Publications by authors named "N Widmer"
The hepatitis E virus (HEV) is an emerging infectious disease with zoonotic potential, causing acute hepatitis in humans. Infections in healthy individuals are often acute, self-limiting and asymptomatic, thus leading to the underdiagnosis of HEV infections. Asymptomatic HEV infections pose a problem for blood transfusion safety by increasing the risk for transfusion-transmitted HEV infections.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIncidents involving ionizing radiation pose a risk of immediate and long-term clinical consequences for both victims and responders in the event of secondary contamination. Rapid identification of the problem and a coordinated response are crucial. This article summarizes the key challenges related to the emergency management of a single patient or multiple victims, addressing the importance of recognizing such a case, radioprotection measures, decontamination, and available treatments.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMost traditional cytotoxic drugs are characterized by steep dose-response relationships and narrow therapeutic windows [...
View Article and Find Full Text PDFArticle Synopsis
- Hepatitis E virus (HEV) genotype 3 is a significant cause of acute hepatitis in Europe, often spread through contaminated pork and blood transfusions, particularly affecting immunocompromised individuals.
- A nationwide study in Switzerland over two years assessed the prevalence of HEV in blood donations to evaluate the need for RNA screening.
- Out of over 541,000 blood donations screened, 125 were found positive for HEV, with a predominance of infections in men, and all confirmed cases belonging to HEV genotype 3, highlighting the need for monitoring to protect vulnerable patients.
Article Synopsis
- - From 2014 to 2016, hepatitis E virus (HEV) infections surged in southern Switzerland, prompting an investigation into food as a potential source; food control measures were introduced in 2017.
- - Blood donor screenings for antibodies showed no significant changes in IgG or IgM rates before and after the implementation of food control measures, suggesting these measures may have had limited effectiveness.
- - Despite high HEV seroprevalence linked to rural food supply differences, the study found very few NAT-positive donors, indicating the need for ongoing nucleic acid testing to monitor blood HEV risk.