Background: The Respiratory Syncytial, Influenza and the SARS-CoV-2 viruses have a lot in common and are intertwined as leading causes of respiratory infections (flu) and flu-like infections in humans. The morbidity, mortality and disease burden posed by these diseases across the globe is humongous. The epidemiology, pathophysiology, clinical presentations and sequalae of these respiratory illnesses are also very similar and could be safely described as a spectrum of a disease process ‘syncytial respiratory disease’. There is justification in simultaneously studying, investigating and researching on these diseases given their close similarities and thin differences. Methods: This is a review of the literature on Case-Management for RSV, Influenza, COVID-19 and the role of Antiviral drugs. A comprehensive search of MEDLINE (from Jan 2019 to January 2021), EMBASE (from Jan 2019 to January 2021), Publics Ovidius Naso (Ovoid), Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials in Issue 1 of 12, January 2021 of the Cochrane Library was performed. Short-listing of titles and abstracts on the basis of their relevance to the review and subsequent data extraction were undertaken independently by two out of the four authors (TSI and PUI). Differences were resolved by mutual consensus. Results: The Respirtory Syncitial Virus (RSV), Influenza and SARS-CoV2 (COVID-19) virus were all examined in detail. The similarities and differences were x-rayed, including the mechanism of transmission, pathophysiology and pathogenesis of each. The methods of treatment especially susceptibility on antiviral agents were discussed. Conclusion: The similarity indices between RSV, Influenza and SARS-CoV2 are strong. Non-pharmaceutical and pharmaceutical measures are required for holistic cure and total eradication of these diseases. Effective and efficient antiviral agent(s) are needed for active management of these groups of viruses and science is challenged to this effect.
Although the HAART (Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy) a triple form of drugs has exponentially enhanced the CD4+ T immune cell count in HIV-1 infected patients and has improved the expectancy of many HIV-1 infected patients’ life. The drug results have also contributed to bringing the plasma virus load up to a clinically undetectable level in HIV-1 infected patients for several years. However, with these drug interventions, complete eradication or treatment of the virus is hard to achieve. The primary obstacle that has been raised is the persistence of ongoing viral replication inside the host CD4+ T immune cells. These infected immune cells can be transformed into the latent stage (transcriptionally silent) for many years and hardly be targeted by the current HAART-based interventions. Besides this incredible specialty of the HIV-1 virus, it can also simply hide in diverse anatomical reservoirs having immune cells at separated locations. The presence of these locations easily facilitates the virus to escape from the host immune surveillance and also contributes to low viral production in patients on antiretroviral therapy. As a result, we review our current knowledge to provide a better understanding of multifactorial mechanisms during the establishment of HIV-1 latency with numerous experimental studies that strongly uphold the ongoing viral replication and persistence at the distinct anatomical reservoirs.
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is caused by a novel coronavirus, Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). It has been declared as a pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO) on March 11, 2020. Due to the lack of complete understanding of SARS-CoV-2, the disease continues to accelerate at a fast pace affecting millions around the globe. But inspiringly, unanimous efforts by researchers globally, have led to repurposing of several antiviral drugs that have proven successful in saving millions of lives. This review sheds light upon SARS-CoV-2 viral pathogenesis and describes clinically favorable drugs currently being used in the treatment of infected patients. In addition, it gives a comprehensive insight of the current status of different types of vaccines under trial worldwide that might help us to tide over the pandemic.
In this paper, the Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) method is used to estimate the parameters of Logistic distribution, and this method is used to classify the credit risk levels of bank customers. OpenBUGS is bayesian analysis software based on MCMC method. This paper uses OpenBUGS software to give the bayesian estimation of the parameters of binomial logistic regression model and its corresponding confidence interval. The data used in this paper includes the values of 20 variables that may be related to the overdue credit of 1000 customers. First, the "Boruta" method is adopted to screen the quantitative indicators that have a significant impact on the overdue risk, and then the optimal segmentation method is used for subsection processing. Next, we filter three most useful qualitative variables. According to the WOE and IV value, and treated as one hot variable. Finally, 10 variables were selected, and OpenBU-GS has been used to estimate the parameters of all variables. We can draw the following conclusions from the results: customer’s credit history and existing state of the checking account have the greatest impact on a customer's delinquent risk, the bank should pay more attention to these two aspects when evaluating the risk level of the customer.
