bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Kidney function on admission predicts in-hospital mortality in COVID-19
Authors: Trabulus Sinan , Karaca Cebrail , İnanç Balkan İlker , Dincer Mevlüt Tamer , Murt Ahmet , Gül Özcan Şeyda , Karaali Rıdvan , Mete Bilgül , Bakır Alev , Kuşkucu Mert Ahmet , Altıparmak Mehmet Rıza , Tabak Fehmi , Seyahi Nurhan 
Published: June 2020

AbstractBackgroundRecent data have reinforced the concept of a reciprocal relationship between COVID-19 and kidney function. However, most studies have focused on the effect of COVID-19 on kidney function, whereas data regarding kidney function on the COVID-19 prognosis is scarce. Therefore, in this study, we aimed to investigate the association between eGFR on admission and the mortality rate of COVID-19.MethodsWe recruited 336 adult consecutive patients (male 57.1%, mean age 55.0±15.9) that were hospitalized with the diagnosis of COVID-19 in the tertiary care university hospital. Data were collected from the electronic health records of the hospital. On admission, eGFR was calculated using the CKD-EPI formula. Acute kidney injury was defined according to the KDIGO criteria. Binary logistic regression and Cox regression analyses were used to assess the relationship between eGFR on admission and in-hospital mortality of COVID-19.ResultsBaseline eGFR was under 60 mL/min/1.73m2in 61 patients (18.2%). Acute kidney injury occurred in 29.1% of the patients. In-hospital mortality was calculated as 12.8%. Age-adjusted and multivariate logistic regression analysis (p:0.005, odds ratio:0.974, CI:0.956-0.992) showed that baseline eGFR was independently associated with mortality. Additionally, age-adjusted Cox regression analysis revealed a higher mortality rate in patients with an eGFR under 60 mL/min/1.73m2.ConclusionsOn admission eGFR seems to be a prognostic marker for mortality in patients with COVID-19; We recommend to determine eGFR in all patients on admission and use it as an additional tool for risk stratification. Close follow-up should be warranted in patients with reduced eGFR.
Twitter activity about treatments during the COVID-19 pandemic: case studies of remdesivir, hydroxychloroquine, and convalescent plasma
Authors: Hamamsy Tymor , Bonneau Richard 
Published: June 2020

AbstractSince the COVID-19 pandemic started, the public has been eager for news about promising treatments, and social media has played a large role in information dissemination. In this paper, our objectives are to characterize the public discussion of treatments on Twitter, and demonstrate the utility of these discussions for public health surveillance. We pulled tweets related to three promising COVID-19 treatments (hydroxychloroquine, remdesivir and convalescent plasma), between the dates of February 28th and May 22nd using the Twitter public API. We characterize treatment tweet trends over this time period. Most major tweet/retweet/sentiment trends correlated to public announcement made by the white house and/or to new clinical trial evidence about treatments. Most of the websites people shared in treatment-related tweets were non-scientific media sources that leaned conservative. Hydroxychloroquine was the most discussed treatment on Twitter, and over 10% of hydroxychloroquine tweets mentioned an adverse drug reaction. There is a gap between the public attention/discussion around COVID-19 treatments and their evidence. Twitter data can and should be used for public health surveillance during this pandemic, as it is informative for monitoring adverse drug reactions, especially as many people avoid going to hospitals/doctors.
Estimating and explaining the spread of COVID-19 at the county level in the USA
Authors: Ives Anthony R. , Bozzuto Claudio 
Published: June 2020

