Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic forced leaders and employees in health care services to take difficult decisions to manage risks associated with employee health and the organizations' functioning. This study aims to identify the changes in employee working routines, job demands, and job resources within Swedish maternal healthcare during the COVID-19 pandemic, and how these changes affected workload and health.
Methods: Data were derived from the longitudinal COPE Staff study involving midwives and physicians within maternal healthcare.
Categorization systems for tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV) infection lack consistency in classifying disease severity. To evaluate the need for a standard, consensus-based categorisation system for TBEV infection across subtypes, we gathered an expert panel of clinicians and scientists with diverse expertise in TBEV infection. Consensus was sought using the Delphi technique, which consisted of 2 web-based survey questionnaires and a final, virtual, consensus-building exercise.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPurpose: To describe the clinical characteristics and factors associated with disease severity in a Norwegian cohort of hospitalized patients with tick-borne encephalitis (TBE).
Methods: This observational multicenter study included hospitalized patients with TBE in the endemic area in the southeastern region of Norway from 2018 to 2022. Clinical signs and findings from laboratory tests, EEG, CT and MRI scans were recorded.
Background: The aim of this study was to characterise long-term neurological and neurocognitive sequelae after tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) in adults.
Methods: 98 prospective consecutive TBE patients, classified by disease severity, were included. Immediate outcomes were evaluated with Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOS) and Rankin Scale (RS).
Background And Purpose: Our aim was to examine the correlation between biomarkers of neuronal and glial cell damage and severity of disease in patients with tick-borne encephalitis.
Methods: One hundred and fifteen patients with tick-borne encephalitis diagnosed in Lithuania and Sweden were prospectively included, and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and serum samples were obtained shortly after hospitalization. Using pre-defined criteria, cases were classified as mild, moderate or severe tick-borne encephalitis.
Objective: To describe the study design of the COPE Staff cohort study on working conditions for maternal and neonatal healthcare workers (MNHCWs), and present baseline data regarding job satisfaction, work-life conflicts, stress, and burnout.
Methods: Between January and April 2021, 957 MNHCWs (administrative and medical staff) completed a baseline survey. Average levels of job satisfaction, work-life conflicts, stress, and burnout, and associations to perceived workload were assessed.
Background: To outline how the training program and work situation of residents in Obstetrics and Gynecology (OB-GYN) was affected by the pandemic and to illuminate how residents experienced these changes.
Methods: As part of the COVID-19 in Pregnancy and Early Childhood Staff (COPE Staff) cohort study, between January and May 2021, all participating residents were invited to answer a 28-question online Resident Survey focusing on their specialist education, work situation and experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic. Descriptive statistics were given in percentages for categorical variables and means and standard deviations (SD) for continuous variables.
Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate how the changed work routines during the COVID-19 pandemic has been affecting the working environment for hospital-based maternity and neonatal health care workers, and to identify preventive measures to be used in future situations when health care organizations are under pressure.
Methods: All maternity and neonatal health care workers in a Swedish university hospital were surveyed during October 2019 and September 2020. The data was analyzed by document analysis of implemented changes in working routines, a quantitative analysis of the overall effects on the working conditions, and a qualitative analysis of open-ended responses.
Recipients of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) for hematological diseases are at risk of severe disease and death from COVID-19. To determine the safety and immunogenicity of BNT162b2 and mRNA-1273 COVID-19 vaccines, samples from 50 infection-naive allo-HSCT recipients (median, 92 months from transplantation, range, 7-340 months) and 39 healthy controls were analyzed for serum immunoglobulin G (IgG) against the receptor binding domain (RBD) within spike 1 (S1) of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2; anti-RBD-S1 IgG) and for SARS-CoV-2-specific T-cell immunity, reflected by induction of T-cell-derived interferon-γ in whole blood stimulated ex vivo with 15-mer SI-spanning peptides with 11 amino acid overlap S1-spanning peptides. The rate of seroconversion was not significantly lower in allo-transplanted patients than in controls with 24% (12/50) and 6% (3/50) of patients remaining seronegative after the first and second vaccination, respectively.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: There is limited knowledge on how the SARS-CoV-2 affects pregnancy outcomes. Studies investigating the impact of COVID-19 in early pregnancy are scarce and information on long-term follow-up is lacking.The purpose of this project is to study the impact of COVID-19 on pregnancy outcomes and long-term maternal and child health by: (1) establishing a database and biobank from pregnant women with COVID-19 and presumably non-infected women and their infants and (2) examining how women and their partners experience pregnancy, childbirth and early parenthood in the COVID-19 pandemic.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTick-borne encephalitis (TBE) is a widespread viral infection of the central nervous system with increasing incidence in Europe and northern Asia. Post-infectious sequelae are frequent, and patients with TBE commonly experience long-term fatigue and subjective sleep disturbances. Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) may be a contributing factor, and objective sleep studies with polysomnography (PSG) are lacking.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Our aim was to assess response and side effects of 4 doses of TBE vaccine to patients (pts) after allo- and autologous stem cell transplantation (SCT).
Patients: Included were 104 pts with leukaemia, myeloma and lymphoma, median age 61 yrs.
Methods: Vaccine (FSME-Immun®) was given at 9, 10, 12, and 21 months post-transplant.
Tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) is an emerging infectious disease in large parts of Europe and Asia. Whereas other members of the Flaviviridae family can harm fetal development, there are only very few reports on TBE virus (TBEV) infections during pregnancy. Thus, the implications for fetal health remain largely unknown.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTick-borne encephalitis (TBE) is one of the most prevalent viral central nervous system (CNS) infections in Eurasia and neurological sequelae are common. The immune responses are considered crucial for the pathogenesis. The aim of this study was to explore the activation of the complement system in TBE.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEur J Clin Microbiol Infect Dis
February 2018
We set out to investigate the serological response of TBE virus (TBEV)-specific IgM and IgG antibodies in stored serum and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in notified TBE patients, in order to confirm or reject the diagnosis. We applied the ELISA methods used in clinical practice, Enzygnost and Immunozym, and assessed RT-PCR as a diagnostic tool. A total of 173 TBE cases were notified to the Public Health Agency.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF