National health governance, science and the media: drivers of COVID-19 responses in Germany, Sweden and the UK in 2020.

The COVID-19 pandemic is an unprecedented global crisis in which governments had to act in a situation of rapid change and substantial uncertainty. The governments of Germany, Sweden and the UK have taken different paths allowing learning for future pandemic preparedness. To help inform discussions on preparedness, inspired by resilience frameworks, this paper reviews governance structures, and the role of science and the media in the COVID-19 response of Germany, Sweden and the UK in 2020.

Family well-being and individual mental health in the early stages of COVID-19.

Background: The objective of the study was to examine the association of COVID-19 with family well-being and adult mental health 1 month into the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States. Prior pandemics have had long-term effects on mental health. COVID-19 and its related stressors, such as loss of work and social distancing requirements, may have a profound impact on short-term and long-term mental health.

How communication can help women who experience a maternal near-miss: a qualitative study from Tanzania.

Objectives: This study aimed to explore experiences of communication as an element of quality of care, among women surviving a maternal near-miss event, thus women who nearly died but survived haemorrhage, or pre-eclampsia complication during pregnancy, childbirth or within 42 days of termination of pregnancy.

Design: A descriptive, phenomenological, qualitative study using semistructured interviews with women who survived a maternal near-miss in Southern Tanzania.

Setting: The participants were recruited from two selected hospitals in Mtwara Region, where women sought child birth care and developed near-miss condition.

Increased Bite Distance From the Edge Lowers Risk of Pullout of Simple Sutures from Acellular Dermal Allograft.

Purpose: To investigate whether pullout strength in the acellular dermal allograft matrix (ADM) used for superior capsule reconstruction depends on the distance from the edge of the graft.

Methods: ADM used for superior capsule reconstruction was obtained and cut into 30 squares. Two sutures were placed through the center of each graft by using a loaded Keith needle and forming a simple stitch.

A Patient-Centered Environmental Scan of Inpatient Visitor Policies During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Researchers and patients conducted an environmental scan of policy documents and public-facing websites and abstracted data to describe COVID-19 adult inpatient visitor restrictions at 70 academic medical centers. We identified variations in how centers described and operationalized visitor policies. Then, we used the nominal group technique process to identify patient-centered information gaps in visitor policies and provide key recommendations for improvement.

The effects of adverse and advantageous childhood experiences on adult health in a low-income sample.

Background: Previous studies have indicated the advantageous childhood experiences (counter-ACEs) may improve health in adulthood regardless of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) scores. However, these studies have primarily been conducted in low-risk communities, and little is known whether the results are similar in low-income settings.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of ACEs and counter-ACEs on mental and physical health in a low-income sample.

Association of the COVID-19 pandemic with increased adherence among prevalent hemodialysis patients.

Background: During the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a reduction in emergency department visits and hospital admissions. We hypothesized that hemodialysis patients were decreasing their hospital visits and increasing their dialysis adherence during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Material And Methods: This is a retrospective analysis of hemodialysis patients treated in the seven American Renal Associates (ARA) dialysis centers in the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area.

Plasma Concentrations and Maternal-Umbilical Cord Plasma Ratios of the Six Most Prevalent Carotenoids across Five Groups of Birth Gestational Age.

Carotenoids are antioxidant nutrients with the potential to provide protection against oxidative stress. Plasma carotenoid concentrations are lower in newborn infants compared to their mothers; however, limited information is available regarding how concentrations differ by gestational age. The objective of this research is to assess maternal and umbilical cord plasma carotenoid concentrations and maternal-umbilical cord plasma ratios across five groups of birth gestational age.

Essential Emergency and Critical Care: a consensus among global clinical experts.

Background: Globally, critical illness results in millions of deaths every year. Although many of these deaths are potentially preventable, the basic, life-saving care of critically ill patients are often overlooked in health systems. Essential Emergency and Critical Care (EECC) has been devised as the care that should be provided to all critically ill patients in all hospitals in the world.

Using aneurysm clips for repair of cisterna chyli injury during posterior spinal fusion.

Background: Injury to the cisterna chyli (CC) is a rare surgical complication with a lack of literature describing its repair. Aneurysm clips have been successfully used to repair durotomies. Its usage in lymphatic injury has never been described.

Effectiveness of Abbott BinaxNOW Rapid Antigen Test for Detection of SARS-CoV-2 Infections in Outbreak among Horse Racetrack Workers, California, USA.

The Abbott BinaxNOW rapid antigen test is cheaper and faster than real-time reverse transcription PCR (rRT-PCR) for detecting severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2. We compared BinaxNOW with rRT-PCR in 769 paired specimens from 342 persons during a coronavirus disease outbreak among horse racetrack workers in California, USA. We found positive percent agreement was 43.

The B.1.427/1.429 (epsilon) SARS-CoV-2 variants are more virulent than ancestral B.1 (614G) in Syrian hamsters.

Unlabelled: As novel SARS-CoV-2 variants continue to emerge, it is critical that their potential to cause severe disease and evade vaccine-induced immunity is rapidly assessed in humans and studied in animal models. In early January 2021, a novel variant of concern (VOC) designated B.1.

