bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Reduced dengue incidence following deployments of Wolbachia-infected Aedes aegypti in Yogyakarta, Indonesia: a quasi-experimental trial using controlled interrupted time series analysis
Authors: Indriani Citra , Tantowijoyo Warsito , Rancès Edwige , Andari Bekti , Prabowo Equatori , Yusdi Dedik , Ansari Muhammad Ridwan , Wardhana Dwi Satria , Supriyati Endah , Nurhayati Indah , Ernesia Inggrid , Setyawan Sigit , Fitriana Iva , Arguni Eggi , Amelia Yudiria , Ahmad Riris Andono , Jewell Nicholas P. , Dufault Suzanne M. , Ryan Peter A. , Green Benjamin R. , McAdam Thomas F. , O’Neill Scott L. , Tanamas Stephanie K. , Simmons Cameron P. , Anders Katherine L. , Utarini Adi 
Published: March 2020

AbstractBackgroundAe. aegypti mosquitoes stably transfected with the intracellular bacterium Wolbachia pipientis (wMel strain) have been deployed for the biocontrol of dengue and related arboviral diseases in multiple countries. Field releases in northern Australia have previously demonstrated near elimination of local dengue transmission from Wolbachia-treated communities, and pilot studies in Indonesia have demonstrated the feasibility and acceptability of the method. We conducted a quasi-experimental trial to evaluate the impact of scaled Wolbachia releases on dengue incidence in an endemic setting in Indonesia.Methods and findingsIn Yogyakarta City, Indonesia, following an extensive community engagement campaign, wMel Wolbachia-carrying mosquitoes were released every two weeks for 13–15 release rounds over seven months in 2016–17, in a contiguous 5 km2 area (population 65,000). A 3 km2 area (population 34,000) on the opposite side of the city was selected a priori as an untreated control area, on the basis of comparable socio-demographic characteristics and historical dengue incidence. Passive surveillance data on notified hospitalised dengue patients was used to evaluate the epidemiological impact of Wolbachia deployments, using controlled interrupted time series analysis. Rapid and sustained introgression of wMel Wolbachia into local Ae. aegypti populations was achieved. Thirty-four dengue cases were notified from the intervention area and 53 from the control area (incidence 26 vs 79 per 100,000 person-years) during the 24 months after Wolbachia was deployed. This corresponded in the regression model to a 73% reduction in dengue incidence (95% confidence interval 49%,86%) associated with the Wolbachia intervention. Exploratory analysis including an additional 6 months of post-intervention observations showed a small strengthening of this effect (30 vs 115 per 100,000 person-years; 76% reduction in incidence, 95%CI 60%,86%).ConclusionsThese findings demonstrate a significant reduction in dengue incidence following successful introgression of Wolbachia into local Ae. aegypti populations in an endemic setting in Indonesia. These results are consistent with previous field trials in northern Australia, and support the effectiveness of this novel approach for the control of dengue and other Aedes-borne diseases.
Association between Prolonged Intermittent Renal Replacement Therapy and All-Cause Mortality in COVID-19 Patients Undergoing Invasive Mechanical Ventilation: a Retrospective Cohort Study
Authors: Yang Yi , Shi Jia , Ge Shuwang , Guo Shuiming , Xing Xue , Wang Yanan , Cheng Anying , Liu Qingquan , Li Junhua , Ning Yong , He Fan , Xu Gang 
Published: March 2020