AbstractThe basic reproduction number, R0, determines the rate of spread of a communicable disease and therefore gives fundamental information needed to plan public health interventions. Estimated R0 values are only useful, however, if they accurately predict the future potential rate of spread. Using mortality records, we estimated the rate of spread of COVID-19 among 160 counties and county-aggregates in the USA. Most of the high among-county variance in the rate of spread was explained by four factors: the timing of the county-level outbreak (partial R2 = 0.093), population size (partial R2 = 0.34), population density (partial R2 = 0.13), and spatial location (partial R2 = 0.42). Of these, the effect of timing is explained by early steps that people and governments took to reduce transmission, and population size is explained by the sample size of deaths that affects the statistical ability to estimate R0. For predictions of future spread, population density is important, likely because it scales the average contact rate among people. To generate support for a possible explanation for the importance of spatial location, we show that SARS-CoV-2 strains containing the G614 mutation to the spike gene are associated with higher rates of spread (P = 0.016). The high predictability of R0 based on population density and spatial location allowed us to extend estimates to all 3109 counties in the lower 48 States. The high variation of R0 among counties argues for public health policies that are enacted at the county level for controlling COVID-19.
A Combined Deep CNN-LSTM Network for the Detection of Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) Using X-ray Images
Authors: Islam Md. Zabirul , Islam Md. Milon , Asraf Amanullah 
Published: June 2020

AbstractNowadays automatic disease detection has become a crucial issue in medical science with the rapid growth of population. Coronavirus (COVID-19) has become one of the most severe and acute diseases in very recent times that has been spread globally. Automatic disease detection framework assists the doctors in the diagnosis of disease and provides exact, consistent, and fast reply as well as reduces the death rate. Therefore, an automated detection system should be implemented as the fastest way of diagnostic option to impede COVID-19 from spreading. This paper aims to introduce a deep learning technique based on the combination of a convolutional neural network (CNN) and long short-term memory (LSTM) to diagnose COVID-19 automatically from X-ray images. In this system, CNN is used for deep feature extraction and LSTM is used for detection using the extracted feature. A collection of 421 X-ray images including 141 images of COVID-19 is used as a dataset in this system. The experimental results show that our proposed system has achieved 97% accuracy, 91% specificity, and 100% sensitivity. The system achieved desired results on a small dataset which can be further improved when more COVID-19 images become available. The proposed system can assist doctors to diagnose and treatment the COVID-19 patients easily.
Epidemiological characterization of asymptomatic carriers of COVID-19 in Colombia
Authors: Teherán Aníbal A. , Camero Gabriel , de la Guardia Ronald Prado , Hernández Carolina , Herrera Giovanny , Pombo Luis M. , Ávila Albert A. , Flórez Carolina , Barros Esther C. , Perez-Garcia Luis A. , Paniz-Mondolfi Alberto , Ramírez Juan David 
Published: June 2020

ABSTRACTObjectiveAsymptomatic carriers (AC) of the new Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) represent an important source of spread for Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). Early diagnosis of these cases is a powerful tool to control the pandemic. Our objective was to characterize patients with AC status and identify associated sociodemographic factors.MethodsUsing a cross-sectional design and the national database of daily occurrence of COVID-19, we characterized both socially and demographically all ACs. Additional Correspondence Analysis and Logistic Regression Model were performed to identify characteristics associated with AC state (OR, 95% CI).Results2338 ACs (11.8%; 95% CI, 11.3-12.2%) were identified, mainly in epidemiological week 18 [EW] (3.98; 3.24-4.90). Age ≤ 39 years (1.56; 1.42-1.72). Male sex (1.39; 1.26-1.53), cases imported from Argentina, Spain, Peru, Brazil, Costa Rica or Mexico (3.37; 1.47-7.71) and autochthonous cases (4.35; 2.12-8.93) increased the risk of identifying AC. We also identified groups of departments with moderate (3.68; 3.13-4.33) and strong (8.31; 6.10-7.46) association with AC.DiscussionSociodemographic characteristics strongly associated with AC were identified, which may explain its epidemiological relevance and usefulness to optimize mass screening strategies and prevent person-to-person transmission.
Modelling for prediction of the spread and severity of COVID-19 and its association with socioeconomic factors and virus types
Authors: Tuli Shreshth , Tuli Shikhar , Verma Ruchi , Tuli Rakesh 
Published: June 2020

