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20/05/2023 World Report
With the COVID-19 PHEIC over, what next?

THE LANCET

Authors
John Zarocostas

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24/10/2022 Viewpoint
After 2 years of the COVID-19 pandemic, translating One Health into ac...

After 2 years of the COVID-19 pandemic, translating One Health into action is urgent

THE LANCET

Authors
Thierry Lefrançois*, Denis Malvy*, Laetitia Atlani-Duault, Daniel Benamouzig, Pierre-Louis Druais, Yazdan Yazdanpanah, Jean-François Delfraissy, Bruno Lina

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01/07/2022 World Review
2022 international clinical practice guidelines for the treatment and ...

2022 international clinical practice guidelines for the treatment and prophylaxis of venous thromboembolism in patients with cancer, including patients with COVID-19

THE LANCET

Authors
Dominique Farge*, Corinne Frere*, Jean M Connors, Alok A Khorana, Ajay Kakkar, Cihan Ay, Andres Muñoz, Benjamin Brenner, Pedro H Prata, Dialina Brilhante, Darko Antic, Patricia Casais, María Cecilia Guillermo Esposito, Takayuki Ikezoe, Syed A Abutalib, Luis A Meillon-García, Henri Bounameaux, Ingrid Pabinger, James Douketis

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25/03/2022 Research
SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern and variants under investigation in Eng...

SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern and variants under investigation in England Technical briefing 39

UK HEALTH SECURITY AGENCY

Authors
GOV.UK

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23/03/2022 Articles
Opinion Was lockdown necessary?

THE BMJ

Authors
Kit Yates

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04/03/2022 Viewpoint
Why has mental health been forgotten in the government’s recovery plan...

Why has mental health been forgotten in the government’s recovery plans?

THE BMJ

Authors
ADRIAN JAMES

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20/01/2022 Features
Covid-19: How Europe is approaching long covid

THE BMJ

Authors
Chris Baraniuk

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14/01/2022 Articles
Model-based evaluation of alternative reactive class closure strategie...

Model-based evaluation of alternative reactive class closure strategies against COVID-19

NATURE

Authors
Quan-Hui Liu, Juanjuan Zhang, Cheng Peng, Maria Litvinova, Shudong Huang, Piero Poletti, Filippo Trentini, Giorgio Guzzetta, Valentina Marziano, Tao Zhou, Cecile Viboud, Ana I. Bento, Jiancheng Lv, Alessandro Vespignani, Stefano Merler, Hongjie Yu, Marco Ajelli

Abstract
There are contrasting results concerning the effect of reactive school closure on SARS-CoV-2 transmission. To shed light on this controversy, we developed a data-driven computational model of SARS-CoV-2 transmission. We found that by reactively closing classes based on syndromic surveillance, SARS-CoV-2 infections are reduced by no more than 17.3% (95%CI: 8.0–26.8%), due to the low probability of timely identification of infections in the young population. We thus investigated an alternative triggering mechanism based on repeated screening of students using antigen tests. Depending on the contribution of schools to transmission, this strategy can greatly reduce COVID-19 burden even when school contribution to transmission and immunity in the population is low. Moving forward, the adoption of antigen-based screenings in schools could be instrumental to limit COVID-19 burden while vaccines continue to be rolled out.

Introduction
The novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has dramatically changed the life of nearly every human on the planet. In Europe, Italy was the first country to experience the pandemic and it has been considered a natural experiment for large scale non-pharmaceuticals interventions. The first locally transmitted COVID-19 case in Italy was identified on February 21, 2020; since then, the country went through two distinct major epidemic waves. During the first wave, a national lockdown was put in place on March 11, 20201. After the lifting of the lockdown on May 18, 20202, the number of COVID-19 cases remained relatively low throughout the rest of the spring and summer of 2020. However, after school reopening and further relaxation of control measures, a second major epidemic wave started in mid-September 2020. At that point, case isolation, contact tracing, and other social distancing measures (e.g., limited size of gatherings, closure of theaters and cinemas3) were still in place along with a newly established reactive class closure protocol based on active surveillance of students4. To counter the rapid rise of cases, a set of nationwide restrictions were imposed by the Italian government on October 14, 20205. New restrictions included an extended mandatory use of face masks, reduction of opening hours or full closure of commercial/recreational venues, and partial or full suspension of in-person education. Control measures gradually increased in the following 3 weeks6,7,8. Since November 6, 2020, more restrictive measures were applied on a regional basis to further mitigate COVID-19 burden of the second wave9, fueled in early 2021 by the more transmissible Alpha variant10.

Italy is not an isolated example. A similar upsurge of COVID-19 cases right after school reopening in September–October 2020 was observed in several other European countries such as Finland, Ireland, Latvia, Belgium, and Slovakia11,12. Moreover, whether associated with school transmission or not, a decrease in the average age of cases was observed, with a larger fraction of cases in the school-age population13,14. A similar issue has been experienced in the US in early March 2021 as schools resumed in-person learning amidst rising incidence of the Alpha variant (e.g., Michigan15). While the virus is still circulating in 2021 in the form of a more transmissible variant (Delta)16,17,18, understanding whether and how in-person education can be maintained is paramount.

The aim of this paper is twofold. First, we developed a computational model of SARS-CoV-2 transmission to estimate the contribution of the reactive school closure strategies implemented in Italy when historical lineages were circulating in the fall of 2020 to mitigate the second major COVID-19 wave and understand the reason of their limited effect. Second, we tested an alternative policy based on rapid antigen-based screening of students. We found that this strategy may have a considerably larger mitigation effect on SARS-CoV-2 spread, which may be crucial while COVID-19 vaccines continue to be rolled out throughout 2021 and beyond.

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05/11/2021 News
Covid-19: How is the UK’s vaccine booster programme faring?

