetic field was applied, which was ~10 Hz for MR foam with 35 wt.% CIPs and ~130 Hz for MR foam with 75 wt.% CIPs. As the latest evolution of semi-active noise control materials, the results from this study are valuable guidance for the advancement of MR-based devices.     

Indirect effects of cigarette butt waste on the dengue vector Aedes aegypti (Diptera: Culicidae)

Despite major insecticide-based vector control programs, dengue continues to be a major threat to public health in urban areas. The reasons for this failure include the emergence of insecticide resistance and the narrowing of the spectrum of efficient products. Cigarette butts (CBs), the most commonly discarded piece of waste, also represent a major health hazard to human and animal life. CBs are impregnated with thousands of chemical compounds, many of which are highly toxic and none of which has history of resistance in mosquitoes. This study was performed to examine whether exposure to CB alters various biological parameters of parents and their progeny. We examined whether the mosquito changes its ovipositional behaviors, egg hatching, reproductive capacity, longevity and fecundity in response to CB exposure at three different concentrations. Females tended to prefer microcosms containing CBs for egg deposition than those with water only. There were equivalent rates of eclosion success among larvae from eggs that matured in CB and water environments. We also observed decreased life span among adults that survived CB exposure. Extracts of CB waste have detrimental effects on the fecundity and longevity of its offspring, while being attractive to its gravid females. These results altogether indicate that CB waste indirectly affect key adult life traits of Aedes aegypti and could conceivably be developed as a novel dengue vector control strategy, referring to previously documented direct toxicity on the larval stage. But this will require further research on CB waste effects on non-target organisms including humans.     

Use of knee height for the estimation of stature in elderly Turkish people and their relationship with cardiometabolic risk factors

The determination of the approximately truest value in height measurement is important in many fields, but it is difficult to perform true measurements, especially in the elderly individuals. We planned to investigate the following items in geriatric Turkish population: to calculate the decrease in height with advancing age by using the standing height measurement and estimated height derived from the knee height; to evaluate the significance of difference between the two measurement methods in the calculation of body mass index (BMI) and waist/height ratio (WHtR); to determine the cut-off value of WHtR according to estimated height in elderly individuals. We studied 551 cases aged between 19 and 97 years. Knee height was measured using a sliding caliper in a sitting position. Linear regression analysis was carried out to derive predictive equations for the estimation of stature with adults (≤50 years of age) according to the gender. This equation was then used to estimate height among elderly subjects. Of the cases, 60.3% were <60 years (mean: 48.75 ± 7.50); 39.7% of the cases were >60 years (mean: 69.51 ± 7.12). Estimated BMI (EBMI) measurements in the females and males >60 years were in average 1.23 kg/m² and 0.92 kg/m² higher than their real BMIs, respectively. EBMI measurements in the females <60 years were 0.32 kg/m² higher than their real BMIs (p < 0.01). There is a statistically significant difference between WHtR in the females of both age groups, and in the males >60 years, as compared to our estimated WHtR (EWHtR) measurements (p < 0.01). The cut-off point of WHtR was 0.61 and 0.58 in the female and male cases of >60 years in our study, respectively. WHtR seemed to be a better anthropometric index that could predict most cardiometabolic risk factors in our study. EWHtR emerged to be a better cardiometabolic risk index especially in the elderly group.     

Central airway obstruction due to malignant fibrous histiocytoma metastasis in a case with Mounier-Kuhn syndrome

Malign fibrous histiocytoma is one of the most observed soft tissue sarcomas seen in the adults. The most common metastasis region is the lung and metastasis. Mounier-Kuhn syndrome is characterized by the highly dilatation of the trachea and bronchi. We may encounter with the major airway obstruction in the endoluminal or extraluminal lung and mediastinal masses or those with both components together. In this article, we would like to highlight the occurrence of a rare seen clinical situation secondary to the giant mediastinal malign fibrous histiocytoma metastasis and the clinical difficulties experienced in resolving of the main airway obstruction caused by the mass. Since the lack of the similar studies conducted previously, we found the case worth presenting.