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Front Med (Lausanne) 2022 4;9:863257. Epub 2022 May 4.

Department of Information Systems and Information Management, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany.

Background: After learning new skills, healthcare professionals do not always apply them in practice, despite being motivated. This may be referred to as an intention-behavior gap. One example is the positioning of immobilized and disabled patients in hospitals, nursing homes, or neurorehabilitation clinics. Read More

Prof Case Manag 2022 May-Jun 01;27(3):154-157

Nadine M. Carter, MBA, BSN, RN, CDMS, CCM, has acquired cumulative health care experience in the areas of case management, utilization management, transitional management, nursing leadership, and personnel performance. Nadine has 30 years of case management experience. Nadine's passion is evident in her work with the Case Management Societ of America (CMSA), where she has served as president and board member to CMSA NJ, various national committees, and currently serves on the CMSA Board in Georgia and is the Secretary of the CMSA and a member of the Editorial Review Board for the Professional Case Management Journal.

Vaccine 2022 04 15;40(18):2531-2534. Epub 2022 Mar 15.

Microbiology Department, Hospital Universitari Bellvitge, University of Barcelona-IDIBELL, L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, Spain; CIBER de Enfermedades Respiratorias (CIBERes), ISCIII, Madrid, Spain; Departament of Pathology and Experimental Therapeutics, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.

We describe an outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 (B.1.351) in a nursing home. Read More

Nurs Res 2022 Mar-Apr 01;71(2):104-110

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly affected healthcare institutions, introducing new challenges for nurse leaders and their colleagues. However, little is known about how the pandemic has specifically affected the lives of these leaders and what methods and strategies they are using to overcome pandemic-related challenges.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to examine the effect of the 2019 pandemic on emerging healthcare leaders and highlight methods and strategies they used to overcome pandemic-related challenges. Read More

Front Med (Lausanne) 2021 11;8:737999. Epub 2021 Nov 11.

Division of Chest Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Dalin Tzu Chi Hospital, Buddhist Tzu Chi Medical Foundation, Chiayi, Taiwan.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) lockdown strategies were associated with a significant decrease in the common respiratory viral diseases and decreased the need for hospitalization among children in the COVID-19 outbreak. However, the trend of non-COVID-19 pneumonia in adult people remains uncertain. Our aim is to assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the incidence of the non-COVID-19 pneumonia in adult people and understand whether the substantial decrease in pneumonia cases is the same as the decline in the incidence of respiratory viral disease activity. Read More

Niger J Clin Pract 2021 Nov;24(11):1706-1711

Department of Emergency Medicine, Fatih Sultan Mehmet Education and Research Hospital, Istanbul, Turkey.

Background: The aim of our study is to evaluate whether the CURB-65 or expanded-CURB-65 score can be used in healthcare-associated pneumonia (HCAP) and subgroups of HCAP patients at the same efficiency. Thirty and 90-day mortality rates of the patients and predictive values of CURB-65 and E-CURB-65 scores were compared.

Patients And Methods: This is a retrospective study of patients who presented to the Emergency Department between January 2015 and January 2016. Read More

JAMA 2021 Nov;326(17):1690-1702

School of Immunology and Microbial Sciences, Kings College London, London, England.

Importance: The evidence for benefit of convalescent plasma for critically ill patients with COVID-19 is inconclusive.

Objective: To determine whether convalescent plasma would improve outcomes for critically ill adults with COVID-19.

Design, Setting, And Participants: The ongoing Randomized, Embedded, Multifactorial, Adaptive Platform Trial for Community-Acquired Pneumonia (REMAP-CAP) enrolled and randomized 4763 adults with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 between March 9, 2020, and January 18, 2021, within at least 1 domain; 2011 critically ill adults were randomized to open-label interventions in the immunoglobulin domain at 129 sites in 4 countries. Read More

Ann Clin Microbiol Antimicrob 2021 Sep 25;20(1):69. Epub 2021 Sep 25.

Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Bryn Mawr Hospital, Main Line Health System, Bryn Mawr, PA, USA.

Background: Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 causes COVID-19 illness which can progress to severe pneumonia. Empiric antibacterials are often employed though frequency of bacterial coinfection superinfection is debated and concerns raised about selection of bacterial antimicrobial resistance. We evaluated sputum bacterial and fungal growth from 165 intubated COVID-19 pneumonia patients. Read More

Intensive Care Med 2021 10 16;47(10):1089-1103. Epub 2021 Aug 16.

