Influence of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Influenza and SARS-CoV-2 Vaccination Willingness Among Dutch Nursing Home Health Care Workers.

Objectives: To explore the influenza and COVID-19 vaccination status among Dutch nursing home (NH) health care workers (HCWs), factors associated with vaccination including the influence of the pandemic, and the facilitators and barriers to vaccination willingness.

Design: An explanatory sequential mixed methods study.

Setting And Participants: HCWs providing direct care to residents in Dutch NHs.

Long-term sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 two years following infection: exploring the interplay of biological, psychological, and social factors.

Background: Severe fatigue and cognitive complaints are frequently reported after SARS-CoV-2 infection and may be accompanied by depressive symptoms and/or limitations in physical functioning. The long-term sequelae of COVID-19 may be influenced by biomedical, psychological, and social factors, the interplay of which is largely understudied over time. We aimed to investigate how the interplay of these factors contribute to the persistence of symptoms after COVID-19.

Neuropsychological functioning after COVID-19: minor differences between individuals with and without persistent complaints after SARS-CoV-2 infection.

It is unclear how self-reported severe fatigue and difficulty concentrating after SARS-CoV-2 infection relate to objective neuropsychological functioning. The study aimed to compare neuropsychological functioning between individuals with and without these persistent subjective complaints. : Individuals with and without persistent severe fatigue (Checklist Individual Strength (CIS) fatigue ≥ 35) and difficulty concentrating (CIS concentration ≥ 18) at least 3 months after SARS-CoV-2 infection were included.

Inflammatory profiles are associated with long COVID up to 6 months after COVID-19 onset: A prospective cohort study of individuals with mild to critical COVID-19.

Background: After initial COVID-19, immune dysregulation may persist and drive post-acute sequelae of COVID-19 (PASC). We described longitudinal trajectories of cytokines in adults up to 6 months following SARS-CoV-2 infection and explored early predictors of PASC.

Methods: RECoVERED is a prospective cohort of individuals with laboratory-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection between May 2020 and June 2021 in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

Long-term evolution of human seasonal influenza virus A(H3N2) is associated with an increase in polymerase complex activity.

Since the influenza pandemic in 1968, influenza A(H3N2) viruses have become endemic. In this state, H3N2 viruses continuously evolve to overcome immune pressure as a result of prior infection or vaccination, as is evident from the accumulation of mutations in the surface glycoproteins hemagglutinin (HA) and neuraminidase (NA). However, phylogenetic studies have also demonstrated ongoing evolution in the influenza A(H3N2) virus RNA polymerase complex genes.

Determinants of epidemic size and the impacts of lulls in seasonal influenza virus circulation.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, levels of seasonal influenza virus circulation were unprecedentedly low, leading to concerns that a lack of exposure to influenza viruses, combined with waning antibody titres, could result in larger and/or more severe post-pandemic seasonal influenza epidemics. However, in most countries the first post-pandemic influenza season was not unusually large and/or severe. Here, based on an analysis of historical influenza virus epidemic patterns from 2002 to 2019, we show that historic lulls in influenza virus circulation had relatively minor impacts on subsequent epidemic size and that epidemic size was more substantially impacted by season-specific effects unrelated to the magnitude of circulation in prior seasons.

Immunostimulatory Effect of Flagellin on MDR--Infected Human Airway Epithelial Cells.

Pneumonia caused by multi-drug-resistant (MDR-) poses a major public health threat, especially to immunocompromised or hospitalized patients. This study aimed to determine the immunostimulatory effect of the Toll-like receptor 5 ligand flagellin on primary human lung epithelial cells during infection with MDR-. Human bronchial epithelial (HBE) cells, grown on an air-liquid interface, were inoculated with MDR- on the apical side and treated during ongoing infection with antibiotics (meropenem) and/or flagellin on the basolateral and apical side, respectively; the antimicrobial and inflammatory effects of flagellin were determined in the presence or absence of meropenem.

Aberrant neutrophil degranulation in hospitalized patients with COVID-19 partially remains for 6 months.

Neutrophils are important players in COVID-19, contributing to tissue damage by release of inflammatory mediators, including ROS and neutrophil elastase. Longitudinal studies on the effects of COVID-19 on neutrophil phenotype and function are scarce. Here, we longitudinally investigated the phenotype and degranulation of neutrophils in COVID-19 patients (28 nonhospitalized and 35 hospitalized patients) compared with 17 healthy donors (HDs).

Mental health up to 12 months following SARS-CoV-2 infection: A prospective cohort study.

Objective: To investigate to what extent individuals report clinically relevant levels of depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms and concentration problems up to 12 months following COVID-19 symptom onset, using validated questionnaires.

Methods: RECoVERED, a prospective cohort study in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, enrolled both hospitalized and community-dwelling adult participants diagnosed with SARS-CoV-2. Symptoms of depression and anxiety were assessed with the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 and Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 1, 3, 6 and 12 months following illness onset.

Two-year trajectories of COVID-19 symptoms and their association with illness perception: A prospective cohort study in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

Background: We used data from a prospective cohort to explore 2-year trajectories of 'long COVID' (persistent symptoms after SARS-CoV-2 infection) and their association with illness perception.

Methods: RECoVERED participants (adults; prospectively enrolled following laboratory-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection, May 2020-June 2021) completed symptom questionnaires at months 2-12, 18 and 24, and the Brief Illness Perception Questionnaire (B-IPQ) at months 1, 6 and 12. Using group-based trajectory models (GBTM), we modelled symptoms (mean total numbers and proportion with four specific complaints), including age, sex, BMI and timing of infection as covariates.

Parasitic, bacterial, viral, immune-mediated, metabolic and nutritional factors associated with nodding syndrome.