ABSTRACTWe report the development of a Weibull based Long-Short-Term-Memory approach (W-LSTM) for the prediction of COVID-19 disease. The W-LSTM model developed in this study, performs better in terms of MSE, R2 and MAPE, as compared to the previously published models, including ARIMA, LSTM and their variations. Using W-LSTM model, we have predicted the beginning and end of the current cycle of COVID-19 in several countries. Performance of the model was validated as satisfactory in 82% of the 50 test countries, while asking for prediction for 10 days beyond the period of training. Accuracy of the above prediction with days beyond training was assessed in comparison with the MAPE that the model gave with cumulative global data. The model was applied to study correlation between the growth of infection and deaths, and a number of effectors that may influence the epidemic. The model identified age groups, trade with China, air traffic, country temperature and CoV-2 virus types as the likely effectors of infection and virulence leading to deaths. The predictors likely to promote or suppress the epidemic were identified. Some of the predictors had significant effect on the shape parameters of Weibull distribution. The model can function on cloud, take inputs in real time and handle large data country wise, at low costs to make predictions dynamically. Such predictions are highly valuable in guiding policy makers, administration and health. Interactive curves generated from the W-LSTM model can be seen at http://collaboration.coraltele.com/covid2/.
Association of Assisted Reproductive Technologies with offspring cord blood DNA methylation across cohorts
Authors: Caramaschi Doretta , Jungius James , Page Christian M. , Novakovic Boris , Saffery Richard , Halliday Jane , Lewis Sharon , Magnus Maria C. , London Stephanie J. , Håberg Siri E. , Relton Caroline L. , Lawlor Deborah A. , Elliott Hannah R. 
Published: June 2020

AbstractStudy questionIs DNA methylation at birth associated with having been conceived by assisted reproductive technologies (ART)?Summary answerThis study shows does not provide strong evidence of an association of conception by ART with variation in infant blood cell DNA methylation.What is known alreadyAssisted reproductive technologies (ART) are procedures used to help infertile/subfertile couples conceive. Due to its importance in gene regulation during early development programming, DNA methylation and its perturbations associated with ART could reveal new insights into the biological effects of ART and potential adverse offspring outcomes.Study designWe investigated the association of DNA methylation and ART using a case-control study design (N=205 ART cases and N=2439 non-ART controls in discovery cohorts; N=149 ART cases and N=58 non-ART controls in replication cohort).Participants/materials, settings, methodWe assessed the association between ART and DNA methylation at birth in cord blood (205 ART conceptions and 2439 naturally conceived controls) at >450000 CpG sites across the genome in two sub-samples of the UK Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) and two sub-samples of the Norwegian Mother, Father and Child Cohort Study (MoBa) by meta-analysis. We explored replication of findings in the Australian Clinical review of the Health of adults conceived following Assisted Reproductive Technologies (CHART) study (N=149 ART conceptions and N=58 controls).Main results and the role of chanceThe ALSPAC and MoBa meta-analysis revealed evidence of association between conception by ART and DNA methylation (false-discovery-rate-corrected p-value < 0.05) at 5 CpG sites which are annotated to 2 genes. Methylation at 3 of these sites has been previously linked to cancer, aging, HIV infection and neurological diseases. None of these associations replicated in the CHART cohort. There was evidence of a functional role of ART-induced hypermethylation at CpG sites located within regulatory regions as shown by putative transcription factor binding and chromatin remodelling.Limitations, reasons for cautionsWhile insufficient power is likely, heterogeneity in types of ART and between populations may also contribute. Larger studies might identify replicable variation in DNA methylation at birth due to ART.Wider implications of the findingsART-conceived newborns present with divergent DNA methylation in cord blood white cells. If these associations are true and causal, they might have long-term consequences for offspring health.
P-wave Centric Ambulatory ECG Monitoring in Infants and Young Children
Authors: Romme Angela , Nguyen Hoang 
Published: June 2020