THE BMJ

Authors
Gareth Iacobucci

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05/11/2021 Institutional Recommendations
The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices’ Interim Recommendati...

The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices’ Interim Recommendations for Additional Primary and Booster Doses of COVID-19 Vaccines — United States, 2021

CDC

Authors
Sarah Mbaeyi, Sara E. Oliver, Jennifer P. Collins, Monica Godfrey, Neela D. Goswami, Stephen C. Hadler, Jefferson Jones, Heidi Moline, Danielle Moulia, Sujan Reddy, Kristine Schmit, Megan Wallace, Mary Chamberland, Doug Campos-Outcalt, Rebecca L. Morgan, Beth P. Bell, Oliver Brooks, Camille Kotton, H. Keipp Talbot, Grace Lee, Matthew F. Daley, Kathleen Dooling

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03/11/2021 Articles
Are vaccine passports and covid passes a valid alternative to lockdown...

Are vaccine passports and covid passes a valid alternative to lockdown?

THE BMJ

Authors
Daniel Sleat, Kirsty Innes, Imogen Parker

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12/10/2021 World Review
COVID lessons from Japan: clear messaging is key

NATURE

Authors
Michael Bang Petersen

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25/06/2021 Research
Comparison of COVID-19 Vaccine Approvals at the US Food and Drug Admin...

Comparison of COVID-19 Vaccine Approvals at the US Food and Drug Administration, European Medicines Agency, and Health Canada

JAMA

Authors
Mark P. Lythgoe; Paul Middleton

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25/05/2021 News
WHAT THE SCIENCE SAYS ABOUT LIFTING MASK MANDATES

NATURE

Authors
Lynne Peeples

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21/05/2021 Institutional Recommendations
EMA formula raccomandazioni sull'uso di sotrovimab (VIR-7831) per il t...

EMA formula raccomandazioni sull'uso di sotrovimab (VIR-7831) per il trattamento di COVID-19

AIFA

Authors
AIFA (Agenzia Italiana del Farmaco)

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14/05/2021 Health Policy
COVID-19 Vaccine Breakthrough Case Investigation and Reporting

CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION

Authors
National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases

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14/05/2021 PRE PUBLICATIONS RELEASE
Interim Estimates of Vaccine Effectiveness of Pfizer-BioNTech and Mode...

Interim Estimates of Vaccine Effectiveness of Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna COVID-19 Vaccines Among Health Care Personnel — 33 U.S. Sites, January–March 2021

CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION

Authors
Tamara Pilishvili, Katherine E. Fleming-Dutra, Jennifer L. Farrar, Ryan Gierke, Nicholas M. Mohr, David A. Talan, Anusha Krishnadasan, Karisa K. Harland, Howard A. Smithline, Peter C. Hou, Lilly C. Lee, Stephen C. Lim, Gregory J. Moran, Elizabeth Krebs, Mark Steele, David G. Beiser, Brett Faine, John P. Haran, Utsav Nandi, Walter A. Schrading, Brian Chinnock, Daniel J. Henning, Frank LoVecchio, Joelle Nadle, Devra Barter, Monica Brackney, Amber Britton, Kaytlynn Marceaux-Galli, Sarah Lim, Erin C. Phipps, Ghinwa Dumyati, Rebecca Pierce, Tiffanie M. Markus, Deverick J. Anderson, Amanda K. Debes, Michael Lin, Jeanmarie Mayer, Hilary M. Babcock, Nasia Safdar, Marc Fischer, Rosalyn Singleton, Nora Chea, Shelley S. Magill, Jennifer Verani, Stephanie Schrag, DPhil

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11/05/2021 Institutional Recommendations
COVID-19 vaccine safety update COVID-19 VACCINE MODERNA

EMA (EUROPEAN MEDICINES AGENCY)

Authors
EMA Press office

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10/05/2021 News
Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update: FDA Authorizes Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19...

Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update: FDA Authorizes Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine for Emergency Use in Adolescents in Another Important Action in Fight Against Pandemic

U.S. FOOD AND DRUGS ADMINISTRATION

Authors
FDA Office of Media Affairs

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07/05/2021 News
Meeting highlights from the Pharmacovigilance Risk Assessment Committe...

Meeting highlights from the Pharmacovigilance Risk Assessment Committee (PRAC) 3-6 May 2021

EMA (EUROPEAN MEDICINES AGENCY)

Authors
EMA Press office

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05/05/2021 Health Policy
A global public health convention for the 21st century

THE LANCET

Authors
Johnathan H Duff, Anicca Liu, Jorge Saavedra, Jacob N Batycki, Kendra Morancy, Barbara Stocking, Lawrence O Gostin, Sandro Galea, Stefano Bertozzi, Jose M Zuniga, Carmencita Alberto-Banatin, Akua Sena Dansua, Carlos del Rio, Maksut Kulzhanov, Kelley Lee, Gisela Scaglia, Cyrus Shahpar, Andrew J Ullmann, Steven J Hoffman, Michael Weinstein, José Szapocznik

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21/04/2021 Articles
The Johnson & Johnson pause has dented Americans’ confidence in the ja...

The Johnson & Johnson pause has dented Americans’ confidence in the jab

THE ECONOMIST

Authors
THE ECONOMIST

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01/04/2021 Articles
Mask Mandates, On-Premises Dining, and COVID-19

JAMA

Authors
Gery P. Guy Jr, Greta M. Massetti, Erin Sauber-Schatz

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01/04/2021 Editorial
Covid-19 vaccine passports: access, equity, and ethics

THE BMJ

Authors
Tasnime Osama, Mohammad S Razai, Azeem Majeed

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31/03/2021 PERSPECTIVE
“Vaccine Passport” Certification — Policy and Ethical Considerations

THE NEW ENGLAND JOURNAL OF MEDICINE

Authors
Mark A. Hall, David M. Studdert

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26/03/2021 Institutional Recommendations
EMA formula raccomandazioni sull'uso di regdanvimab per il trattamento...

