Background: The US Preventive Services Task Force recommends providers offer individualized healthy behavior interventions for all adults, independent of their risk of cardiovascular disease. While strong evidence exists to support disease-specific programs designed to improve multiple lifestyle behaviors, approaches to adapting these interventions for a broader population are not well established. Digital behavior change interventions (DBCIs) hold promise as a more generalizable and scalable approach to overcome the resource and time limitations that traditional behavioral intervention programs face, especially within an occupational setting.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFFilaroid nematodes Setaria tundra (Issaitshikoff & Rajewskaya, 1928) and Setaria cervi (Rudolphi, 1819) are internal parasites from family Onchocercidae with occurrence in the northern hemisphere. They have a considerably wide range of final host, including many species of family Cervidae. Intermediate hosts and vectors at the same time, are represented by the several mosquito species, mostly of genus Aedes.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: The performance of rapid antigen tests (Ag-RDTs) for screening asymptomatic and symptomatic persons for SARS-CoV-2 is not well established.
Objective: To evaluate the performance of Ag-RDTs for detection of SARS-CoV-2 among symptomatic and asymptomatic participants.
Design: This prospective cohort study enrolled participants between October 2021 and January 2022.
Background: Rapid antigen detection tests (Ag-RDT) for SARS-CoV-2 with emergency use authorization generally include a condition of authorization to evaluate the test's performance in asymptomatic individuals when used serially. We aim to describe a novel study design that was used to generate regulatory-quality data to evaluate the serial use of Ag-RDT in detecting SARS-CoV-2 virus among asymptomatic individuals.
Methods: This prospective cohort study used a siteless, digital approach to assess longitudinal performance of Ag-RDT.
Setaria tundra is a filarioid parasite occurring in the northern hemisphere. Adult forms of helminths are located free in the peritoneal cavity of its definitive host - cervids, while microfilariae are presented in the host's bloodstream. Intermediate hosts are represented by several mosquito species, mainly of the genus Aedes.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFFamiliar controversies in the management of head and neck melanomas are more remarkable in locally advanced cases, and they represent a treatment challenge both surgically and oncologically. In our retrospective study, patients with surgically treated primary malignant melanoma of the head and neck region larger than 3 cm in diameter were included. Five patients met our inclusion criteria.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe European beaver (Castor fiber) was a fully eradicated species in Slovakia. Thanks to year-round protection and several different reintroduction programs the population is now increasing. However, there are limited reports about their health status.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: It is important to document the performance of rapid antigen tests (Ag-RDTs) in detecting SARS-CoV-2 variants.
Objective: To compare the performance of Ag-RDTs in detecting the Delta (B.1.
Background: The ongoing SARS-CoV-2 pandemic necessitates the development of accurate, rapid, and affordable diagnostics to help curb disease transmission, morbidity, and mortality. Rapid antigen tests are important tools for scaling up testing for SARS-CoV-2; however, little is known about individuals' use of rapid antigen tests at home and how to facilitate the user experience.
Objective: This study aimed to describe the feasibility and acceptability of serial self-testing with rapid antigen tests for SARS-CoV-2, including need for assistance and the reliability of self-interpretation.
Background: Performance of rapid antigen tests for SARS-CoV-2 (Ag-RDT) varies over the course of an infection, and their performance in screening for SARS-CoV-2 is not well established. We aimed to evaluate performance of Ag-RDT for detection of SARS-CoV-2 for symptomatic and asymptomatic participants.
Methods: Participants >2 years old across the United States enrolled in the study between October 2021 and February 2022.
Background: Rapid antigen tests (Ag-RDT) for SARS-CoV-2 with Emergency Use Authorization generally include a condition of authorization to evaluate the test's performance in asymptomatic individuals when used serially.
Objective: To describe a novel study design to generate regulatory-quality data to evaluate serial use of Ag-RDT in detecting SARS-CoV-2 virus among asymptomatic individuals.
Design: Prospective cohort study using a decentralized approach.
Background: Serial testing for SARS-CoV-2 is recommended to reduce spread of the virus; however, little is known about adherence to recommended testing schedules and reporting practices to health departments.
Objective: The Self-Testing for Our Protection from COVID-19 (STOP COVID-19) study aims to examine adherence to a risk-based COVID-19 testing strategy using rapid antigen tests and reporting of test results to health departments.
Methods: STOP COVID-19 is a 12-week digital study, facilitated using a smartphone app for testing assistance and reporting.
The dynamics of SARS-CoV-2 replication and shedding in humans remain poorly understood. We captured the dynamics of infectious virus and viral RNA shedding during acute infection through daily longitudinal sampling of 60 individuals for up to 14 days. By fitting mechanistic models, we directly estimated viral expansion and clearance rates and overall infectiousness for each individual.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Panton-Valentine Leukocidin (PVL) toxin in Staphylococcus aureus has been associated with both severe pneumonia and skin and soft tissue infections. However, there are only limited data on how this virulence factor may influence the clinical course or complications of bacteremic S. aureus infections.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe dynamics of SARS-CoV-2 replication and shedding in humans remain poorly understood. We captured the dynamics of infectious virus and viral RNA shedding during acute infection through daily longitudinal sampling of 60 individuals for up to 14 days. By fitting mechanistic models, we directly estimate viral reproduction and clearance rates, and overall infectiousness for each individual.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Serial screening is critical for restricting spread of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) by facilitating timely identification of infected individuals to interrupt transmission. Variation in sensitivity of different diagnostic tests at different stages of infection has not been well documented.
Methods: In a longitudinal study of 43 adults newly infected with SARS-CoV-2, all provided daily saliva and nasal swabs for quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR), Quidel SARS Sofia antigen fluorescent immunoassay (FIA), and live virus culture.
Although the two species of chamois ( and ) are currently classified as least-concern by the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature), inconsistencies on the subspecies classification reported in literature make it challenging to assess the conservation status of the single subspecies. Previous studies relying on mitochondrial genes, sometimes in combination with nuclear or Y-chromosome markers, reported the presence of clusters corresponding to the geographic distribution but highlighting ambiguities in the genus phylogeny. Here we report novel de novo assembled sequences of the mitochondrial genome from nine individuals, including previously unpublished and subspecies, and use them to untangle the genus phylogeny.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe present paper deals with the post-mortem diagnostics of onchocerciasis and the molecular detection of causative agents of this disease in wild ruminant ungulates (Cervus elaphus, Dama dama and Capreolus capreolus). The animals were shot in hunting seasons 2017 and 2018, in two regions of the Eastern Slovakia. The total number of examined skins was fifty-eight.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCalcium electroporation (Ca-EP) is a new anticancer treatment providing similar features to electrochemotherapy (ECT). The aim of our study is to compare the efficacy of Ca-EP with bleomycin-based ECT. This double-blinded randomized controlled phase II study was conducted at the Medical University of Szeged, Hungary.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInfect Control Hosp Epidemiol
June 2019
Background: Determining infectious cross-transmission events in healthcare settings involves manual surveillance of case clusters by infection control personnel, followed by strain typing of clinical/environmental isolates suspected in said clusters. Recent advances in genomic sequencing and cloud computing now allow for the rapid molecular typing of infecting isolates.
Objective: To facilitate rapid recognition of transmission clusters, we aimed to assess infection control surveillance using whole-genome sequencing (WGS) of microbial pathogens to identify cross-transmission events for epidemiologic review.