AbstractBackgroundP-wave centric ambulatory ECG monitoring has emerged as an important tool aiding the diagnosis of arrhythmias. However, with no specific pediatric approved ambulatory monitors, efficacy and user experience with these devices in young infants have not been established.ObjectiveTo evaluate tracings quality in children less than 10 kilograms who have been prescribed the P-wave centric Carnation Ambulatory Monitor (CAM) patch by Bardy Diagnostics Inc.MethodsWe performed an observational, retrospective study on patients prescribed 48-hour ambulatory Holter monitoring. We aimed to detail our experience with using the CAM patch with a patient population smaller than the recommended weight set forth by Bardy Diagnostics Inc. All patients less than 10 kg who were prescribed a 48-hour CAM patch were included in this review. Additionally, 2 different monitor locations (over the sternum and horizontal over the left axilla) were assessed to address the optimal placement in small children less than 10 kg.ResultsA total of 33 CAM reports from 25 patients, aged 0-15 months were included in the study. Mean patient age was 4.2 months ± 5.0 and mean weight was 5.3 kg ± 2.4. Twenty-Four percent of patients (8/33) had known congenital heart disease. Indications for monitoring included: tachyarrhythmia (15/33, 45%), bradycardia (6/33, 18%), ectopic rhythm (9/33, 27%), cardiac tumor (1/33, 1%), and prolonged QT interval (1/33, 1%). All CAM reports showed clear, identifiable P waves which were diagnostic and lead to changes in medical management for 30% of patients (i.e. medication adjustments or discharge from cardiology care). When comparing the P wave between a 12-lead ECG and the CAM patch, 77% of patients had the same or similar P wave morphology to lead aVF.We found the recommended, upright placement over the sternum performed better than the horizontal placement over the left axilla for small infants and children less than 10 kg.ConclusionA P-wave centric Holter monitor is helpful in providing accurate diagnostics tracings even in infants and small children aiding in their clinical management.
Short-term Forecasting of Cumulative Confirmed Cases of Covid-19 Pandemic in Somalia
Authors: Ali Dahir Abdi , Midi Habshah 
Published: June 2020

AbstractSomalia has recorded the first confirmed Covid-19 case and first death case on March 16, and April 08, 2020, respectively. Since its arrival, it had infected 2,603 people and took the lives of 88 people while 577 patients were recovered as of 14 June, 2020. To fight this pandemic, the government requires to make the necessary plans accordingly. To plan effectively, the government needs to answer this question: what will be the effect of Covid-19 cases in the country? To answer this question accurately and objectively, forecasting the spread of confirmed Covid-19 cases will be vital. To this regard, this paper provides real times forecasts of Covid-19 cases employing Holt’s linear trend model without seasonality. Provided that the data employed is accurate and the past pattern of the disease will continue in the future, this model is powerful to produce real time forecasts in the future with some degree of uncertainty. With the help of these forecasts, the government can make evidence based decisions by utilizing the scarce resource available at its disposal.
Modeling quantitative traits for COVID-19 case reports
Authors: Queralt-Rosinach Núria , Bello Susan M. , Hoehndorf Robert , Weiland Claus , Rocca-Serra Philippe , Schofield Paul N. 
Published: June 2020

AbstractMedical practitioners record the condition status of a patient through qualitative and quantitative observations. The measurement of vital signs and molecular parameters in the clinics gives a complementary description of abnormal phenotypes associated with the progression of a disease. The Clinical Measurement Ontology (CMO) is used to standardize annotations of these measurable traits. However, researchers have no way to describe how these quantitative traits relate to phenotype concepts in a machine-readable manner. Using the WHO clinical case report form standard for the COVID-19 pandemic, we modeled quantitative traits and developed OWL axioms to formally relate clinical measurement terms with anatomical, biomolecular entities and phenotypes annotated with the Uber-anatomy ontology (Uberon), Chemical Entities of Biological Interest (ChEBI) and the Phenotype and Trait Ontology (PATO) biomedical ontologies. The formal description of these relations allows interoperability between clinical and biological descriptions, and facilitates automated reasoning for analysis of patterns over quantitative and qualitative biomedical observations.
Changing indications for intravitreal Anti-Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Injections at the University College Hospital, Ibadan, sub-Saharan Africa
Authors: Adewole A.T , Oluleye T.S , Babalola Y.O , Majekodunmi O , Ijaduola M 
Published: June 2020

