• Title/Summary/Keyword: COVID-Pandemic

Search Result 1,928, Processing Time 0.025 seconds

COVID-19 Risk Factors Among Health Workers: A Rapid Review

  • Mhango, Malizgani;Dzobo, Mathias;Chitungo, Itai;Dzinamarira, Tafadzwa
    • Safety and Health at Work
    • /
    • v.11 no.3
    • /
    • pp.262-265
    • /
    • 2020
  • Coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) poses an important occupational health risk to health workers (HWs) that has attracted global scrutiny. To date, several thousand HWs globally have been reported as infected with the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 virus that causes the disease. It is therefore a public health priority for policymakers to understand risk factors for this vulnerable group to avert occupational transmission. A rapid review was carried out on 20 April 2020 on Covid-19 risk factors among HWs in PubMed, Google Scholar, and EBSCOHost Web (Academic Search Complete, CINAHL Complete, MEDLINE with Full Text, CINAHL with Full Text, APA PsycInfo, Health Source-Consumer Edition, Health Source: Nursing/Academic Edition) and WHO Global Database. We also searched for preprints on the medRxiv database. We searched for reports, reviews, and primary observational studies (case control, case cross-over, cross-sectional, and cohort). The review included studies conducted among HWs with Covid-19 that reported risk factors irrespective of their sample size. Eleven studies met the inclusion criteria. Lack of personal protective equipment, exposure to infected patients, work overload, poor infection control, and preexisting medical conditions were identified as risk factors for Covid-19 among HWs. In the context of Covid-19, HWs face an unprecedented occupational risk of morbidity and mortality. There is need for rapid development of sustainable measures that protect HWs from the pandemic.

Clinical features, diagnosis, and outcomes of multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children associated with coronavirus disease 2019

  • Kwak, Ji Hee;Lee, Soo-Young;Choi, Jong-Woon;Korean Society of Kawasaki Diseasety of Pediatric Endocrinology (KSPE),
    • Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
    • /
    • v.64 no.2
    • /
    • pp.68-75
    • /
    • 2021
  • The novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection has been spreading worldwide since December 2019. Hundreds of cases of children and adolescents with Kawasaki disease (KD)-like hyperinflammatory illness have been reported in Europe and the United States during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic with or without shock and cardiac dysfunction. These patients tested positive for the polymerase chain reaction or antibody test for SARS-CoV-2 or had a history of recent exposure to COVID-19. Clinicians managing such patients coined new terms for this new illness, such as COVID-19-associated hyperinflammatory response syndrome, pediatric inflammatory multisystem syndrome temporally associated with COVID-19, or COVID-19-associated multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C). The pathogenesis of MIS-C is unclear; however, it appears similar to that of cytokine storm syndrome. MIS-C shows clinical features similar to KD, but differences between them exist with respect to age, sex, and racial distributions and proportions of patients with shock or cardiac dysfunction. Recommended treatments for MIS-C include intravenous immunoglobulin, corticosteroids, and inotropic or vasopressor support. For refractory patients, monoclonal antibody to interleukin-6 receptor (tocilizumab), interleukin-1 receptor antagonist (anakinra), or monoclonal antibody to tumor necrosis factor (infliximab) may be recommended. Patients with coronary aneurysms require aspirin or anticoagulant therapy. The prognosis of MIS-C seemed favorable without sequelae in most patients despite a reported mortality rate of approximately 1.5%.

Estimating Willingness to Pay for Local Festival and Place Attachment in the COVID-19 era: A Case Study of Daegu Chimac Festival (코로나 시대의 장소 애착에 따른 지역 축제 입장료 지불 의사 평가 - 대구 치맥페스티벌을 중심으로 -)

  • Kim, Ju-ho;Kwon, Hyeog-in
    • The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
    • /
    • v.21 no.7
    • /
    • pp.181-193
    • /
    • 2021
  • Due to the spread of COVID-19, the domestic market was inevitable to face the crisis of tourism industry. Accordingly, most of local festivals decided to cancel or postpone, and have been in difficult situation. In addition, people also have experienced the thrist of cultural activities and tours. However, this situation can also be opportunity to find the clues for activating local festivals in the post-COVID-19 era with estimating the preservation value and deriving the determinants for it. Therefore, this study economically assessed the value of the local festival, Chimac Festival in Daegu, under the hypothetical financial crisis situation for COVID-19. Consequently, monthly income, age and place dependence was found to be influential for Daegu and nearby area citizens to have willingness to pay for the Chimac Festival in Daegu. The result shows that respondents are willing to pay 16,909 on truncated average. Thus, total value of Chimac Festival was estimated as 9.376 billion won.