AbstractBackgroundFor the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), critically ill patients had a high mortality rate. We aimed to assess the association between prolonged intermittent renal replacement therapy (PIRRT) and mortality in patients with COVID-19 undergoing invasive mechanical ventilation.MethodsIn this retrospective cohort study, we included all patients with COVID-19 undergoing invasive mechanical ventilation from February 12nd to March 2nd, 2020. All patients were followed until death or March 28th, and all survivors were followed for at least 30 days.ResultsFor 36 hospitalized COVID-19 patients with invasive mechanical ventilation, the mean age was 69.4 (± 10.8) years, and 30 patients (83.3%) were men. Twenty-two (61.1%) patients received PIRRT (PIRRT group) and 14 cases (38.9%) were managed with conventional strategy (non-PIRRT group). There were no differences in age, sex, comorbidities, complications, treatments and most of the laboratory findings. During median follow-up period of 9.5 (interquartile range 4.3-33.5) days, 13 of 22 (59.1%) patients in the PIRRT group and 11 of 14 (78.6%) patients in the non-PIRRT group died. Kaplan-Meier analysis demonstrated prolonged survival in patients in the PIRRT group compared with that in the non-PIRRT group (P = 0.042). The association between PIRRT and a reduced risk of mortality remained significant in three different models, with adjusted hazard ratios varying from 0.332 to 0.398. Higher levels of IL-2 receptor, TNF-α, procalcitonin, prothrombin time, and NT-proBNP were significantly associated with an increased risk of mortality in patients with PIRRT.ConclusionPIRRT may be beneficial for the treatment of COVID-19 patients with invasive mechanical ventilation. Further prospective multicenter studies with larger sample sizes are required.
Transmissibility of 2019 Novel Coronavirus: zoonotic vs. human to human transmission, China, 2019-2020
Authors: Mizumoto Kenji , Kagaya Katsushi , Chowell Gerardo 
Published: March 2020

AbstractObjectivesThe novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) originating from Wuhan has rapidly spread throughout China. While the origin of the outbreak remains uncertain, accumulating evidence links a wet market in Wuhan for the early spread of 2019-nCoV. Similarly, the influence of the marketplace on the early transmission dynamics is yet to be investigated.MethodsUsing the daily series of 2019-nCov incidenceincluding contact history with the market, we have conducted quantitative modeling analyses to estimate the reproduction numbers (R) for the market-to-human and human-to-human transmission together with the reporting probability and the early effects of public health interventions.ResultsOur mean R estimates for China in 2019-2020 are estimated at 0.37 (95%CrI: 0.02-1.78) for market-to-human transmission, and 3.87 (95%CrI: 3.18-4.78) for human-to-human transmission, respectively. Moreover we estimated that the reporting rate cases stemming from market-to-human transmission was 3-31 fold higher than that for cases stemming from human-to-human transmission, suggesting that contact history with the wet market played a key role in identifying 2019-nCov cases.ConclusionsOur findings suggest that the proportions of asymptomatic and subclinical patients constitute a substantial component of the epidemic’s magnitude. Findings suggest that the development of rapid diagnostic tests could help bring the epidemic more rapidly under control.
Emerging high-level ciprofloxacin-resistant Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi haplotype H58 in travelers returning from India to the Republic of Korea
Authors: Shin Eunkyung , Park Ae Kyung , Park Jungsun , Kim Soojin , Jeong Hyun Ju , Na Kyoungin , Lee Hyerim , Chun Jeong-hoon , Hwang Kyu Jam , Kim Chul-Joong , Kim Junyoung 
Published: March 2020

AbstractIn Korea, typhoid fever is a rare disease due to improved living standards. However, this disease remains a major burden in developing countries and regions, such as India and Southeast Asia, In this study, we isolated Salmonella Typhi (S. Typhi) from eight typhoid patients, travelers returning from India. Isolated strains characterized with antimicrobial susceptibility profile and whole genome sequencing (WGS) analysis.All strains were resistant to nalidixic acid and azithromycin. Among them, four isolates were highly resistant to ciprofloxacin (MIC ≥32 μg/ml) and never confirmed in Korea PulseNet DB. On the basis of the WGS, we found that the ciprofloxacin-resistant strain belonged to global dominant multi-drug resistant (MDR) genotype, haplotype H58 (SNP glpA C1047T, SptP protein Q185* (premature stop codon)) not harbour MDR plasmid. They have H58-associated SNPs in membranes and metabolism genes, including yhdA, yajI, hyaE, tryE, rlpB and metH. Also, Phylogenetic analysis showed that H58 strains were assigned sublineage II, and the non-H58 strains were closely related to haplotype H50.High-level ciprofloxacin-resistant S. Typhi haplotype H58 in Korea was first confirmed as influx from overseas by travelers. This study provides information about intercontinental drug-resistant transmission between countries and suggests that travelers need to be careful about personal hygiene.Author summaryTyphoid fever is a systemic human disease including gastroenteritis, fever, and severe diarrhea, caused by Salmonella enterica serotype typhi (S. Typhi), and requires prompt antibiotic treatment. Due to improved living standards, it has become a rare disease but still prevalent in developing countries such as India and Southeast Asia. Most of the reported case were related with travelers or immigrants from these regions. There is global health problem that emergence of antimicrobial resistant strain associated with fluoroquinolones and third-generation cephalosporins because of leading to treatment failure, serious morbidity, and as well as economic loss. Of antimicrobial resistant S. Typhi, haplotype H58 is a dominant multi-drug resistant lineage and has reported in endemic region over past two decades. We identified fluoroquinolones resistance in S. Typhi infected after travel to India. Among them, some strains highly resistant to ciprofloxacin were confirmed to have characteristics of haplotype H58. In Korea, S. Typhi haplotype H58 from traveller has not been confirmed before. This study provides information about intercontinental drug-resistant transmission between countries and suggests that travelers need to be careful about personal hygiene.
Endemic hepatitis B virus (HBV) among hospital in-patients in Bangladesh, including evidence of occult infection
Authors: Chowdhury Fazle Rabbi , McNaughton Anna L , Amin Mohammad Robed , Barai Lovely , Saha Mili Rani , Rahman Tanjila , Das Bikash Chandra , Hasan M Rokibul , Shahidul Islam K M , Faiz M A , Al-Mahtab Mamun , Mokaya Jolynne , Kronsteiner Barbara , Jeffery Katie , Andersson Monique I , de Cesare Mariateresa , Ansari M Azim , Dunachie Susanna , Matthews Philippa C 
Published: March 2020