AbstractAimTo compare the current indications for intravitreal anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (anti-VEGF) therapy, to make recommendations for planning of services.MethodologyThe medical records of 172 patients who had intravitreal anti-VEGF injections from January 2016 to December 2019 were retrieved. Socio-demographic and clinical data were extracted, analysed, and compared with data from the previously published audit report covering 2010 to 2012.ResultsThree hundred and thirty injections were given to 182 eyes in this cohort of patients. The mean age was 61.1 ± 16.3 years (range <1-90 years), with a male to female ratio of 1.1:1. Retinal vein occlusion, 64 (35%) remained the most common indication for anti-VEGF injections in the eyes treated. This was followed by choroidal neovascular membrane/ Wet age-related macular degeneration which accounted for 42 (23%) as reported previously. However, cases of proliferative diabetic retinopathy/ diabetic maculopathy needing anti-VEGF were noticed to have almost doubled from about 8% (10) in the previous study to 15% (27) in the present study. In addition, idiopathic polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy, 18 (10%) ranked above proliferative sickle cell retinopathy in the present study. Retinopathy of prematurity, neovascular glaucoma, retinal artery macro-aneurysm and myopic choroidal neovascular membrane were the new emerging indications.ConclusionThere is an expanding indication for anti-VEGF in the management of retinal vascular diseases in our health facility and adequate measures should be put in place for early diagnosis and management. Patients should be counselled on the availability of this treatment option.
Sewage surveillance for the presence of SARS-CoV-2 genome as a useful wastewater based epidemiology (WBE) tracking tool in India
Authors: Arora Sudipti , Nag Aditi , Sethi Jasmine , Rajvanshi Jayana , Saxena Sonika , Shrivastava Sandeep K , Gupta A. B. 
Published: June 2020

AbstractThe infection with SARS-CoV-2 is reported to be accompanied by the shedding of the virus in stool samples of infected patients. Earlier reports have suggested that COVID-19 agents can be present in the fecal and sewage samples and thus it can be a good indication of the pandemic extent in a community. However, no such studies have been reported in the Indian context so far. Since, several factors like local population physiology, the climatic conditions, sewage composition, and processing of samples could possibly affect the detection of the viral genome, it becomes absolutely necessary to check for the presence of the SARS-CoV-2 in the wastewater samples from wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) serving different localities of Jaipur city, which has been under red zone (pandemic hotspots) since early April 2020. Samples from different local municipal WWTPs and hospital wastewater samples were collected and wastewater based epidemiology (WBE) studies for the presence of SARS-CoV-2 were carried out using the RT-PCR technique to confirm the presence of different COVID-19 target genes namely S gene, E gene, ORF1ab gene, RdRp gene and N gene in the viral load of wastewater samples. In the present study, the untreated wastewater samples from the municipal WWTPs and hospital wastewater samples showed the presence of SARS-CoV-2 viral genome, which was correlated with the increased number of COVID-19 positive patients from the concerned areas, as per reported in the publically available health data. This is the first study that investigated the presence of SARS-CoV-2 viral genome in wastewater, at higher ambient temperature (above 40°C), further validating WBE as a potential tool in predicting and mitigating outbreaks.HighlightsThe study reports detection of SARS-CoV-2 in sewage in India.The presence of SARS-CoV-2 was confirmed by RT-PCR.The presence of viral genome was detected at high ambient temperatures of 40-45° C.Corroborates trends in the WWTPs showing viral genome with public health data.Treated effluent from WWTPs appears safe for reuse with low public health concern.Graphical Abstract