EMA formula raccomandazioni sull'uso di regdanvimab per il trattamento di COVID-19

AIFA

Authors
AIFA (Agenzia Italiana del Farmaco)

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12/03/2021 Articles
Model-based evaluation of school- and non-school-related measures to c...

Model-based evaluation of school- and non-school-related measures to control the COVID-19 pandemic

NATURE

Authors
Ganna Rozhnova, Christiaan H. van Dorp, Patricia Bruijning-Verhagen, Martin C. J. Bootsma, Janneke H. H. M. van de Wijgert, Marc J. M. Bonten, Mirjam E. Kretzschmar

Abstract
The role of school-based contacts in the epidemiology of SARS-CoV-2 is incompletely understood. We use an age-structured transmission model fitted to age-specific seroprevalence and hospital admission data to assess the effects of school-based measures at different time points during the COVID-19 pandemic in the Netherlands. Our analyses suggest that the impact of measures reducing school-based contacts depends on the remaining opportunities to reduce non-school-based contacts. If opportunities to reduce the effective reproduction number (Re) with non-school-based measures are exhausted or undesired and Re is still close to 1, the additional benefit of school-based measures may be considerable, particularly among older school children. As two examples, we demonstrate that keeping schools closed after the summer holidays in 2020, in the absence of other measures, would not have prevented the second pandemic wave in autumn 2020 but closing schools in November 2020 could have reduced Re below 1, with unchanged non-school-based contacts.

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10/03/2021 Viewpoint
CDC Interim Recommendations for Fully Vaccinated People An Important F...

CDC Interim Recommendations for Fully Vaccinated People An Important First Step

JAMA

Authors
Athalia Christie, Sarah A. Mbaeyi, Rochelle P. Walensky

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10/03/2021 Articles
Management of hospitalised adults with coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-1...

Management of hospitalised adults with coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19): A European Respiratory Society living guideline

EUROPEAN RESPIRATORY JOURNAL

Authors
James D. Chalmers, Megan L. Crichton, Pieter C. Goeminne, Bin Cao, Marc Humbert, Michal Shteinberg, Katerina M. Antoniou, Charlotte Suppli Ulrik, Helen Parks, Chen Wang, Thomas Vandendriessche, Jieming Qu, Daiana Stolz, Christopher Brightling, Tobias Welte, Stefano Aliberti, Anita K. Simonds, Thomy Tonia, Nicolas Roche

Abstract
Introduction Hospitalised patients with coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) as a result of SARS-CoV-2 infection have a high mortality rate and frequently require non-invasive respiratory support or invasive ventilation. Optimising and standardising management through evidence-based guidelines may improve quality of care and therefore patient outcomes.

Methods A task force from the European Respiratory Society and endorsed by the Chinese Thoracic Society identified priority interventions (pharmacological and non-pharmacological) for the initial version of this “living guideline” using the PICO (population, intervention, comparator, outcome) format. The GRADE approach was used for assessing the quality of evidence and strength of recommendations. Systematic literature reviews were performed, and data pooled by meta-analysis where possible. Evidence tables were presented and evidence to decision frameworks were used to formulate recommendations.

Results Based on the available evidence at the time of guideline development (February 20th, 2021) the panel makes a strong recommendation in favour of the use of systemic corticosteroids in patients requiring supplementary oxygen or ventilatory support, and for the use of anticoagulation in hospitalised patients. The panel makes a conditional recommendation for IL-6 receptor antagonist monoclonal antibody treatment and high flow nasal oxygen or continuous positive airway pressure in patients with hypoxaemic respiratory failure. The panel make strong recommendations against the use of hydroxychloroquine and lopinavir-ritonavir. Conditional recommendations are made against the use of azithromycin, hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin, colchicine, and remdesivir, in the latter case specifically in patients requiring invasive mechanical ventilation. No recommendation was made for remdesivir in patients requiring supplemental oxygen. Further recommendations for research are made.

Conclusion The evidence base for management of COVID-19 now supports strong recommendations in favour and against specific interventions. These guidelines will be regularly updated as further evidence becomes available.

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05/03/2021 Summary Report
Association of State-Issued Mask Mandates and Allowing On-Premises Res...

Association of State-Issued Mask Mandates and Allowing On-Premises Restaurant Dining with County-Level COVID-19 Case and Death Growth Rates — United States, March 1–December 31, 2020

CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION

Authors
Gery P. Guy Jr., Florence C. Lee, Gregory Sunshine, Russell McCord, Mara Howard-Williams, Lyudmyla Kompaniyets, Christopher Dunphy, Maxim Gakh, Regen Weber, Erin Sauber-Schatz, John D. Omura, Greta M. Massetti

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04/03/2021 Institutional Recommendations
Modified COVID-19 vaccines for variants to be fast-tracked, says MHRA ...

Modified COVID-19 vaccines for variants to be fast-tracked, says MHRA and other regulators

GOV.UK

Authors
Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency

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02/03/2021 News
EMA review of regdanvimab for COVID-19 to support national decisions o...