ABSTRACTBangladesh is one of the world’s top ten burdened countries for viral hepatitis. We investigated an adult fever cohort (n=201) recruited in Dhaka, to determine the prevalence of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection and to identify cases of occult hepatitis B infection (OBI). HBV exposure (anti-HBc) was documented in 72/201 (36%), and active HBV infection in 16/201 (8%), among whom 3 were defined as OBI (defined as detectable HBV DNA but negative HBsAg). Applying a target-enrichment sequencing pipeline to samples with HBV DNA >3.0log10 IU/ml, we obtained deep whole genome sequences for four cases, identifying genotypes A, C and D. Polymorphisms in the surface gene of the OBI case may account for the negative HBsAg status. We identified mutations associated with nucleos(t)ide analogue resistance, although the clinical significance in this cohort is not known. The high prevalence of HBV in this setting highlights the benefits of offering screening in hospital patients and the importance of HBV DNA testing of transfusion products to reduce the risk of transmission. In order to work towards international Sustainable Development Goal targets for HBV elimination, increased investment is required for diagnosis, treatment and prevention in Bangladesh.
COVID-19 Progression Timeline and Effectiveness of Response-to-Spread Interventions across the United States
Authors: Liu Pai , Beeler Payton , Chakrabarty Rajan K. 
Published: March 2020

AbstractMotivated by the rapid upsurge of COVID-19 cases in the United States beginning March 2020, we forecast the disease spread and assess the effectiveness of containment strategies by using an estalished network-driven epidemic dynamic model. Our model is initialized using the daily counts of active and confirmed COVID-19 cases across the US. Based on our model predictions for the March 14-16 timeframe, the national epidemic peak could be expected to arrive by early June, corresponding to a daily active count of ≈ 7% of the US population, if no containment plans are implemented. Epidemic peaks are expected to arrive in the states of Washington and New York by May 21 and 25, respectively. With a modest 25% reduction in COVID-19 transmissibility via community-level interventions, the epidemic progression could be delayed by up to 34 days. Wholesale interstate traffic restriction is ineffective in delaying the epidemic outbreak, but it does desynchronize the arrival of state-wise epidemic peaks, which could potentially alleviate the burden on limited available medical resources. In addition to forecasting the arrival timeline of the state-wise epidemic peaks, we attempt at informing the optimal timing necessary to enforce community-level interventions. Our findings underscore the pressing need for preparedness and timely interventions in states with a large fraction of the vulnerable uninsured and liquid-asset-poverty populations.Forecast websitehttps://sites.google.com/view/covid19forecast
Reverse transcription loop-mediated isothermal amplification combined with nanoparticles-based biosensor for diagnosis of COVID-19
Authors: Zhu Xiong , Wang Xiaoxia , Han Limei , Chen Ting , Wang Licheng , Li Huan , Li Sha , He Lvfen , Fu Xiaoying , Chen Shaojin , Xing Mei , Chen Hai , Wang Yi 
Published: March 2020