The New Role of Cardiac Imaging Following the ISCHEMIA Trial.

Purpose Of Review: This review is aimed at summarizing the recently published ISCHEMIA trial (International Study of Comparative Health Effectiveness with Medical and Invasive Approaches) and how its findings may impact cardiac imaging for stable ischemic heart disease (SIHD) moving forward.

Recent Findings: The ISCHEMIA trial compared an initial invasive management strategy with goal of complete coronary revascularization versus an initial medical therapy strategy among stable patients with newly diagnosed moderate to severe myocardial ischemia on non-invasive testing. The trial results showed that an early invasive strategy did not reduce the incidence of major cardiovascular events over 3.

Cardiac Magnetic Resonance Assessment of Response to Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy and Programming Strategies.

Objectives: The objective was to determine the feasibility and effectiveness of cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) cine and strain imaging before and after cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) for assessment of response and the optimal resynchronization pacing strategy.

Background: CMR with cardiac implantable electronic devices can safely provide high-quality right ventricular/left ventricular (LV) ejection fraction (RVEF/LVEF) assessments and strain.

Methods: CMR with cine imaging, displacement encoding with stimulated echoes for the circumferential uniformity ratio estimate with singular value decomposition (CURE-SVD) dyssynchrony parameter, and scar assessment was performed before and after CRT.

Measurable residual disease does not preclude prolonged progression-free survival in CLL treated with ibrutinib.

E1912 was a randomized phase 3 trial comparing indefinite ibrutinib plus 6 cycles of rituximab (IR) to 6 cycles of fludarabine, cyclophosphamide, and rituximab (FCR) in untreated younger patients with CLL. We describe measurable residual disease (MRD) levels in E1912 over time and correlate them with clinical outcome. Undetectable MRD rates (<1 CLL cell per 104 leukocytes) were 29.

Age as a Risk Factor for Complications Following Anterior Cervical Discectomy and Fusion: Analysis From the Michigan Spine Surgery Improvement Collaborative (MSSIC).

Study Design: Retrospective analysis of prospectively collected registry data using multivariable analyses of imputed data.

Objective: We sought to demonstrate that age would not be associated with complications in patients undergoing anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF).

Summary Of Background Data: Elderly patients (≥70 yrs) undergoing ACDF are considered a higher risk for complications.

"… I would have left that man long time ago but, …" exploring circumstances of and motivators for repeat adolescent birth in Eastern Uganda.

Background: First birth before 18 years has declined in Uganda unlike repeat adolescent birth (=second or more births before age 20 years). We explored the circumstances of and motivators for repeat adolescent birth in Eastern Uganda.

Methods: Between January and March 2020, we conducted a qualitative study involving 70 individual in-depth interviews with purposively selected respondents - 20-25-year-old women with and without repeat adolescent birth, their partners, and parents, in the communities of Teso sub-region.

Biopsychosocial Factors during the Perinatal Period: Risks, Preventative Factors, and Implications for Healthcare Professionals.

Women face risks to their wellbeing during the perinatal period of pregnancy. However, there is a dearth of information on perinatal risk factors within the biopsychosocial paradigm. Emphasis is often placed on biological components associated with pregnancy and women's health.

De novo isolated myeloid sarcoma: comparative analysis of survival in 19 consecutive cases.

Institutional database search (1999-2020) for acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) identified 109 cases of myeloid sarcoma (MS), of which 19 were isolated and presented de novo. The latter displayed longer survival (median 78 months), compared to MS with synchronous intramedullary AML (n = 32; median 16 months) and de novo AML without MS (n = 729; median 22 months; P = 0·13). However, the difference in survival was no longer apparent after accounting for bone marrow cytogenetic risk status (P = 0·67).

A look into the future of the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe: an expert consultation.

How will the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic develop in the coming months and years? Based on an expert survey, we examine key aspects that are likely to influence the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe. The challenges and developments will strongly depend on the progress of national and global vaccination programs, the emergence and spread of variants of concern (VOCs), and public responses to non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs). In the short term, many people remain unvaccinated, VOCs continue to emerge and spread, and mobility and population mixing are expected to increase.

Where next for the design, delivery, and evaluation of community-based physical activity prescription? Emerging lessons from the United Kingdom.

Despite widespread use, community-based physical activity prescription is controversial. Data limitations have resulted in a lack of clarity about what works, under what circumstances, and for whom, reflected in conservative policy recommendations. In this commentary we challenge a predominantly negative discourse, using contemporary research to highlight promising findings and "lessons learnt" for design, delivery, and evaluation.

Insourcing and scaling a telemedicine solution in under 2 weeks: Lessons for the digital transformation of health care.

The Covid-19 pandemic required rapid scale of telemedicine as well as other digital workflows to maintain access to care while reducing infection risk. Both patients and clinicians who hadn't used telemedicine before were suddenly faced with a multi-step setup process to log into a virtual meeting. Unlike in-person examination rooms, locking a virtual meeting room was more error-prone and posed a risk of multiple patients joining the same online session.