Three billion individuals worldwide are currently confined to fight the COVID-19 pandemic. In this context, since physical examinations are less present. Teleconsultation is the delivery of health care services using the phone, information or communication technology. In the current pandemic scenario, teleconsultation can supplement health-care delivery in the absence of in-person visit. Our study aimed to assess the efficiency and security of teleconsultation with only a smartphone to manage the flow of pediatric emergencies in Morocco. This prospective observational cohort study was conducted on the first 500 patients, who received a teleconsultation by contacting pediatricians by smartphone, using audio, videos or photos, during two months April and May 2020, the patients were calling from all Morocco. The average of age was 2 years and 4 months with extremes ranging from 4 days to 15 years. Gender: male-60.7% and female-39.3%. The communication type was written message-100%; Photos-15%; Voice mail-8%. Our attitude was give as Prescription-69%; Tips-43%; Specialist advice-15%; Emergencies-6%; Diet- 5%; Balance-5%; Consultation-4%; Radiological assessment-3%; Family treatment-1%. This study is the first to assess the utility of emergency pediatric teleconsultation with a simple smartphone application to manage emergency in a population with suddenly restrained access to pediatricians. This approach permitted us to preserve social distancing.
Objective: To improve the timeliness for the early COVID-19 infection diagnosis, it is essential to develop a decision- making tool to assist early diagnosis of COVID-19 patients in fever clinics. Materials and methods: This paper aims at extracting risk factors from clinical data of 912 early COVID-19 infected patients and utilizing four types of traditional machine learning approaches including Logistic Regression (LR), Support Vector Machine (SVM), Decision Tree (DT), Random Forest (RF) and a deep learning-based method for diagnosis of early COVID-19. Results: The results show that the LR predictive model presents a higher specificity rate of 0.95, an Area Under the receiver operating Curve (AUC) of 0.971 and an improved sensitivity rate of 0.82, which makes it optimal for the screening of early COVID-19 infection. We also perform the verification for generality of the best model (LR predictive model) among Zhejiang population, and analyse the contribution of the factors to the predictive models. Discussions: Under the background of COVID-19 pandemic, the early diagnosis of COVID-19 still face severe challenges, a decision-making tool assisting early diagnosis of COVID-19 patients is vital for fever clinics. Conclusions: Our manuscript describes and highlights the ability of machine learning methods for improving the accuracy and timeliness of early COVID-19 infection diagnosis. The higher AUC of our LR-base predictive model makes it a more conducive method for assisting COVID-19 diagnosis. The optimal model has been encapsulated as a mobile application (APP) and implemented in some hospitals in Zhejiang Province.
The magnitudes of Anti-Retroviral Treatment (ART) failure for adult people living with HIV (PLWH) were exhaustively studied; however, time to treatment failure among seropositive children was overlooked, and this study aimed to assess time to first-Line Antiretroviral treatment Failure for seropositive children. Methods: Facility-based retrospective follow-up study was conducted since 1 January 2016-30 December 2020. EPI- DATA version 3.2 and STATA/14 software were used for data entry and analysis, respectively. Proportional hazard assumption was checked for each variable and no variable was found with Schoenfeld residual test <0.05. Categorical variables at bi-variables Cox regression were assessed for candidates transferred at P-value <0.25 for multivariable Cox regression to claiming predictors associated for TB incidence rate at 95% CI at P<0.005. Results: A total of 710 recorded of ART files were reviewed with 96 children (13.5%) (95% CI: 11.2, 16.3) had developed treatment failures. The overall incidence rate of treatment failure was found 4.098 (95% CI: 3.35 to 5.02) per 1000 Person Month. Children being orphaned (AHR: 4.3, 95% CI: 2.17, 7.7), WHO stage III and IV (AHR: 3.5, 95% CI: 1.8, 7.4), Poor ART adherence 3.27 (AHR:3.27, 95% CI:1.54, 4.8), ART follow-up duration ≥ 72 months (AHR: 2.28, 95% CI: 1.2, 5.2), Missed CPT 6.7 (AHR-6.7; 95% CI: 3.6, 8.4), AZT-3TC-NVP 6.5 (AHR=6.5; 95% CI: 3.2, 18.2), AZT-3TC-EFV 2.9 (AHR=2.89, 95% CI: 2.89, 10.1) were associated with treatment failures. Conclusion: Sixty-two percent of treatment failures were occurred after 72 months of ART follow up with a higher incidence of treatment failures, which is unacceptable as compared with slandered reference <10%. Being a seropositive child ≥ 70 month on ART, WHO stage III and IV, ART regiment (AZT-3TC-NVP and AZT-3TC-EFV), Poor ART adherence, missing CPT, and orphanages were associated with treatment failure.