EMA review of regdanvimab for COVID-19 to support national decisions on early use

EUROPEAN MEDICINES AGENCY

Authors
EMA Press office

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02/03/2021 Institutional Recommendations
A living WHO guideline on drugs to prevent covid-19

THE BMJ

Authors
François Lamontagne, Thomas Agoritsas, Reed Siemieniuk, Bram Rochwerg, Jessica Bartoszko, Lisa Askie, Helen Macdonald, Wagdy Amin, Frederique Jacquerioz Bausch, Erlina Burhan, Maurizio Cecconi, Duncan Chanda, Vu Quoc Dat, Bin Du, Heike Geduld, Patrick Gee, Harley Nerina, Madiha Hashimi, Beverley J Hunt, Sushil Kabra, Seema Kanda, Leticia Kawano-Dourado, Yae-Jean Kim, Niranjan Kissoon, Arthur Kwizera, Yee-Sin Leo, Imelda Mahaka, Hela Manai, Greta Mino, Emmanuel Nsutebu, Natalia Pshenichnaya, Nida Qadir, Shalini Sri Ranganathan, Saniya Sabzwari, Rohit Sarin, Michael Sharland, Yinzhong Shen, Joao Paulo Souza, Miriam Stegemann, Sebastian Ugarte, Sridhar Venkatapuram, Dubula Vuyiseka, Jacobus Preller, Romina Brignardello-Petersen, Elena Kum, Anila Qasim, Dena Zeraatkar, Andrew Owen, Gordon Guyatt, Lyubov Lytvyn, Janet Diaz, Per Olav Vandvik, Michael Jacobs

Abstract
Clinical question What is the role of drugs in preventing covid-19?

Why does this matter?There is widespread interest in whether drug interventions can be used for the prevention of covid-19, but there is uncertainty about which drugs, if any, are effective. The first version of this living guideline focuses on the evidence for hydroxychloroquine. Subsequent updates will cover other drugs being investigated for their role in the prevention of covid-19.

Recommendation The guideline development panel made a strong recommendation against the use of hydroxychloroquine for individuals who do not have covid-19 (high certainty).

How this guideline was created This living guideline is from the World Health Organization (WHO) and provides up to date covid-19 guidance to inform policy and practice worldwide. Magic Evidence Ecosystem Foundation (MAGIC) provided methodological support. A living systematic review with network analysis informed the recommendations. An international guideline development panel of content experts, clinicians, patients, an ethicist and methodologists produced recommendations following standards for trustworthy guideline development using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) approach.

Understanding the new recommendation The linked systematic review and network meta-analysis (6 trials and 6059 participants) found that hydroxychloroquine had a small or no effect on mortality and admission to hospital (high certainty evidence). There was a small or no effect on laboratory confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection (moderate certainty evidence) but probably increased adverse events leading to discontinuation (moderate certainty evidence). The panel judged that almost all people would not consider this drug worthwhile. In addition, the panel decided that contextual factors such as resources, feasibility, acceptability, and equity for countries and healthcare systems were unlikely to alter the recommendation. The panel considers that this drug is no longer a research priority and that resources should rather be oriented to evaluate other more promising drugs to prevent covid-19.

Updates This is a living guideline. New recommendations will be published in this article and signposted by update notices to this guideline.

Readers note This is the first version of the living guideline for drugs to prevent covid-19. It complements the WHO living guideline on drugs to treat covid-19. When citing this article, please consider adding the update number and date of access for clarity.

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01/03/2021 Institutional Recommendations
Rethinking Policy Priorities in the light of Pandemics A CALL TO ACTIO...

Rethinking Policy Priorities in the light of Pandemics A CALL TO ACTION

WHO (WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION)

Authors
Pan-European Commission on Health and Sustainable Development

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26/02/2021 STUDY PROTOCOL
Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee Meeting F...

Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee Meeting February 26, 2021

FDA

Authors
Janssen Biotech, Inc.

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26/02/2021 News
EMA issues advice on use of REGN-COV2 antibody combination (casirivima...

EMA issues advice on use of REGN-COV2 antibody combination (casirivimab / imdevimab)

EUROPEAN MEDICINES AGENCY

Authors
EMA Press office

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25/02/2021 News
How Europe’s €100-billion science fund will shape 7 years of research

NATURE

Authors
Quirin Schiermeier

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23/02/2021 Institutional Recommendations
Development of Monoclonal Antibody Products Targeting SARS- CoV-2, In...

Development of Monoclonal Antibody Products Targeting SARS- CoV-2, Including Addressing the Impact of Emerging Variants, During the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency Guidance for Industry

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION CENTER FOR DRUG EVALUATION AND RESEARCH

Authors
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Food and Drug Administration Center for Drug Evaluation and Research

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18/02/2021 Institutional Report
Gavi signs memorandum of understanding with Novavax on behalf of COVAX...

Gavi signs memorandum of understanding with Novavax on behalf of COVAX Facility

GAVI (THE VACCINE ALLIANCE)

Authors
Meghana Sharafudeen

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15/02/2021 Risk Assestment
Risk assessment: SARS-CoV-2 - increased circulation of variants of con...

Risk assessment: SARS-CoV-2 - increased circulation of variants of concern and vaccine rollout in the EU/EEA, 14th update

ECDC (EUROPEAN CENTRE FOR DISEASE PREVENTION AND CONTROL)

Authors
ECDC (EUROPEAN CENTRE FOR DISEASE PREVENTION AND CONTROL)

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15/02/2021 News
WHO lists two additional COVID-19 vaccines for emergency use and COVAX...

WHO lists two additional COVID-19 vaccines for emergency use and COVAX roll-out

WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION

Authors
WHO (WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION)

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10/02/2021 News
Clarification on Sputnik V vaccine in the EU approval process

EUROPEAN MEDICINES AGENCY

Authors
EMA Press office

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08/02/2021 Institutional Recommendations
Ulteriori indicazioni operative relative al rischio di diffusione di n...

Ulteriori indicazioni operative relative al rischio di diffusione di nuove varianti SARS-CoV2: integrazione dei dati di genotipizzazione e indagine rapida per la valutazione della prevalenza della variante SARS-CoV-2 VOC202012/01.

