COVID-19 en residencias de mayores: factores estructurales y experiencias que avalan un cambio de modelo en España

The effects of COVID-19 pandemic on older people living in care homes have been devastating. In Spain approximately 3% of the cases and 40% of the deaths have occurred in this group. In addition, due to measures taken to control the crisis, the incidence of geriatric syndromes has increased, and residents’ fundamental rights have been violated. In this article we describe structural factors of care homes and their relationship with public health services that have influenced the impact of the pandemic. We suggest different types of group homes, and models of provision/coordination with public health services that have given excellent results protecting nursing homes residents from COVID-19, as alternative models to conventional residences and to the regular provision of health care services. We recommend that these successful experiences are taken into account in the transformation of the social-health model (to one integrated and focused on people) that has begun to be implemented in some Autonomous Communities of Spain.     

Tocilizumab as treatment for COVID-19: A systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUNDThe majority of patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) have good prognoses, but some develop a critical illness that can lead to death. Evidence shows severe acute respiratory syndrome is closely related to the induced cytokine storm. Interleukin-6 is a key player; its role in systemic inflammation is well known.AIMTo evaluate the effect of tocilizumab (TCZ), an interleukin-6 receptor antagonist, on the outcomes for patients with COVID-19 pneumonia.METHODSPubMed, EMBASE, SCOPUS, Web of Science, MedRxiv, Science Direct, and the Cochrane Library were searched from inception to 9^th June 2020 for observational or prospective studies reporting results of hospitalized adult patients with COVID-19 infection treated with TCZ. Effect sizes were reported as odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs), and an OR less than 1 was associated with a better outcome in those treated with TCZ.RESULTSOverall 13476 patients (33 studies; n = 3264 received TCZ) with COVID-19 pneumonia and various degree of severity were included. Outcome was improved with TCZ. In the primary analysis (n = 19 studies reporting data), mortality was reduced in patients treated with TCZ (OR = 0.64, 95%CI: 0.47-0.87; P < 0.01). In 9 studies where risk of death with TCZ use was controlled for other variables mortality was reduced by 57% (OR = 0.43, 95%CI: 0.27-0.7; P < 0.01). Intensive care need (mechanical ventilation) was also reduced (OR = 0.36, 95%CI: 0.14-0.89; P = 0.02).CONCLUSIONIn COVID-19-infected patients treated with TCZ, outcome may be improved compared to those not treated with TCZ.     

Does having a seasonal influenza program facilitate pandemic preparedness? An analysis of vaccine deployment during the 2009 pandemic

BackgroundNational seasonal influenza programs have been recommended as a foundation for pandemic preparedness. During the 2009 pandemic, WHO aimed to increase Member States’ equitable access to influenza vaccines through pandemic vaccine donation.MethodsThis analysis explores whether the presence of a seasonal influenza program contributed to more rapid national submission of requirements to receive vaccine during the 2009 influenza pandemic. Data from 2009 influenza vaccine donation, deployment, and surveillance initiatives were collected during May-September 2018 from WHO archival material. Data about the presence of seasonal influenza vaccine programs prior to 2009 were gathered from the WHO-UNICEF Joint Reporting Form. Cox proportional hazards models were used to assess the relationship between presence of a seasonal influenza program and time to submission of a national deployment and vaccination plan and to vaccine delivery.FindingOf 97 countries eligible to receive WHO-donated vaccine, 83 (86%) submitted national deployment and vaccination plans and 77 (79%) received vaccine. Countries with a seasonal influenza vaccine program were more likely to submit a national deployment and vaccination plan (hazards ratio [HR] 2.1; 95% confidence interval [CI]. Countries with regulatory delays were less likely to receive vaccine than those without these delays (HR 0.4, 95% CI: 0.2–0.6).InterpretationDuring the 2009 pandemic, eligible countries with a seasonal influenza vaccine program were more ready to receive and use donated vaccines than those without a program. Our findings suggest that robust seasonal influenza vaccine programs increase national familiarity with the management of influenza vaccines and therefore enhance pandemic preparedness.FundingN/A.     