Critical Illness Brain Dysfunction Survivorship Center, Nashville, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, 1211 Medical Center Drive, B-131 VUH, Nashville, TN, 37232-7610, USA.

Delirium is the most common manifestation of brain dysfunction in critically ill patients. In the intensive care unit (ICU), duration of delirium is independently predictive of excess death, length of stay, cost of care, and acquired dementia. There are numerous neurotransmitter/functional and/or injury-causing hypotheses rather than a unifying mechanism for delirium. Read More

Probl Sotsialnoi Gig Zdravookhranenniiai Istor Med 2021 Jun;29(Special Issue):708-712

Children's City Polyclinic No. 133 of the Moscow Department of Health.

The article presents the experience of the city children's polyclinic No. 133 of the Moscow Department of Health in a difficult epidemiological situation associated with a new infection COVID-19. A description of the stages of the organizational work of a polyclinic in a pandemic is given, including such areas as: a) conducting lectures and webinars for doctors and nurses of a medical organization, introducing recommended methods for diagnosing and treating COVID-19, creating and observing conditions for the personal safety of employees; b) the formation of tools and a database for analytical work; creation of registers of patients and employees of the polyclinic in order to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of work; characteristics of the structures of age-specific morbidity in children who have undergone a new coronavirus infection and community-acquired pneumonia with substantiated confirmation for them of compulsory dispensary observation and rehabilitation measures; description of the development of routing of healthy and sick children, operational identification and continuous analysis of difficulties in the work of the polyclinic during this period; c) the formation of distance technologies in treatment and prophylactic work with patients, organized group and individual exercise therapy classes, including respiratory rehabilitation gymnastics for children who have undergone a new coronavirus infection; development of an organizational algorithm for the formation of medical and nursing teams for visiting patients with COVID-19 at home and individual teams for visiting patients for patronage. Read More

Nurs Forum 2021 Oct 26;56(4):950-970. Epub 2021 Jul 26.

Department of Nursing Science, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.

Background: In the COVID-19 pandemic, many people experienced temporal boundedness in different ways (e.g., home, country, persons, and rules). Read More

Open Forum Infect Dis 2021 Jun 2;8(6):ofab169. Epub 2021 Apr 2.

Department of Pneumology, Hospital Clinic of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.

Background: Lymphopenia is a marker of poor prognosis in patients with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP), yet its impact on outcomes in patients with CAP and sepsis remains unknown. We aim to investigate the impact of lymphopenia on outcomes, risk of intensive care unit (ICU) admission, and mortality in CAP patients with sepsis.

Methods: This was a retrospective, observational study of prospectively collected data from an 800-bed tertiary teaching hospital (2005-2019). Read More

Sensors (Basel) 2021 May 13;21(10). Epub 2021 May 13.

Instituto Superior Técnico (IST), Av. Rovisco Pais n. 1, 1049-001 Lisboa, Portugal.

In 2019, a new virus, SARS-CoV-2, responsible for the COVID-19 disease, was discovered. Asymptomatic and mildly symptomatic patients were forced to quarantine and closely monitor their symptoms and vital signs, most of the time at home. This paper describes e-CoVig, a novel mHealth application, developed as an alternative to the current monitoring paradigm, where the patients are followed up by direct phone contact. Read More

Nihon Koshu Eisei Zasshi 2021 Aug 14;68(8):550-558. Epub 2021 May 14.

Tosu Public Health Center of Saga Prefectural Government.

Objectives　There is little evidence supporting the transmission of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) from presymptomatic or asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2-infected individuals in Japan, where the incidence of SARS-CoV-2 infection is lower than that in other developed countries. This study aimed to determine whether SARS-CoV-2 transmission can occur from presymptomatic or asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2-infected individuals.Methods　We surveyed all directors of Japanese public health centers for index cases and secondary patients who possibly contracted SARS-CoV-2 infection from a presymptomatic or asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2-infected individual who came under their care before June 20, 2020. Read More

AIDS Care 2022 05 28;34(5):663-669. Epub 2021 Mar 28.

Department of Family Medicine, McGill University Health Centre, Royal Victoria Hospital: Glen Site, Montreal, Canada.