MINISTERO DELLA SALUTE - DIREZIONE GENERALE DELLA PREVENZIONE SANITARIA

Authors
MINISTERO DELLA SALUTE - DIREZIONE GENERALE DELLA PREVENZIONE SANITARIA

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08/02/2021 Institutional Report
Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Treatment Guidelines

NIH (NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH)

Authors
NIH (NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH)

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04/02/2021 Institutional Recommendations
Statement – Catastrophic impact of COVID-19 on cancer care

WHO (WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION)

Authors
Hans Henri P. Kluge

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31/01/2021 Institutional Recommendations
Aggiornamento sulla diffusione a livello globale delle nuove varianti ...

Aggiornamento sulla diffusione a livello globale delle nuove varianti SARSCoV2, valutazione del rischio e misure di controllo.

MINISTERO DELLA SALUTE

Authors
MINISTERO DELLA SALUTE - DIREZIONE GENERALE DELLA PREVENZIONE SANITARIA

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29/01/2021 News
EMA recommends COVID-19 Vaccine AstraZeneca for authorisation in the E...

EMA recommends COVID-19 Vaccine AstraZeneca for authorisation in the EU

EMA (EUROPEAN MEDICINES AGENCY)

Authors
EMA Press office

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28/01/2021 Institutional Report
COVID-19 vaccine safety update

EMA (EUROPEAN MEDICINES AGENCY)

Authors
COMIRNATY BioNTech Manufacturing GmbH

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21/01/2021 Institutional Report
Risk related to the spread of new SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern in th...

Risk related to the spread of new SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern in the EU/EEA – first update

ECDC (EUROPEAN CENTRE FOR DISEASE PREVENTION AND CONTROL)

Authors
ECDC (EUROPEAN CENTRE FOR DISEASE PREVENTION AND CONTROL)

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12/01/2021 Institutional Recommendations
Authorisation Procedures EMA

EMA (EUROPEAN MEDICINES AGENCY)

Authors
EMA Press office

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08/01/2021 Institutional Report
Aggiornamento della definizione di caso COVID-19 e strategie di testin...

Aggiornamento della definizione di caso COVID-19 e strategie di testing.

MINISTERO DELLA SALUTE

Authors
MINISTERO DELLA SALUTE

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07/01/2021 Articles
Optimal COVID-19 quarantine and testing strategies

NATURE

Authors
Chad R. Wells, Jeffrey P. Townsend, Abhishek Pandey, Seyed M. Moghadas, Gary Krieger, Burton Singer, Robert H. McDonald, Meagan C. Fitzpatrick, Alison P. Galvani

Abstract
For COVID-19, it is vital to understand if quarantines shorter than 14 days can be equally effective with judiciously deployed testing. Here, we develop a mathematical model that quantifies the probability of post-quarantine transmission incorporating testing into travel quarantine, quarantine of traced contacts with an unknown time of infection, and quarantine of cases with a known time of exposure. We find that testing on exit (or entry and exit) can reduce the duration of a 14-day quarantine by 50%, while testing on entry shortens quarantine by at most one day. In a real-world test of our theory applied to offshore oil rig employees, 47 positives were obtained with testing on entry and exit to quarantine, of which 16 had tested negative at entry; preventing an expected nine offshore transmission events that each could have led to outbreaks. We show that appropriately timed testing can make shorter quarantines effective.

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07/01/2021 Institutional Report
COVID-19: AIFA autorizza vaccino Moderna

AIFA

Authors
AIFA (Agenzia Italiana del Farmaco)

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06/01/2021 Institutional Recommendations
Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation: advice on priority gr...

Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation: advice on priority groups for COVID-19 vaccination

GOV.UK

Authors
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND SOCIAL CARE UK

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06/01/2021 Institutional Report
COVID-19 Vaccine Moderna Vaccino a mRNA contro COVID-19 (modificato a ...

COVID-19 Vaccine Moderna Vaccino a mRNA contro COVID-19 (modificato a livello dei nucleosidi)

AIFA

Authors
AIFA (Agenzia Italiana del Farmaco)

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06/01/2021 Institutional Recommendations
EMA recommends COVID-19 Vaccine Moderna for authorisation in the EU

EMA (EUROPEAN MEDICINES AGENCY)

Authors
EMA (EUROPEAN MEDICINES AGENCY)

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04/01/2021 Institutional Recommendations
Documento AIOM CIPOMO COMU Vaccinazione COVID-19 per i pazienti oncolo...

Documento AIOM CIPOMO COMU Vaccinazione COVID-19 per i pazienti oncologici ver 1.0

AIOM (ASSOCIAZIONE ITALIANA DI ONCOLOGIA MEDICA)

Authors
AIOM

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04/01/2021 Institutional Report
Vaccinazione anti COVID-19 con vaccino Pfizer mRNABNT162b2 (Comirnaty)...

Vaccinazione anti COVID-19 con vaccino Pfizer mRNABNT162b2 (Comirnaty) FAQ AIFA

AIFA

Authors
AIFA (Agenzia Italiana del Farmaco)

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31/12/2020 Institutional Recommendations
WHO issues its first emergency use validation for a COVID-19 vaccine a...

WHO issues its first emergency use validation for a COVID-19 vaccine and emphasizes need for equitable global access

WHO (WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION)

Authors
WHO (WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION)

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22/12/2020 Institutional Report
COVID-19: consenso inter-societario su allattamento e vaccinazione

QUOTIDIANO SANITA'

Authors
SIN - SIP - SIMP - SIGO - AOGOI - SIMIT

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22/12/2020 Institutional Report
Autorizzato il vaccino BioNTech/Pfizer. Sul sito AIFA risposte alle do...