Background: Hepatitis is an inflammation of the liver, can be self-limiting or progress to fibrosis, cirrhosis, or hepatocellular carcinoma, HB occurs as a result of parenteral contact with infected body fluids, could be vertical from mother to baby or horizontal. Aim of the study: To assess the effectiveness of HB vaccine alone versus HBIG combined with HB vaccine in the interruption of neonatal HB viral infection. Methods: A Non-randomized clinical trial was conducted, 228 subjects distributed into two groups, the control group: newborns of mothers with inactive HBV infection were given HBIG and HB vaccine and, the intervention group: Newborns of mothers with inactive HBV infection were given HB vaccine alone. Results: showed that the two immunization regimens were effective in preventing HB vertical infection, GMT of the infants who vaccinated with HB vaccine alone (207.64 IU/L) higher than the infants who vaccinated with HB vaccine combined with HBIG (180.87 IU/L), the overall non-protective rate was 6.6% (15/228), (7.89%) among the control group compared to (5.26%) among the intervention group, RR 2.63, HBV incidence rate was zero. Conclusion: HB vaccine alone completely prevents HBV vertical infection and it`s not inferior to HB vaccine combined with HBIG.
Viral vaccine is generally used to boost the immunity system and prevent life threatening disease. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the institute of medicine there are risk to the vaccines but are overweight by its benefits’ vaccine can be monovalent (single strain of single antigen) or polyvalent (two or more strain/serotypes of same antigen).
The Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) is a worldwide public health problem that emerged in the late Twentieth century, early 1980s and had its first manifestations in 1981 in the cities of New York and San Francisco in the United States of America and in France, with clinical, psychic and social characteristics capable of delimiting boundaries in terms of human relations, decimating millions of people and leaving many others living in the shadow of stigma and discrimination [1,2]. Since the beginning of its discovery, a cure has been sought, although not yet found, studies continue, while work has been doing to reduce its spread as much as possible
Despite advances in the understanding of its pathophysiology and clinical manifestations, COVID-19 continues to be an emerging disease with a wide clinical spectrum yet to be fully elucidated which is variable and ranges from asymptomatic infection to critical illness usually characterized by an acute respiratory distress syndrome resulting in hypoxic respiratory failure [1]. Yet, the fact that a high proportion of confirmed cases might not meet case definitions of either WHO or CDC can represent a challenge in the clinical setting when treating patients with a diverse arrange of symptoms and a positive COVID-19 test [2]. Neisseria meningitidis is a Gram-negative diplococcus identified to be the causative organism of meningococcal meningitis and is found in the human nasopharynx. Out of the 13 recognized serotypes 6 have been found to be pathogenic. Transmission of this pathogen occurs via droplets within approximately 1m and invasive disease among close and household contacts has been well established
Objective: To observe changes in sperm parameters after 72 days of infection by COVID-19. Methods: A total of 100 patients had been enrolled in the study by a criteria suggesting good semen analysis. Two sets of semen analysis done, the first after 72 days of first positive swab for COVID-19 to show changes in the cycle of spermatogenesis during infection, the other sample after 72 days from the first to compare it with the first sample. Results: A total number 100 patients first sample show 2% of patient’s oligospermia, 36% of patient’s teratospermia. The second sample shows 4% of patients’ teratospermia. by comparing the two samples there is a significant increase in sperm concentration also a significant increase in motility (A+B), a highly significant increase in the normal forms of sperms. Conclusion: COVID-19 affects spermatogenesis in the form of reversible teratospermia, reversible decrease sperm count but within normal level, reversible decrease in the sperm motility but also within normal level.
