Gut microbiota is associated with persistence of longer-term BNT162b2 vaccine immunogenicity.

Introduction: BNT162b2 immunogenicity wanes with time and we investigated association between gut microbiota and longer-term immunogenicity.

Methods: This cohort study prospectively recruited adult BNT162b2 two-dose recipients from three vaccination centers in Hong Kong. Blood samples were collected at baseline and day 180 after first dose, and tested for neutralizing antibodies (NAb) against receptor-binding domain (RBD) of wild type SARS-CoV-2 virus using chemiluminescence immunoassay.

Long COVID in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus: A case-control study.

BackgroundLong COVID was defined by the WHO as continuation or development of new symptoms 3 months after the initial SARS-CoV2 infection, with these symptoms lasting for ≥2 months without alternative explanations.ObjectivesTo compare the incidence of long COVID in patients with SLE with matched controls after a SARS-CoV2 infection.MethodsConsecutive patients (≥18 years) who fulfilled the ACR or SLICC criteria for SLE between July to November 2023 were recruited.

Compassion Scale: factor structure and scale validation in Hong Kong adolescents.

Introduction: This study aimed to validate the 16-item Compassion Scale (CS) for use with Hong Kong adolescents. 1,193 secondary school students in grades 7 to 11 ( = 13.80 years, 43.

The Rapidly Changing Treatment Landscape of IgA Nephropathy.

The past few years have heralded a sea change in the treatment landscape of IgA nephropathy (IgAN). An increasing understanding of its pathogenesis coupled with favorable changes in the regulatory approval pathway has led to an explosion of clinical drug development in this disease. This has directly resulted in the approval of three novel therapies specifically for the treatment of IgAN (nefecon, sparsentan, and iptacopan), and several others are in the late stages of clinical development.