A Study on the Narratives of Single Person Experience based on Visual Transference: Focusing on the Isolated Factors of COVID-19 (시각적 전이에 기초한 1인 경험 내러티브에 관한 연구: COVID-19의 고립 요인을 중심으로)

  • Lee, You-Jin
    • Journal of Digital Convergence
    • /
    • v.20 no.4
    • /
    • pp.519-528
    • /
    • 2022
  • The purpose of the study was to further investigate the direction for one-person experience design based on visual shift due to the isolation one has experienced after the COVID-19 and the factors regarding it. The study involves eight female participants who are in their twenties via digital platform. The participants were instructed to choose digital image similar to COVID-19 and to write down facts based upon the image and the researcher will look into the result microscopically. The researchers found that the isolation factors include decreased face-to-face communication, reliance on social media, heavy usage of OTT platform, limited outdoor occasion and activity, limitation of untact technology and education program, fear over the pandemic and so on. The study has shown that the one-person experience design should be heading in a direction where it adopts space design that can crossover online and offline world, digital complex design to embody realness as well as the communication design to regain the relationships with others.

Factors Associated With the Illness of Nursing Professionals Caused by COVID-19 in Three University Hospitals in Brazil

  • de Oliveira, Larissa Bertacchini;de Souza, Luana Mendes;de Lima, Fabia Maria;Fhon, Jack Roberto Silva;Puschel, Vilanice Alves de Araujo;Carbogim, Fabio da Costa
    • Safety and Health at Work
    • /
    • v.13 no.2
    • /
    • pp.255-260
    • /
    • 2022
  • Background: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has demonstrated the importance of implementing strategic management that prioritizes the safety of frontline nurse professionals. In this sense, this research was aimed at identifying factors associated with the illness of nursing professionals caused by COVID-19 according to socio-demographic, clinical, and labor variables. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in three Brazilian university hospitals with 859 nursing professionals, which include nurses, technicians, and nursing assistants, between November 2020 and February 2021. We present data using absolute and relative frequency. We used Chi-square test for hypothesis testing and multiple logistic regression for predictive analysis and chances of occurrence. Results: The rate of nursing professionals affected by COVID-19 was 41.8%, and the factors associated with contamination were the number of people in the same household with COVID-19 and obesity. Being a nurse was a protective factor when the entire nursing team was considered. The model is significant, and its variables represent 56.61% of the occurrence of COVID-19 in nursing professionals. Conclusion: Obesity and living in the same household as other people affected by COVID-19 increases the risk of contamination by this new coronavirus.

The Influence of Human Capital on GDP Dynamics: Modeling in the COVID-19 Conditions

  • Derii, Zhanna;Zosymenko, Tetiana;Shaposhnykov, Kostiantyn;Tochylina, Yuliia;Krylov, Denys;Papaika, Oleksandr
    • International Journal of Computer Science & Network Security
    • /
    • v.22 no.3
    • /
    • pp.67-76
    • /
    • 2022
  • COVID-19 struck labor markets around the world, exposing and exacerbating the gender inequalities within the human capital structure. The last, in its turn, jeopardizes the return of the national economies to the growth trajectory undermined by pandemic impact. The authors assume that COVID-19 disproportionately affected the employment rates of women and men, which led to increased gender inequality in the labor market, which, in turn, affected GDP growth rates in the EU. To prove this hypothesis two research questions are discovered: 1) whether there was a different correlation between the number of COVID-19 cases in the EU and indicators of the labor market for women and men; and 2) whether there was a link between the growth of gender inequality in the EU labor market and the GDP dynamics in these countries. The analysis of the correlation between the number of cases of COVID-19 and indicators of the labor market in the EU revealed faster growth of women's unemployment rates compared to men's ones as the COVID-19 incidence unfolded. Multiple linear regression and factor analysis have been used to investigate the influence of gender inequality in the labor market on GDP dynamics. Despite the methodological limitations, the proposed model is both a sound argument and an analytical basis in favor of gender-responsive economic recovery backed by the systematic and consistent gender equality policy of a government.

Can Panax ginseng help control cytokine storm in COVID-19?

  • Choi, Jong Hee;Lee, Young Hyun;Kwon, Tae Woo;Ko, Seong-Gyu;Nah, Seung-Yeol;Cho, Ik-Hyun
    • Journal of Ginseng Research
    • /
    • v.46 no.3
    • /
    • pp.337-347
    • /
    • 2022
  • Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is currently a pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). COVID-19 are directly associated with hyper-activation of innate immune response that excessively produce pro-inflammatory cytokines and induce cytokine storm, leading to multi-organ-failure and significant morbidity/mortality. Currently, several antiviral drugs such as Paxlovid (nirmatrelvir and ritonavir) and molnupiravir are authorized to treat mild to moderate COVID-19, however, there are still no drugs that can specifically fight against challenges of SARS-CoV-2 variants. Panax ginseng, a medicinal plant widely used for treating various conditions, might be appropriate for this need due to its anti-inflammatory/cytokine/viral activities, fewer side effects, and cost efficiency. To review Panax ginseng and its pharmacologically active-ingredients as potential phytopharmaceuticals for treating cytokine storm of COVID-19, articles that reporting its positive effects on the cytokine production were searched from academic databases. Experimental/clinical evidences for the effectiveness of Panax ginseng and its active-ingredients in preventing or mitigating cytokine storm, especially for the cascade of cytokine storm, suggest that they might be beneficial as an adjunct treatment for cytokine storm of COVID-19. This review may provide a new approach to discover specific medications using Panax ginseng to control cytokine storm of COVID-19.