Nodding syndrome is a neglected, disabling and potentially fatal epileptic disorder of unknown aetiology affecting thousands of individuals mostly confined to Eastern sub-Saharan Africa. Previous studies have identified multiple associations-including , antileiomodin-1 antibodies, vitamin B deficiency and measles virus infection-yet, none is proven causal. We conducted a case-control study of children with early-stage nodding syndrome (symptom onset <1 year).

One-fourth of COVID-19 patients have an impaired pulmonary function after 12 months of disease onset.

Background: There is increasing data that show a persistently impaired pulmonary function upon recovery after severe infection. Little is known however about the extent, recovery and determinants of pulmonary impairment across the full spectrum of COVID-19 severity over time.

Methods: In a well characterized, prospective cohort of both hospitalised and non-hospitalised individuals with SARS-CoV-2 infection, the RECoVERED study, pulmonary function (diffusing capacity for carbon monoxide (DLCO)) and spirometry) was measured until one year after disease onset.

Post-infectious irritable bowel syndrome after intercontinental travel: a prospective multicentre study.

By longitudinally following a large cohort of intercontinental travellers, this study highlights the importance of considering multiple risk factors to comprehend post-infectious irritable bowel syndrome (PI-IBS). Stomach cramps, antibiotic use and nausea during travel were amongst the variables that predicted PI-IBS development following an episode of traveller’s diarrhoea.

Neurobiological basis and risk factors of persistent fatigue and concentration problems after COVID-19: study protocol for a prospective case-control study (VeCosCO).

Introduction: The risk factors for persistent fatigue and cognitive complaints after infection with SARS-CoV-2 and the underlying pathophysiology are largely unknown. Both clinical factors and cognitive-behavioural factors have been suggested to play a role in the perpetuation of complaints. A neurobiological aetiology, such as neuroinflammation, could be the underlying pathophysiological mechanism for persisting complaints.

Age-related changes in plasma biomarkers and their association with mortality in COVID-19.

Background: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)-induced mortality occurs predominantly in older patients. Several immunomodulating therapies seem less beneficial in these patients. The biological substrate behind these observations is unknown.

Viral, Bacterial, Metabolic, and Autoimmune Causes of Severe Acute Encephalopathy in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Multicenter Cohort Study.

Objectives: To assess whether viral, bacterial, metabolic, and autoimmune diseases are missed by conventional diagnostics among children with severe acute encephalopathy in sub-Saharan Africa.

Study Design: One hundred thirty-four children (6 months to 18 years) presenting with nontraumatic coma or convulsive status epilepticus to 1 of 4 medical referral centers in Uganda, Malawi, and Rwanda were enrolled between 2015 and 2016. Locally available diagnostic tests could be supplemented in 117 patients by viral, bacterial, and 16s quantitative polymerase chain reaction testing, metagenomics, untargeted metabolomics, and autoimmune immunohistochemistry screening.

Potential impacts of prolonged absence of influenza virus circulation on subsequent epidemics.

Background: During the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic, the circulation of seasonal influenza viruses was unprecedentedly low. This led to concerns that the lack of immune stimulation to influenza viruses combined with waning antibody titres could lead to increased susceptibility to influenza in subsequent seasons, resulting in larger and more severe epidemics.

Methods: We analyzed historical influenza virus epidemiological data from 2003-2019 to assess the historical frequency of near-absence of seasonal influenza virus circulation and its impact on the size and severity of subsequent epidemics.

Health-related quality of life among persons with initial mild, moderate, and severe or critical COVID-19 at 1 and 12 months after infection: a prospective cohort study.

Background: Currently, there is limited evidence about the long-term impact on physical, social and emotional functioning, i.e. health-related quality of life (HRQL) after mild or moderate COVID-19 not requiring hospitalization.

Antigenic cartography using sera from sequence-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern infections reveals antigenic divergence of Omicron.

Large-scale vaccination campaigns have prevented countless hospitalizations and deaths due to COVID-19. However, the emergence of SARS-CoV-2 variants that escape from immunity challenges the effectiveness of current vaccines. Given this continuing evolution, an important question is when and how to update SARS-CoV-2 vaccines to antigenically match circulating variants, similarly to seasonal influenza viruses where antigenic drift necessitates periodic vaccine updates.

Comparison of fast Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy biotyping with whole genome sequencing-based genotyping in common nosocomial pathogens.

Early detection of bacterial transmission and outbreaks in hospitals is important because nosocomial infections can result in health complications and longer hospitalization. Current practice to detect outbreaks uses genotyping methods amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) and whole genome sequencing (WGS), which are not suitable methods for real-time transmission screening of both susceptible and resistant bacteria. The aim was to assess the typing technique Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy as real-time screening method to discriminate large amounts of susceptible and resistant bacteria at strain level when there is no evident outbreak in comparison with the WGS reference.

Susceptibility Testing by Volatile Organic Compound Detection Direct from Positive Blood Cultures: A Proof-of-Principle Laboratory Study.

Background: Bacteria produce volatile organic compounds (VOCs) during growth, which can be detected by colorimetric sensor arrays (CSAs). The SpecifAST system (Specific Diagnostics) employs this technique to enable antibiotic susceptibility testing (AST) directly from blood cultures without prior subculture of isolates. The aim of this study was to compare the SpecifAST AST results and analysis time to the VITEK2 (bioMérieux) system.

The effect of SARS-CoV-2 vaccination on post-acute sequelae of COVID-19 (PASC): A prospective cohort study.

Background: Symptoms of post-acute sequelae of COVID-19 (PASC) may improve following SARS-CoV-2 vaccination. However few prospective data that also explore the underlying biological mechanism are available. We assessed the effect of vaccination on symptomatology of participants with PASC, and compared antibody dynamics between those with and without PASC.