BCG vaccine may generate cross-reactive T cells against SARS-CoV-2: In silico analyses and a hypothesis

The world is facing the rising emergency of SARS-CoV-2. The outbreak of COVID-19 has caused a global public health and economic crisis. Recent epidemiological studies have shown that a possible association of BCG vaccination program with decreased COVID-19-related risks, suggesting that BCG may provide protection against COVID-19. Non-specific protection against viral infections is considered as a main mechanism of BCG and clinical trials to determine whether BCG vaccine can protect healthcare workers from the COVID-19 are currently underway. We hypothesized that BCG may carry similar T cell epitopes with SARS-CoV-2 and evaluated the hypothesis by utilizing publicly available database and computer algorithms predicting human leukocyte antigen (HLA) class I‐binding peptides. We found that BCG contains similar 9-amino acid sequences with SARS-CoV-2. These closely-related peptides had moderate to high binding affinity for multiple common HLA class I molecules, suggesting that cross-reactive T cells against SARS-CoV-2 could be generated by BCG vaccination.     

Evaluation of multivalent H2 influenza pandemic vaccines in mice

Subtype H2 Influenza A viruses were the cause of a severe pandemic in the winter of 1957. However, this subtype no longer circulates in humans and is no longer included in seasonal vaccines. As a result, individuals under 50 years of age are immunologically naïve. H2 viruses persist in aquatic birds, which were a contributing source for the 1957 pandemic, and have also been isolated from swine. Reintroduction of the H2 via zoonotic transmission has been identified as a pandemic risk, so pre-pandemic planning should include preparation and testing of vaccine candidates against this subtype. We evaluated the immunogenicity of two inactivated, whole virus influenza vaccines (IVV) in mice: a monovalent IVV containing human pandemic virus A/Singapore/1/1957 (H2N2), and a multivalent IVV containing human A/Singapore/1/1957, avian A/Duck/HongKong/319/1978 (H2N2), and swine A/Swine/Missouri/2124514/2006 (H2N3) viruses. While both vaccines induced protective immunity compared to naïve animals, the multivalent formulation was advantageous over the monovalent in terms of level and breadth of serological responses, neutralization of infectious virus, and reduction of clinical disease and respiratory tissue replication in mice. Therefore, multivalent pandemic H2 vaccines containing diverse viruses from animal reservoirs, are a potential option to improve the immune responses in a pre-pandemic scenario where antigenic identity cannot be predicted.     

The 2015 global production capacity of seasonal and pandemic influenza vaccine

A global shortage and inequitable access to influenza vaccines has been cause for concern for developing countries who face dire consequences in the event of a pandemic. The Global Action Plan for Influenza Vaccines (GAP) was launched in 2006 to increase global capacity for influenza vaccine production to address these concerns. It is widely recognized that well-developed infrastructure to produce seasonal influenza vaccines leads to increased capacity to produce pandemic influenza vaccines. This article summarizes the results of a survey administered to 44 manufacturers to assess their production capacity for seasonal influenza and pandemic influenza vaccine production. When the GAP was launched in 2006, global production capacity for seasonal and pandemic vaccines was estimated to be 500 million and 1.5 billion doses respectively. Since 2006 there has been a significant increase in capacity, with the 2013 survey estimating global capacity at 1.5 billion seasonal and 6.2 billion pandemic doses. Results of the current survey showed that global seasonal influenza vaccine production capacity has decreased since 2013 from 1.504 billion doses to 1.467 billion doses. However, notwithstanding the overall global decrease in seasonal vaccine capacity there were notable positive changes in the distribution of production capacity with increases noted in South East Asia (SEAR) and the Western Pacific (WPR) regions, albeit on a small scale. Despite a decrease in seasonal capacity, there has been a global increase of pandemic influenza vaccine production capacity from 6.2 billion doses in 2013 to 6.4 billion doses in 2015. This growth can be attributed to a shift towards more quadrivalent vaccine production and also to increased use of adjuvants. Pandemic influenza vaccine production capacity is at its highest recorded levels however challenges remain in maintaining this capacity and in ensuring access in the event of a pandemic to underserved regions.     

