Occupational risk factors for severe acute respiratory coronavirus virus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection among healthcare personnel: A 6-month prospective analysis of the COVID-19 Prevention in Emory Healthcare Personnel (COPE) Study.

Objectives: To determine the incidence of severe acute respiratory coronavirus virus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection among healthcare personnel (HCP) and to assess occupational risks for SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Design: Prospective cohort of healthcare personnel (HCP) followed for 6 months from May through December 2020.

Setting: Large academic healthcare system including 4 hospitals and affiliated clinics in Atlanta, Georgia.

Risk Factors Associated With SARS-CoV-2 Seropositivity Among US Health Care Personnel.

Importance: Risks for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection among health care personnel (HCP) are unclear.

Objective: To evaluate the risk factors associated with SARS-CoV-2 seropositivity among HCP with the a priori hypothesis that community exposure but not health care exposure was associated with seropositivity.

Design, Setting, And Participants: This cross-sectional study was conducted among volunteer HCP at 4 large health care systems in 3 US states.

Occupational risk factors for severe acute respiratory coronavirus virus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection among healthcare personnel: A cross-sectional analysis of subjects enrolled in the COVID-19 Prevention in Emory Healthcare Personnel (COPE) study.

Among 353 healthcare personnel in a longitudinal cohort in 4 hospitals in Atlanta, Georgia (May-June 2020), 23 (6.5%) had severe acute respiratory coronavirus virus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) antibodies. Spending >50% of a typical shift at the bedside (OR, 3.

Quantification of Occupational and Community Risk Factors for SARS-CoV-2 Seropositivity Among Health Care Workers in a Large U.S. Health Care System.

Background: Identifying occupational risk factors for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection among health care workers (HCWs) can improve HCW and patient safety.

Objective: To quantify demographic, occupational, and community risk factors for SARS-CoV-2 seropositivity among HCWs in a large health care system.

Design: A logistic regression model was fitted to data from a cross-sectional survey conducted in April to June 2020, linking risk factors for occupational and community exposure to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) with SARS-CoV-2 seropositivity.

Immunomodulatory Low-Dose Whole-Lung Radiation for Patients with Coronavirus Disease 2019-Related Pneumonia.

Purpose: Phase 1 clinical trials have established low-dose, whole-lung radiation therapy (LD-RT) as safe for patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)-related pneumonia. By focally dampening cytokine hyperactivation, LD-RT may improve disease outcomes through immunomodulation.

Methods And Materials: Patients with COVID-19-related pneumonia were treated with 1.

Quantification of occupational and community risk factors for SARS-CoV-2 seropositivity among healthcare workers in a large U.S. healthcare system.

Background: Quantifying occupational risk factors for SARS-CoV-2 infection among healthcare workers can inform efforts to improve healthcare worker and patient safety and reduce transmission. This study aimed to quantify demographic, occupational, and community risk factors for SARS-CoV-2 seropositivity among healthcare workers in a large metropolitan healthcare system.

Methods: We analyzed data from a cross-sectional survey conducted from April through June of 2020 linking risk factors for occupational and community exposure to COVID-19 with SARS-CoV-2 seropositivity.

The Effect of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) Mitigation Strategies on Seasonal Respiratory Viruses: A Tale of 2 Large Metropolitan Centers in the United States.

To assess the impact of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic on seasonal respiratory viruses, absolute case counts and viral reproductive rates from 2019-2020 were compared against previous seasons. Our findings suggest that the public health measures implemented to reduce SARS-CoV-2 transmission significantly reduced the transmission of other respiratory viruses.

Low-dose whole-lung radiation for COVID-19 pneumonia: Planned day 7 interim analysis of a registered clinical trial.

Background: Individuals of advanced age with comorbidities face a higher risk of death from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), especially once they are ventilator-dependent. Respiratory decline in patients with COVID-19 is precipitated by a lung-mediated aberrant immune cytokine storm. Low-dose lung radiation was used to treat pneumonia in the pre-antibiotic era.

Obstetricians on the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Front Lines and the Confusing World of Personal Protective Equipment.

As health care systems struggle to maintain adequate supplies of personal protective equipment, there is confusion and anxiety among obstetricians and others about how to best protect themselves, their coworkers, and their patients. Although use of personal protective equipment is a critical strategy to protect health care personnel from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), other strategies also need to be implemented on labor and delivery units to reduce the risk of health care-associated transmission, including screening of all pregnant women who present for care (case identification), placing a mask on and rapidly isolating ill pregnant women, and minimizing the number of personnel who enter the room of an ill patient (physical distancing). Although the mechanism of transmission of COVID-19 is not known with certainty, current evidence suggests that COVID-19 is transmitted primarily through respiratory droplets.