Background: The clinical spectrum of COVID-19 disease includes asymptomatic infection, mild upper respiratory tract illness, and severe viral pneumonia with respiratory failure. The level of illness is associated with various individual factors. Therefore, this study aimed to assess factors that are associated with the development of symptoms among COVID-19 positive cases in a selected isolation and treatment center in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Method: The study was conducted at Eka Kotebe General Hospital, COVID-19 Isolation and Treatment Center, Addis Ababa from May 11-24, 2020. All participants admitted to the center during the study period, 347 confirmed COVID-19 positive cases, were enrolled in the study. The dependent variable was having sign or symptom for COVID-19. Association of age, gender, Body Mass Index (BMI), blood type, comorbidities and history of travel with the presence of sign or symptoms was assessed. A logistic regression analysis was conducted to assess the associations after adjusting for selected covariates. Significant level for all variables was reported at 95% Confidence Interval. Results: A total of 347 laboratory confirmed positive COVID-19 cases (mean age 33.9 ± 13.5) were included in the analysis. The large proportion (66%) of the study participants were males. Overall, 24% of the participants admitted to the hospital had at least one sign or symptom for COVID-19. Cough, headache, fever, sore throat and muscle ache were the most reported signs and symptoms. Cancer and HIV/AIDS were the leading comorbidities that the study participants reported. After adjusting for important covariates, gender, blood type, comorbidity and travel history were found to be significantly associated with having sign or symptom while being COVID-19 positive. However, age, BMI and income had no association with being symptomatic following the contraction of the COVID-19 infection. Conclusion: Gender, blood group, comorbidities, travel history were found to be significantly associated with being symptomatic while having COVID-19 disease in Ethiopia. Age and BMI had no associations with developing COVID-19 sign or symptom. Closer monitoring and intensified prevention strategies to protect those who are highly likely to develop symptoms may help efficient use of scarce resources in the control of the pandemic. We recommend further study to elaborate on the cause of association and to advance the knowledge base available.
Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is integral to the US End of AIDS strategy. However, low adherence, high costs, frequent testing and monitoring side effects make delivery of PrEP complicated. Gilead has sponsored PrEP-related research efforts and access as part of its marketing efforts. We review potential conflict of interests (COI) in the scientific literature for the US PrEP related articles to understand the impact of Gilead’s corporate sponsorship.We identified 93 US PrEP articles published in the top 10 medical journals and top 10 HIV/AIDS journals in 2018. There were 289 first three and senior authors in these articles, of which, 34 (11%) declared a Gilead COI and 28 (10%) had undeclared Gilead COI. Only 10 authors accounted for 50% of the articles, with 70% of them having potential COI including receiving grants, fees and study drugs. The 93 articles were associated with 51 leading institutions (institution of three or more authors or participating institutions in a trial). Authors from 12 (24%) institutions declared an institutional Gilead COI and 22 (45%) institutions had undeclared Gilead support. Overall, of the 93 included articles, 30 (32%) had declared Gilead COI. Combining declared and undeclared COIs for authors and institutions provided an overall 83 (89%) articles with a potential Gilead COI. Of the 93 articles, 60 (71%) had favorable conclusions in 60 (71%). Declared Gilead support was significantly associated with favorable article conclusions (p<.05) but combined declared/undeclared author and/or institutional Gilead support was not associated with favorable conclusion. Nearly 90% of US PrEP articles had Gilead support and authors failed to report individual or institutional COI in 70% of articles. Direct corporate support is important for scientific research. However, Gilead’s marketing push for PrEP, undeclared COI, and potential influence of Gilead supported authors are of concern given the potential impact on the scientific discourse and the US HIV control strategy.