Adverse events following pandemic influenza A (H1N1) 2009 monovalent and seasonal influenza vaccinations during the 2009–2010 season in the active component U.S. military and civilians aged 17–44 years reported to the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System

BackgroundNo comparative review of Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) submissions following pandemic influenza A (H1N1) 2009 and seasonal influenza vaccinations during the pandemic season among U.S. military personnel has been published.MethodsWe compared military vs. civilian adverse event reporting rates. Adverse events (AEs) following vaccination were identified from VAERS for adults aged 17–44 years after pandemic (monovalent influenza [MIV], and seasonal (trivalent inactivated influenza [IIV3], live attenuated influenza [LAIV3]) vaccines. Military vaccination coverage was provided by the Department of Defense’s Defense Medical Surveillance System. Civilian vaccination coverage was estimated using data from the National 2009 H1N1 Flu Survey and the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System survey.ResultsVaccination coverage was more than four times higher for MIV and more than twenty times higher for LAIV3 in the military than in the civilian population. The reporting rate of serious AE reports following MIV in service personnel (1.19 per 100,000) was about half that reported by the civilian population (2.45 per 100,000). Conversely, the rate of serious AE reports following LAIV3 among service personnel (1.32 per 100,000) was more than twice that of the civilian population. Although fewer military AEs following MIV were reported overall, the rate of Guillain–Barré Syndrome (GBS) (4.01 per million) was four times greater than that in the civilian population. (1.04 per million).ConclusionsDespite higher vaccination coverage in service personnel, the rate of serious AEs following MIV was about half that in civilians. The rate of GBS reported following MIV was higher in the military.     

« Crown protection » ou velléités protectrices du Corona Covid-19 et ses rencontres improbables

The title of our paper could be receipted (intellectually receipted) like a paradox or like choking item. In real life of our hospital activity is not at all true because in both clinical situations the symptomatology of infectious disease was protected about a long psychotic or pseudo psychotic episode. The most important for the psychiatric stabilization was strictly observance and repetition of consultations who created a secure feel, necessarily for construction after psychodramatic real story Covid-19. Our clinical case shows the possibility of our patients to relativize the gravity of the pandemic and his impact. The modalities of psychotropic treatment are very important in this specific pathologic case and our presentation could give us new ideas in psychiatry and immunology about protection by ay antibiotherapy in pre- and post-operatory. Unlikely encounter with a disease that leads to an episode of madness and psychological care after a severe episode of Covid-19. Psychological support is upset by this disease, like the rest. The clinic returns to its original meaning: at the patient's bed to understand this new disease and its protective and/or revealing effects. Clinical presentation of an unlikely encounter in the context of the Covid-19 epidemic. Encounter with both a severe form of this new disease and psychopathological expression in intensive care and post-reanimation units. Psychological support in a patient suffering from a delusional episode and identity disorders related to Covid-19. Psychological support is disrupted by this disease, as is the rest. The clinic returns to its original meaning: in the patient's bed to understand this new disease and its protective and/or revealing effects. The singular and psychoanalytic listening allows the patient to understand the process of constructing his episode of delusional appearance, like dreamlike construction. Adaptation and creation of a clinic requiring to be as close as possible to the patient to allow the psychological restructuring having been disorganized in connection with the disease but also with the hospital and family environment, strongly impacted by anxiety.     

Stress Coping of Chinese International Students in Face of COVID 19 Pandemic: Cultural Characteristics

The purpose of this study was to investigate the stress and coping strategy of Chinese International Students (CISs) during the epidemic, and to explore the relationship between identification with Chinese cultural beliefs and coping strategies, positive experience, negative emotion and need for psychological support. Two hundred and thirty CISs participated in the study by filling out a series of questionnaires that we designed. The series of questionnaires contained six scales: Pandemic Related Stress (PRS), Identification with Chinese Cultural Beliefs (ICCB), Stress Coping Strategy (SCS), Positive Experience (PE) and Negative Emotion (NE) and Need for Psychological Support (NPS). The results showed that CISs experienced an above moderate level of direct and indirect pandemic related stress. To cope with the stress, participants valued active coping and making self-adjustment. The regression analysis shows ICCB could positively predict coping strategy and positive experience, and negatively predict negative emotions. ICCB is also positively related to the need for psychological support. That is to say, the identification with Chinese culture beliefs could help CISs use positive strategies to cope with the epidemic and more likely to have positive experience and reduce negative emotions. We believe that the cultural identity and cultural values of Chinese students studying abroad may have helped them to effectively choose their responses and strategies in the face of the serious challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.