Effects of COVID-19 Knowledge Level and Infection Control Fatigue and Stress on Infection Control Performance (코로나-19 지식수준과 감염관리 피로도 및 스트레스가 감염관리 수행도에 미치는 영향)

  • Kim, Da-Som;Bae, Seok-Hwan
    • Journal of radiological science and technology
    • /
    • v.45 no.3
    • /
    • pp.263-272
    • /
    • 2022
  • This study investigated small and medium-sized hospital workers' knowledge of COVID-19, the infection-control-related fatigue and stress levels, and the factors that impacted their performance during the COVID-19 pandemic. Using a cross-sectional design, data were collected from 137 hospital workers from four small and medium-sized hospitals in S and C cities. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, a t-test, analysis of variance(ANOVA), Pearson's correlation coefficient, and multiple linear regression analysis. Small and medium-sized hospital workers' knowledge of COVID-19 revealed a correct answer rate of 66%. An average of 3.00 points out of 4 for infection control performance and 3.32 and 3.17 points out of 5 for infection-control-related fatigue and stress, respectively, were found. The level of knowledge regarding COVID-19 significantly differed by age and marriage (p<0.05), while infection control performance significantly differed by age, marriage, and infection control education experience (p<0.05). Infection-control-related fatigue and stress differed depending on the COVID-19 control education experience, economic and social prejudice, and fear of discrimination. There were positive correlations between knowledge and infection control performance, and infection control performance and infection-control-related fatigue and stress (p<0.001). This study showed that the factors that affected small and medium-sized hospital workers' performance included knowledge of "environmental management," "difficulties due to new role requirements," "presence or absence of infection education experience," "job type," and "age." These results suggest that practical and detailed education programs should be systematically developed and implemented for effective infection control.

Effects of Change of Social Relations Due to COVID-19 on Life Satisfaction and Mediating Effect of Leisure Satisfaction of Older People (코로나19로 인한 사회관계 변화가 노인의 삶의 만족도에 미치는 영향과 여가만족도의 매개효과)

  • Lee, Sungeun
    • The Journal of the Convergence on Culture Technology
    • /
    • v.8 no.5
    • /
    • pp.17-27
    • /
    • 2022
  • The purpose of this study is to identify the effects of change of social relations due to COVID-19 on life satisfaction and to examine mediating effect of leisure satisfaction in the relationship between change of social relations due to COVID-19 and life satisfaction of older people. This study utilized 2021 Social Survey data and 7,203 older persons aged over 65 years were analyzed. Multiple regression analyses were used for the analyses and significance of mediating effect was tested using bootstrapping methods. Study findings showed that change of social relations due to COVID-19 had a significant effect on life satisfaction of older people. That is, those who experienced increasing distance from neighbors and friends reported lower level of life satisfaction. Also, leisure satisfaction partially mediated the effects of change of social relations due to COVID-19 on life satisfaction. Results of this study suggest that various interventions are needed to prevent a decrease of quality of life of older people in times during which social distancing can be necessary like COVID-19 pandemic.

The relationship of skin disorders, COVID-19, and the therapeutic potential of ginseng: a review

  • Seoyoun Yang;Su Bin Han;Soohyun Kang;Junghyun Lee;Dongseon Kim;Anastasiia Kozlova;Minkyung Song;See-Hyoung Park;Jongsung Lee
    • Journal of Ginseng Research
    • /
    • v.47 no.1
    • /
    • pp.33-43
    • /
    • 2023
  • Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has made significant impacts on global public health, including the development of several skin diseases that have arisen primarily as a result of the pandemic. Owing to the widespread expansion of coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19), the development of effective treatments for these skin diseases is drawing attention as an important social issue. For many centuries, ginseng and its major active ingredients, ginsenosides and saponins, have been widely regarded as herbal medicines. Further, the anti-viral action of ginseng suggests its potential effectiveness as a therapeutic agent against COVID-19. Thus, the aim of this review was to examine the association of skin lesions with COVID-19 and the effect of ginseng as a therapeutic agent to treat skin diseases induced by COVID-19 infection. We classified COVID-19-related skin disorders into three categories: caused by inflammatory, immune, and complex (both inflammatory and immune) responses and evaluated the evidence for ginseng as a treatment for each category. This review offers comprehensive evidence on the improvement of skin disorders induced by SARS-CoV-2 infection using ginseng and its active constituents.