People living with HIV (PLWH) often have worse health outcomes compared to HIV-uninfected individuals. We characterized PLWH followed at a tertiary care clinic in Montreal who acquired COVID-19 and described their outcomes during the first wave of the pandemic. A retrospective chart review was performed for PLWH followed at the Chronic Viral Illness Service with a positive COVID-19 nasopharyngeal PCR or symptoms suggestive of COVID-19 between 1 March and 15 June 2020. Read More

Arch Gerontol Geriatr 2021 Jul-Aug;95:104394. Epub 2021 Mar 15.

Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Ewha Womans University College of Medicine, Ewha Womans Seoul Hospital, Seoul, Republic of Korea. Electronic address:

Background: Due to population aging, the number of cases of pneumonia in nursing homes in South Korea has been increasing. This study investigated the characteristics and clinical outcomes in nursing home residents with pneumonia admitted to a tertiary hospital.

Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted of patients transferred to the tertiary hospital from nursing homes between August 2009 and October 2016. Read More

Pneumologe (Berl) 2021 16;18(3):174-181. Epub 2021 Mar 16.

Klinik für Pneumologie, Allergologie, Schlaf- und Intensivmedizin Petruskrankenhaus Wuppertal, Wuppertal, Deutschland.

Pneumonia is a common and severe disease in older people. In this group of patients pneumonia is among the four most frequent diseases leading to death. The diagnosis can often be difficult due to an atypical clinical presentation. Read More

Med J Malaysia 2021 03;76(2):258-260

International Islamic University of Malaysia, Department of Medicine, Pahang, Malaysia.

Acute ischaemic stroke is a debilitating disease and may lead to haemorrhagic transformation associated with few factors such as high National Institute of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS), low Modified Rankin Score (MRS), cardio-embolic clot and others.1 We report herein a 61 years old man whom presented with left sided weakness and diagnosed with acute right middle cerebral artery (MCA) infarction. Thrombolytic therapy was not offered due to low Alberta Stroke Program Early CT (ASPECT) score and hence managed conservatively. Read More

JPEN J Parenter Enteral Nutr 2021 08 6;45(6):1369-1375. Epub 2021 May 6.

Intestinal Failure Unit, Salford Royal Hospital, Salford, UK.

Background: The direct effect of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on patients with intestinal failure (IF) has not been described.

Methods: We conducted a nationwide study of UK IF centers to evaluate the infection rates, presentations, and outcomes in patients with types 2 and 3 IF.

Results: A total of 45 patients with IF contracted COVID-19 between March and August 2020; this included 26 of 2191 (1. Read More

J Am Geriatr Soc 2021 04 6;69(4):861-867. Epub 2021 Mar 6.

Hinda and Arthur Marcus Institute for Aging Research, Hebrew SeniorLife, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.

Objective: Describe a systematic approach to address advance care planning (ACP) during a COVID-19 outbreak and its impact on the incidence of new do-not-hospitalize (DNH) directives among long-term care (LTC) residents.

Design: Prospective quality improvement initiative.

Setting: Two long-term chronic care campuses within a large academic healthcare organization. Read More

Infect Dis Rep 2021 Jan 5;13(1):33-44. Epub 2021 Jan 5.

Internal Medicine Department, Coimbra Hospital and Universitary Centre, 3004-561 Coimbra, Portugal.

Purpose: Nursing home-acquired pneumonia (NHAP) patients are at higher risk of multi-drug resistant infection (MDR) than those with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP). Recent evidence suggests a single risk factor for MDR does not accurately predict the need for broad-spectrum antibiotics. The goal of this study was to compare the rate antibiotic failure between NHAP and CAP patients. Read More

Front Physiol 2020 3;11:594138. Epub 2020 Dec 3.

Department of Medicine, University of South Dakota Sanford School of Medicine, Sioux Falls, SD, United States.

Background: Alcoholic hepatitis (AH) is a unique syndrome characterized by high short-term mortality. The impact of the academic status of a hospital (urban and teaching) on outcomes in AH is unknown.

Methods: National Inpatient Sample dataset (2006-2014) on AH admissions stratified to academic center (AC) or non-academic center (NAC) and analyzed for in-hospital mortality (IHM), hospital resource use, length of stay in days (d), and total charges (TC) in United States dollars (USD). Read More

Int J Environ Res Public Health 2020 12 2;17(23). Epub 2020 Dec 2.

Department of Nursing, Faculty of Biomedical and Health Science, Universidad Europea de Madrid, 28670 Madrid, Spain.