Autorizzato il vaccino BioNTech/Pfizer. Sul sito AIFA risposte alle domande più frequenti

AIFA

Authors
AIFA (Agenzia Italiana del Farmaco)

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21/12/2020 News
EMA recommends first COVID-19 vaccine for authorisation in the EU

EMA (EUROPEAN MEDICINES AGENCY)

Authors
EMA Press office

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21/12/2020 Institutional Report
Comirnaty (vaccino a mRNA contro COVID-19 [nucleoside modificato])

EMA (EUROPEAN MEDICINES AGENCY)

Authors
EMA Press office

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21/12/2020 Institutional Recommendations
EMA raccomanda l’autorizzazione nell’UE del primo vaccino contro COVID...

EMA raccomanda l’autorizzazione nell’UE del primo vaccino contro COVID-19

EMA (EUROPEAN MEDICINES AGENCY)

Authors
EMA Press office

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21/12/2020 Institutional Report
December 2020 update: Information from the American College of Rheumat...

December 2020 update: Information from the American College of Rheumatology Regarding Vaccination Against SARS-CoV-2

AMERICAN COLLEGE OF RHEUMATOLOGY

Authors
AMERICAN COLLEGE OF RHEUMATOLOGY

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20/12/2020 Brief Report
Rapid increase of a SARS-CoV-2 variant with multiple spike protein mut...

Rapid increase of a SARS-CoV-2 variant with multiple spike protein mutations observed in the United Kingdom

ECDC (EUROPEAN CENTRE FOR DISEASE PREVENTION AND CONTROL)

Authors
ECDC (EUROPEAN CENTRE FOR DISEASE PREVENTION AND CONTROL)

Summary
Over the last few weeks, the United Kingdom (UK) has faced a rapid increase in COVID-19 cases in South East
England, leading to enhanced epidemiological and virological investigations. Analysis of viral genome sequence
data identified a large proportion of cases belonged to a new single phylogenetic cluster. The new variant is
defined by multiple spike protein mutations (deletion 69-70, deletion 144, N501Y, A570D, D614G, P681H,
T716I, S982A, D1118H) present as well as mutations in other genomic regions. While it is known and expected
that viruses constantly change through mutation leading to the emergence of new variants, preliminary
analysis in the UK suggests that this variant is significantly more transmissible than previously circulating
variants, with an estimated potential to increase the reproductive number (R) by 0.4 or greater with an
estimated increased transmissibility of up to 70%. This new variant has emerged at a time of the year when
there has traditionally been increased family and social mixing. There is no indication at this point of increased
infection severity associated with the new variant. A few cases with the new variant have to date been
reported by Denmark and the Netherlands and, according to media reports, in Belgium.
Given that there is currently a lack of evidence to indicate the extent to which the new virus variant is spread
outside the UK, timely efforts to prevent and control its spread are needed, and include the following:
− Public health authorities and laboratories are urged to analyse and sequence virus isolates in a
timely manner to identify cases of the new variant. People with an epidemiological link to cases
with the new variant or travel history to areas known to be affected should be identified
immediately to test, isolate and follow up their contacts in order to stop the spread of the new
variant.
− If cases infected with this new SARS-CoV-2 variant or other new SARS-CoV-2 variants of
potential concern are identified, countries should notify through the Early Warning and Response
System of the European Union.
− The importance of strict adherence to non-pharmaceutical interventions according to national
policies needs to be communicated to the public, and in particular guidance on the avoidance of
non-essential travel and social activities should be stressed.
− Laboratories should review the PCR performance and drop-out of the S-gene. PCR could be used
as an indicator for cases with the new variant for further sequencing and investigation.
− Suspected cases of COVID-19 reinfection should be followed up, closely accompanied by
sequencing respective virus isolates from these cases. Similarly, cases with treatment failures
using convalescent plasma or monoclonal antibodies should be further studied.
− With the implementation of vaccination, close monitoring of COVID-19-vaccinated individuals
needs to be ensured to identify possible vaccination failure and breakthrough infections. Virus
isolates from these cases should be sequenced and characterised genetically and antigenically

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20/12/2020 Communication
COVID-19: Il Dipartimento Scientifico Militare del Celio ha sequenziat...

COVID-19: Il Dipartimento Scientifico Militare del Celio ha sequenziato i virus di un soggetto positivo con stessa variante riscontrata in Gran Bretagna

MINISTERO DELLA SALUTE

Authors
MINISTERO DELLA SALUTE

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16/12/2020 Institutional Report
Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine: What you should know

GOVERNMENT OF CANADA

Authors
GOVERNMENT OF CANADA

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15/12/2020 News
Update on assessment of the BioNTech and Pfizer BNT162b2 vaccine marke...

Update on assessment of the BioNTech and Pfizer BNT162b2 vaccine marketing authorisation application

EMA (EUROPEAN MEDICINES AGENCY)

Authors
EMA Press office

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14/12/2020 Reviews
Defining and managing COVID-19-associated pulmonary aspergillosis: the...