ABSTRACTGiven the scale and rapid spread of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2, known as 2019-nCov) infection (COVID-19), the ongoing global SARS-CoV-2 outbreak has become a huge public health issue. Rapid and precise diagnostic methods are thus immediately needed for diagnosing COVID-19, providing timely treatment and facilitating infection control. A one-step reverse transcription loop-mediated isothermal amplification (RT-LAMP) coupled with nanoparticles-based biosensor (NBS) assay (RT-LAMP-NBS) was successfully established for rapidly and accurately diagnosing COVID-19. A simple equipment (such as heating block) was required for maintaining a constant temperature (63°C) for only 40 min. Using two designed LAMP primer sets, F1ab (opening reading frame 1a/b) and np (nucleoprotein) genes of SARS-CoV-2 were simultaneously amplified and detected in a ‘one-step’ and ‘single-tube’ reaction, and the detection results were easily interpreted by NBS. The sensitivity of SARS-CoV-2 RT-LAMP-NBS was 12 copies (each of detection target) per reaction, and no cross-reactivity was generated from non-SARS-CoV-2 templates. Among clinically diagnosed COVID-19 patients, the analytical sensitivity of SARS-CoV-2 was 100% (33/33) in the oropharynx swab samples, and the assay’s specificity was also 100% (96/96) when analyzed the clinical samples collected from non-COVID-19 patients. The total diagnosis test from sample collection to result interpretation only takes approximately 1 h. In sum, the RT-LAMP-NBS is a promising tool for diagnosing the current SARS-CoV-2 infection in first line field, public health and clinical laboratories, especially for resource-challenged regions.
Prism adaptation treatment for upper-limb Complex Regional Pain Syndrome: a double-blind randomized controlled trial
Authors: Halicka Monika , Vittersø Axel D. , McCullough Hayley , Goebel Andreas , Heelas Leila , Proulx Michael J. , Bultitude Janet H. 
Published: March 2020

AbstractInitial evidence suggested that people with Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) have reduced attention to the affected side of their body and the surrounding space, which might be related to pain and other clinical symptoms. Three previous unblinded, uncontrolled studies showed pain relief following treatment with prism adaptation, an intervention that has been used to counter lateralised attention bias in brain-lesioned patients. To provide a robust test of its effectiveness for CRPS, we conducted a double-blind randomized controlled trial of prism adaptation for unilateral upper-limb CRPS-I. Forty-nine eligible adults with CRPS were randomized to undergo two-weeks of twice-daily home-based prism adaptation treatment (n = 23) or sham treatment (n = 26). Outcomes were assessed in person four weeks prior to and immediately before treatment, and immediately after and four weeks post-treatment. Long-term postal follow-ups were conducted three and six months after treatment. We examined the effects of prism adaptation versus sham treatment on current pain intensity and CRPS symptom severity score (primary outcomes); as well as sensory, motor, and autonomic functions, self-reported psychological functioning, and experimentally tested neuropsychological functions (secondary outcomes). We found no evidence that primary or secondary outcomes differed between the prism adaptation and sham treatment groups when tested at either time point following treatment. Overall, CRPS severity significantly decreased over time for both groups, but we found no benefits of prism adaptation beyond sham treatment. Our findings do not support the efficacy of prism adaptation treatment for relieving upper-limb CRPS-I. This trial was prospectively registered (ISRCTN46828292).
Comparison of the coronavirus pandemic dynamics in Europe, USA and South Korea
Authors: Nesteruk Igor 
Published: March 2020

ABSTRACTThe pandemic cased by coronavirus COVID-19 is of great concern. A detailed scientific analysis of this phenomenon is still to come, but now it is urgently needed to evaluate the disease dynamics in order to organize the appropriate quarantine activities, to estimate the required number of places in hospitals, the level of individual protection, the rate of isolation of infected persons, etc. South Korea has achieved the stabilization of the number of cases at rather low level. The epidemic dynamics there can be compared with its development in other countries to make some preliminary, but very important conclusions. Here we provide a simple method of data comparison that can be useful for both governmental organizations and anyone.
A brief review of antiviral drugs evaluated in registered clinical trials for COVID-19
Authors: Belhadi Drifa , Peiffer-Smadja Nathan , Lescure François-Xavier , Yazdanpanah Yazdan , Mentré France , Laouénan Cédric 
Published: March 2020