This prospectus, gives an account on five, highly epidemiologically significant, virus members of the family Retroviridae and the ailments they cause. These are the human (HIV-1 and HIV-2) and three animal retroviral diseases of veterinary importance viz. the Enzootic Bovine Leucosis Virus (EBLV); the Caprine Arthritis-Encephalitis Virus (CAEV) and the Equine Infectious Anemia Virus (EIAV). This is expected to give a dimension that can aid field veterinarians, especially in developing countries, to help in differential clinical diagnosis, between diseases that may have similar clinical picture to retrovirus infections in animals. This article also gives enlightenment on the history, classification, properties, ecology and the interesting peculiarities of the family Retroviridae.
In Pakistan, there is no screening for active or latent Tuberculosis in the health care system. This study serves to measure the prevalence of Latent tuberculosis infection in District Sargodha, Pakistan and evaluate possible clinical implications and treatment strategies for latent tuberculosis. This study also finds out the risk factors of Latent tuberculosis infection in District Sargodha. A structured questionnaire, administered in the supervision of research committee, Department of Zoology, The University of Lahore, Sargodha Campus, included information on latent tuberculosis infection, social contact, BCG, skin reaction, drugs, HIV, immune response, kidney, diabetes, food, intestinal, night sweats, fatigue, weight loss, chest pain, fever, breath, drug addiction, appetite, aneroxia, tenderness, spinal problems, use of allopathic and homeopathic medication, rash, partsia, sneezing and isoniozed, Interviews were conducted in private counseling rooms and the questionnaire were filled face to face with no correctional officer present to assure privacy and reduce perceived coercion. Results show that 67% of interviewers agreed that as a result of tuberculosis they face symptoms of TBI. 70% of patients of tuberculosis had experienced different allergies and reactions. 66% respondents agreed that they think that BCG can be the cause of Tuberculosis. Keeping in view the symptoms of contact almost 67% were respondents agreed with it that they think in the present research 64% agreed with it while 34% people thought that drugs cannot be the reason of Tuberculosis. Another important reason of different diseases ‘HIV/AIDS’ was also one of the parameter of the present study. 68% HIV/AIDS is the reason of Tuberculosis. Disturbance in the immune system can also give birth to a number of diseases. In case of tuberculosis 72% disturbance in immune system may be the cause of tuberculosis. 67% disturbance in kidney can be the cause of tuberculosis. The data suggests that people who have more contact with tuberculosis patients are at a high danger of building up this disease.
Novel coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) is a worldwide spreading pandemic respiratory disease caused by a positive single strand (RNA) virus. The efforts for preventing COVID-19 pandemic remain fruitless and ineffective. So this study aims to assess Seroprevalence, Knowledge and Practice of COVID-19 prevention among quarantined individual in North West Ethiopia. Methods: Institutional-based survey was conducted on COVID-19 suspected quarantined individuals from 21 April-30 December 2020. The collected data were edited and enter into EPI-DATA 3.1 version, then export to STATA/R-14 (SE) software for analysis. Results: Of 4233 quarantined individuals who received the SARS-CoV-2 IgG antibody test, 4230/99.78% were interviewed with a 99.82% response rate. The overall seroprevalence of COVID-19 symptom suspected quarantined individuals in North West Ethiopia was found 5.11, 95% CI (4.4-5.87). The overall knowledge and practice of prevention towards COVID-19 infection on isolated individuals were found 86.17 %( 95%CI: 85.1-87.2), and 62.82%; 95% CI: 60.75-63.8). Conclusion: The sero-prevalence of the quarantined population was high as compared with previously reported. The majority of the respondents know how to prevent themselves from the COVID-19, but changing this prevention knowledge into the practice of tackling was great gap.