Defining and managing COVID-19-associated pulmonary aspergillosis: the 2020 ECMM/ISHAM consensus criteria for research and clinical guidance

THE LANCET

Authors
Philipp Koehler, Matteo Bassetti, Arunaloke Chakrabarti, Sharon C A Chen, Arnaldo Lopes Colombo, Martin Hoenigl, Nikolay Klimko, Cornelia Lass-Flörl, Rita O Oladele, Donald C Vinh, Li-Ping Zhu, Boris Böll, Roger Brüggemann, Jean-Pierre Gangneux, John R Perfect, Thomas F Patterson, Thorsten Persigehl, Jacques F Meis, Luis Ostrosky-Zeichner, P Lewis White, Paul E Verweij, Oliver A Cornely

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12/12/2020 Institutional Recommendations
Vaccinazione anti-SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19 PIANO STRATEGICO

MINISTERO DELLA SALUTE - PRESIDENZA DEL CONSIGLIO DEI MINISTRI - ISS - AGENAS - AIFA

Authors
MINISTERO DELLA SALUTE - PRESIDENZA DEL CONSIGLIO DEI MINISTRI - ISS - AGENAS - AIFA

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09/12/2020 Institutional Report
PRINCIPI DI GESTIONE DEI CASI COVID-19 NEL SETTING DOMICILIARE

AIFA

Authors
AIFA (Agenzia Italiana del Farmaco)

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09/12/2020 Institutional Report
TRATTAMENTI UTILIZZABILI NEI PAZIENTI COVID-19 NEL SETTING OSPEDALIERO

AIFA

Authors
AIFA (Agenzia Italiana del Farmaco)

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08/12/2020 Comment
The role of schools and school-aged children in SARS-CoV-2 transmissio...

The role of schools and school-aged children in SARS-CoV-2 transmission

THE LANCET

Authors
Stefan Flasche, W John Edmunds

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30/11/2020 Institutional Report
GESTIONE DOMICILIARE DEI PAZIENTI CON INFEZIONE DA SARS-CoV-2

MINISTERO DELLA SALUTE

Authors
Giovanni Rezza, Andrea Urbani

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17/11/2020 Institutional Report
Pharmacovigilance Plan of the EU Regulatory Network for COVID-19 Vacci...

Pharmacovigilance Plan of the EU Regulatory Network for COVID-19 Vaccines

EUROPEAN MEDICINES AGENCY

Authors
EUROPEAN MEDICINES AGENCY

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17/11/2020 Institutional Report
Consideration on core requirements for RMPs of COVID19 vaccines

EUROPEAN MEDICINES AGENCY

Authors
EUROPEAN MEDICINES AGENCY

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16/11/2020 Articles
Ranking the effectiveness of worldwide COVID-19 government interventio...

Ranking the effectiveness of worldwide COVID-19 government interventions

NATURE

Authors
Nils Haug, Lukas Geyrhofer, Alessandro Londei, Elma Dervic, Amélie Desvars-Larrive, Vittorio Loreto, Beate Pinior, Stefan Thurner, Peter Klimek

Abstract
Assessing the effectiveness of non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) to mitigate the spread of SARS-CoV-2 is critical to inform future preparedness response plans. Here we quantify the impact of 6,068 hierarchically coded NPIs implemented in 79 territories on the effective reproduction number, Rt, of COVID-19. We propose a modelling approach that combines four computational techniques merging statistical, inference and artificial intelligence tools. We validate our findings with two external datasets recording 42,151 additional NPIs from 226 countries. Our results indicate that a suitable combination of NPIs is necessary to curb the spread of the virus. Less disruptive and costly NPIs can be as effective as more intrusive, drastic, ones (for example, a national lockdown). Using country-specific ‘what-if’ scenarios, we assess how the effectiveness of NPIs depends on the local context such as timing of their adoption, opening the way for forecasting the effectiveness of future interventions.

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12/11/2020 Risk Assestment
Detection of new SARS-CoV-2 variants related to mink

ECDC (EUROPEAN CENTRE FOR DISEASE PREVENTION AND CONTROL)

Authors
ECDC (EUROPEAN CENTRE FOR DISEASE PREVENTION AND CONTROL)

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06/11/2020 PERSPECTIVE
First It Was Masks; Now Some Refuse Testing for SARS-CoV-2

JAMA

Authors
RITA RUBIN

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06/11/2020 Articles
Belief of having had unconfirmed Covid-19 infection reduces willingnes...

Belief of having had unconfirmed Covid-19 infection reduces willingness to participate in app-based contact tracing

NATURE

Authors
Patrik Bachtiger, Alexander Adamson, Jennifer K. Quint, Nicholas S. Peters

Abstract
Contact tracing and lockdown are health policies being used worldwide to combat the coronavirus (COVID-19). The UK National Health Service (NHS) Track and Trace Service has plans for a nationwide app that notifies the need for self-isolation to those in contact with a person testing positive for COVID-19. To be successful, such an app will require high uptake, the determinants and willingness for which are unclear but essential to understand for effective public health benefit. The objective of this study was to measure the determinants of willingness to participate in an NHS app-based contact-tracing programme using a questionnaire within the Care Information Exchange (CIE)—the largest patient-facing electronic health record in the NHS. Among 47,708 registered NHS users of the CIE, 27% completed a questionnaire asking about willingness to participate in app-based contact tracing, understanding of government advice, mental and physical wellbeing and their healthcare utilisation—related or not to COVID-19. Descriptive statistics are reported alongside univariate and multivariable logistic regression models, with positive or negative responses to a question on app-based contact tracing as the dependent variable. 26.1% of all CIE participants were included in the analysis (N = 12,434, 43.0% male, mean age 55.2). 60.3% of respondents were willing to participate in app-based contact tracing. Out of those who responded ‘no’, 67.2% stated that this was due to privacy concerns. In univariate analysis, worsening mood, fear and anxiety in relation to changes in government rules around lockdown were associated with lower willingness to participate. Multivariable analysis showed that difficulty understanding government rules was associated with a decreased inclination to download the app, with those scoring 1–2 and 3–4 in their understanding of the new government rules being 45% and 27% less inclined to download the contact-tracing app, respectively; when compared to those who rated their understanding as 5–6/10 (OR for 1–2/10 = 0.57 [CI 0.48–0.67]; OR for 3–4/10 = 0.744 [CI 0.64–0.87]), whereas scores of 7–8 and 9–10 showed a 43% and 31% respective increase. Those reporting an unconfirmed belief of having previously had and recovered from COVID-19 were 27% less likely to be willing to download the app; belief of previous recovery from COVID-19 infection OR 0.727 [0.585–0.908]). In this large UK-wide questionnaire of wellbeing in lockdown, a willingness for app-based contact tracing over an appropriate age range is 60%—close to the estimated 56% population uptake, and substantially less than the smartphone-user uptake considered necessary for an app-based contact tracing to be an effective intervention to help suppress an epidemic. Difficulty comprehending government advice and uncertainty of diagnosis, based on a public health policy of not testing to confirm self-reported COVID-19 infection during lockdown, therefore reduce willingness to adopt a government contact-tracing app to a level below the threshold for effectiveness as a tool to suppress an epidemic.