On 11 March 2020 the SARS-CoV-2 virus was officially declared a pandemic and measures were set up in various countries to avoid its spread among the population. This paper aims to analyse the perception of risk of COVID-19 infection in the Spanish population. A cross-sectional, descriptive observational study was conducted with a total of 16,372 Spanish participants. Read More

Arch Phys Med Rehabil 2021 03 27;102(3):549-555. Epub 2020 Nov 27.

Progressive Rehabilitation Associates, Portland, Oregon.

Rehabilitation after significant acquired brain injury (ABI) to address complex independent activities of daily living and return to family and community life is offered primarily after initial hospitalization in outpatient day treatment, group home, skilled nursing, and residential settings and in the home and community of the person served. The coronavirus 2019 pandemic threatened access to care and the health and safety of staff, persons served, and families in these settings. This article describes steps taken to contain this threat by 7 leading posthospital ABI rehabilitation organizations. Read More

Can J Dent Hyg 2020 10 1;54(3):144-155. Epub 2020 Oct 1.

Professor emerita of clinical dentistry, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA; Director, National Center for Dental Hygiene Research and Practice.

Previous position papers have confirmed to varying degrees associations between periodontal microbes and respiratory tract infections such as nosocomial or hospital-acquired pneumonia (HAP), ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP), and chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPD). Causal relationships have not been confirmed and have been the source of much confusion for the medical and oral health professions.

Aim: To investigate whether sufficient evidence exists for a causal relationship between periodontal microbes and respiratory diseases, with a focus on HAP and VAP. Read More

BMJ Open 2020 11 11;10(11):e040573. Epub 2020 Nov 11.

Medical Assessment, CHU Grenoble Alpes, Grenoble, Rhône-Alpes, France.

Introduction: 30-day readmission rate is considered an adverse outcome reflecting suboptimal quality of care during index hospitalisation for community-acquired pneumonia (CAP). However, potentially avoidable readmission would be a more relevant metric than all-cause readmission for tracking quality of hospital care for CAP. The objectives of this study are (1) to estimate potentially avoidable 30-day readmission rate and (2) to develop a risk prediction model intended to identify potentially avoidable readmissions for CAP. Read More

Influenza Other Respir Viruses 2021 07 15;15(4):439-445. Epub 2020 Oct 15.

Cuyahoga County Board of Health, Parma, OH, USA.

Background: Clusters of COVID-19 cases amplify the pandemic and are critical targets for intervention, but comprehensive cluster-level data are not collected systematically by federal or most state public health entities. This analysis characterizes COVID-19 clusters among vulnerable populations housed in congregate living settings across an entire community and describes early mitigation efforts.

Methods: The Cuyahoga County Board of Health identified and interviewed COVID-19 cases and exposed contacts, assessing possible connections to congregate living facilities within its jurisdiction from March 7, 2020, to May 15, 2020, during the first phase of the pandemic, while state of Ohio stay-at-home orders were in effect. Read More

Women Birth 2021 Feb 23;34(1):e32-e37. Epub 2020 Sep 23.

Centre for Midwifery, Child and Family Health, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Faculty of Health, University of Technology Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Electronic address: https://www.twitter.com/vscarf.

Problem: The COVID-19 pandemic response has required planning for the safe provision of care. In Australia, privately practising midwives are an important group to consider as they often struggle for acceptance by the health system.

Background: There are around 200 Endorsed Midwives eligible to practice privately in Australia (privately practising midwives) who provide provide the full continuum of midwifery care. Read More

Prog Rehabil Med 2020 8;5:20200020. Epub 2020 Sep 8.

Department of Rehabilitation, Japanese Red Cross Ashikaga Hospital, Ashikaga, Japan.

Objective: To clarify the effect of early dysphagia rehabilitation, early rehabilitation was started within 2 days of admission by speech-language-hearing therapists in patients with severe aspiration pneumonia.

Methods: The subjects were inpatients with severe aspiration pneumonia (A-DROP≥3) admitted to our hospital between April 2014 and March 2019. We retrospectively investigated patient age, sex, A-DROP score, community-acquired or nursing- and healthcare-associated pneumonia, invasive and noninvasive ventilation, comorbidities, nutritional risk, admission from nursing home, discharge to nursing home, walking ability before admission and at discharge, Food Intake LEVEL Scale (FILS) score at the start of rehabilitation and at discharge, the achievement of oral intake, alternative nutrition in use at discharge, number of days from admission to the start of rehabilitation, and number of days from admission to oral intake. Read More