ABSTRACTBackgroundAlthough a number of antiviral agents have been evaluated for coronaviruses there are no approved drugs available. To provide an overview of the landscape of therapeutic research for COVID-19, we conducted a review of registered clinical trials.MethodsA review of currently registered clinical trials was performed on registries, including the Chinese (chictr.org.cn) and US (clinicaltrials.gov) databases to identify relevant studies up to March, 7th 2020. The search was conducted using the search terms “2019-nCoV”, “COVID-19”, “SARS-CoV-2”, “Hcov-19”, “new coronavirus”, “novel coronavirus”. We included interventional clinical trials focusing on patients with COVID-19 and assessing antiviral drugs or agents.FindingsOut of the 353 studies identified, 115 clinical trials were selected for data extraction. Phase IV trials were the most commonly reported study type (n=27, 23%). However, 62 trials (54%) did not describe the phase of the study. Eighty percent (n=92) of the trials were randomized with parallel assignment and the median number of planned inclusions was 63 (IQR, 36-120). Open-label studies were the most frequent (46%) followed by double-blind (13%) and single blind studies (10%). The most frequently assessed therapies were: stem cells therapy (n=23 trials), lopinavir/ritonavir (n=15), chloroquine (n=11), umifenovir (n=9), hydroxychloroquine (n=7), plasma treatment (n=7), favipiravir (n=7), methylprednisolone (n=5), and remdesivir (n=5). Remdesivir was tested in 5 trials with a median of 400 (IQR, 394-453) planned inclusions per trial, while stem cells therapy was tested in 23 trials, but had a median of 40 (IQR, 23-60) planned inclusions per trial. Lopinavir/ritonavir was associated with the highest total number of planned inclusions (2606) followed by remdesivir (2155). Only 52% of the clinical trials reported the treatment dose (n=60) and only 34% (n=39) the duration. The primary outcome was clinical in 76 studies (66%), virological in 27 (23%); radiological in 9 (8%) or immunological in three studies (3%).InterpretationNumerous clinical trials have been registered since the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak, however, a number of information regarding drugs or trial design were lacking.FundingNone
Extended SIR prediction of the epidemics trend of COVID-19 in Italy and compared with Hunan, China
Authors: Wangping Jia , Ke Han , Yang Song , Wenzhe Cao , Shengshu Wang , Shanshan Yang , Jianwei Wang , Fuyin Kou , Penggang Tai , Jing Li , Miao Liu , Yao He 
Published: March 2020

AbstractBackgroundCoronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) is currently a global public health threat. Outside of China, Italy is one of the most suffering countries with the COVID-19 epidemic. It is important to predict the epidemics trend of COVID-19 epidemic in Italy to help develop public health strategies.MethodsWe used time-series data of COVID-19 from Jan 22,2020 to Mar 16,2020. An infectious disease dynamic extended susceptible-infected-removed (eSIR) model, which covers the effects of different intervention measures in dissimilar periods, was applied to estimate the epidemic trend in Italy. The basic reproductive number was estimated using Markov Chain Monte Carlo methods and presented using the resulting posterior mean and 95% credible interval (CI). Hunan, with similar total number of populations in Italy, was used as a comparative item.ResultsIn the eSIR model, we estimated that the basic reproductive number for COVID-19 was respectively 4.10 (95% CI: 2.15–6.77) in Italy and 3.15(95% CI: 1.71–5.21) in Hunan. There would be totally 30 086 infected cases (95%CI:7920-81 869) under the current country blockade and the endpoint would be Apr 25 (95%CI: Mar 30 to Aug 07) in Italy. If the country blockade is imposed 5 day later, the total number of infected cases would expand the infection scale 1.50 times.ConclusionItaly’s current strict measures can efficaciously prevent the further spread of COVID-19 and should be maintained. Necessary strict public health measures be implemented as soon as possible in other European countries with a high number of COVID-19 cases. The most effective strategy needs to be confirmed in further studies.