Comparison of Rates of Central Line-Associated Bloodstream Infections in Patients With 1 vs 2 Central Venous Catheters.

Importance: National Healthcare Safety Network methods for central line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI) surveillance do not account for potential additive risk for CLABSI associated with use of 2 central venous catheters (CVCs) at the same time (concurrent CVCs); facilities that serve patients requiring high acuity care with medically indicated concurrent CVC use likely disproportionally incur Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services payment penalties for higher CLABSI rates.

Objective: To quantify the risk for CLABSI associated with concurrent use of a second CVC.

Design, Setting, And Participants: This retrospective cohort study included adult patients with 2 or more days with a CVC at 4 geographically separated general acute care hospitals in the Atlanta, Georgia, area that varied in size from 110 to 580 beds, from January 1, 2012, to December 31, 2017.

Impact of multiple concurrent central lines on central-line-associated bloodstream infection rates.

Background: The current methodology for calculating central-line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI) rates, used for pay-for-performance measures, does not account for multiple concurrent central lines.

Objective: To compare CLABSI rates using standard National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) denominators to rates accounting for multiple concurrent central lines.

Design: Descriptive analysis and retrospective cohort analysis.

Ebola or Not? Evaluating the Ill Traveler From Ebola-Affected Countries in West Africa.

Background.  The 2014-2015 Ebola epidemic in West Africa had global impact beyond the primarily affected countries of Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone. Other countries, including the United States, encountered numerous patients who arrived from highly affected countries with fever or other signs or symptoms consistent with Ebola virus disease (EVD).

High Risk of Prosthetic Valve Endocarditis and Death After Valve Replacement Operations in Dialysis Patients.

Background: Despite a high burden of dialysis access-related bloodstream infections and an increasing incidence of endocarditis, few data are available addressing the risk of prosthetic valve endocarditis (PVE) in the dialysis population. We sought to assess the risk of PVE and death after valve replacement operations in patients receiving long-term dialysis.

Methods: A matched retrospective cohort study was conducted comprising patients admitted for valve replacement operations at two university hospitals.

Loving-Kindness Meditation to Target Affect in Mood Disorders: A Proof-of-Concept Study.

Conventional treatments for mood disorders primarily focus on reducing negative affect, but little on enhancing positive affect. Loving-kindness meditation (LKM) is a traditional meditation practice directly oriented toward enhancing unconditional and positive emotional states of kindness towards oneself and others. We report here two independent and uncontrolled studies carried out at different centers, one in Boston, USA (n = 10), and one in Frankfurt, Germany (n = 8), to examine the potential therapeutic utility of a brief LKM group intervention for symptoms of dysthymia and depression.

Comparison of a silver-coated needleless connector and a standard needleless connector for the prevention of central line-associated bloodstream infections.

Objective: To assess the impact of a novel, silver-coated needleless connectors (NCs) on central-line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI) rates compared with a mechanically identical NCs without a silver coating.

Design: Prospective longitudinal observation study SETTING Two 500-bed university hospitals

Patients: All hospitalized adults from November 2009 to June 2011 with non-hemodialysis central lines

Interventions: Hospital A started with silver-coated NCs and switched to standard NCs in September 2010; hospital B started with standard NCs and switched to silver-coated NCs. The primary outcome was the difference revealed by Poisson multivariate regression in CLABSI rate using standard Centers for Disease Control and Prevention surveillance definitions.

Microbial biofilms on needleless connectors for central venous catheters: comparison of standard and silver-coated devices collected from patients in an acute care hospital.

Microorganisms may colonize needleless connectors (NCs) on intravascular catheters, forming biofilms and predisposing patients to catheter-associated infection (CAI). Standard and silver-coated NCs were collected from catheterized intensive care unit patients to characterize biofilm formation using culture-dependent and culture-independent methods and to investigate the associations between NC usage and biofilm characteristics. Viable microorganisms were detected by plate counts from 46% of standard NCs and 59% of silver-coated NCs (P=0.

Electronic documentation of central venous catheter-days: validation is essential.

Background: Measurement of central line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI) rates outside of intensive care units is challenged by the difficulty in reliably determining central venous catheter (CVC) use. The National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) allows for use of electronic data for determination of CVC-days, but validation of electronic data has not been studied systematically.

Objective: To design and validate a process to reliably measure CVC-days outside of the intensive care units that leverages electronic documentation.