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04/11/2020 Summary Report
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)

THE BMJ

Authors
BMJ BEST PRACTICE

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03/11/2020 Institutional Report
Let’s flatten the infodemic curve

WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION

Authors
WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION SPOTLIGHT

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26/10/2020 Report
Key aspects regarding the introduction and prioritisation of COVID-19 ...

Key aspects regarding the introduction and prioritisation of COVID-19 vaccination in the EU/EEA and the UK

ECDC (EUROPEAN CENTRE FOR DISEASE PREVENTION AND CONTROL)

Authors
ECDC AN AGENCY OF THE EUROPEAN UNION

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23/10/2020 Institutional Report
Test di laboratorio per SARS-CoV-2 e loro uso in sanità pubblica

INAIL

Authors
MINISTERO DELLA SALUTE

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21/10/2020 Articles
Fast-track procedures for treatments and vaccines for COVID-19

EUROPEAN MEDICINES AGENCY

Authors
EUROPEAN MEDICINES AGENCY

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14/10/2020 Articles
“Herd Immunity” is Not an Answer to a Pandemic

IDSA (INFECTIOUS DISEASES SOCIETY OF AMERICA)

Authors
Thomas File, Judith Feinberg

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09/10/2020 Comment
COVID-19: France grapples with the pragmatics of isolation

THE LANCET

Authors
Laetitia Atlani-Duault Bruno Lina Denis Malvy Yazdan Yazdanpanah Franck Chauvin Jean-François Delfraissy

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08/10/2020 Editorial
Dying in a Leadership Vacuum

THE NEW ENGLAND JOURNAL OF MEDICINE

Authors
The Editors

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07/10/2020 PERSPECTIVE
Covid-19, Ebola, and HIV — Leveraging Lessons to Maximize Impact

THE NEW ENGLAND JOURNAL OF MEDICINE

Authors
Connie Celum, Ruanne Barnabas, D.Phil., Myron S. Cohen, Ann Collier, Wafaa El-Sadr, King K. Holmes, Christine Johnston, Peter Piot

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06/10/2020 News EMA starts second rolling review of a COVID-19 vaccine

EUROPEAN MEDICINES AGENCY

Authors
EMA Press office

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05/10/2020 Case Report
How COVID-19 Spreads

CDC (CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION)

Authors
National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases (NCIRD), Division of Viral Diseases

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28/09/2020 News
Covid-19: Comparing Sweden’s response with the UK’s is “misleading,” e...

Covid-19: Comparing Sweden’s response with the UK’s is “misleading,” experts argue

THE BMJ

Authors
Gareth Iacobucci

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21/09/2020 Risk Assestment
Threat Assessment Brief: Reinfection with SARS-CoV-2: considerations f...

Threat Assessment Brief: Reinfection with SARS-CoV-2: considerations for public health response

ECDC (EUROPEAN CENTRE FOR DISEASE PREVENTION AND CONTROL)

Authors
ECDC (EUROPEAN CENTRE FOR DISEASE PREVENTION AND CONTROL)

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21/09/2020 News
Covid-19: Government must learn lessons from deaths before winter, say...

Covid-19: Government must learn lessons from deaths before winter, say MPs and peers

THE BMJ

Authors
Clare Dyer

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21/09/2020 News Covid-19: Act now to avoid second lockdown, says Independent SAGE

THE BMJ

Authors
Jacqui Wise

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20/09/2020 Report
Measures to Avoid a National Lockdown: An Emergency Ten Point Plan

THE INDEPENDENT SAGE

Authors
The Independent Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE)

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12/09/2020 Articles
Infectious Diseases Society of America Guidelines on the Diagnosis of ...

Infectious Diseases Society of America Guidelines on the Diagnosis of COVID-19:Serologic Testing

OXFORD ACADEMY

Authors
Kimberly E Hanson, Angela M Caliendo, Cesar A Arias, Janet A Englund, Mary K Hayden, Mark J Lee, Mark Loeb, Robin Patel, Osama Altayar, Abdallah El Alayli, Shahnaz Sultan, Yngve Falck-Ytter, Valéry Lavergne, Rebecca L Morgan, M Hassan Murad, Adarsh Bhimraj, Reem A Mustafa

Abstract
Background
The availability of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) serologic testing has rapidly increased. Current assays use a variety of technologies, measure different classes of immunoglobulin or immunoglobulin combinations and detect antibodies directed against different portions of the virus. The overall accuracy of these tests, however, has not been well-defined. The Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) convened an expert panel to perform a systematic review of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) serology literature and construct best practice guidance related to SARS-CoV-2 serologic testing. This guideline is the fourth in a series of rapid, frequently updated COVID-19 guidelines developed by IDSA.

Objective
IDSA’s goal was to develop evidence-based recommendations that assist clinicians, clinical laboratories, patients and policymakers in decisions related to the optimal use of SARS-CoV-2 serologic tests in a variety of settings. We also highlight important unmet research needs pertaining to the use of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibody tests for diagnosis, public health surveillance, vaccine development and the selection of convalescent plasma donors.

Methods
A multidisciplinary panel of infectious diseases clinicians, clinical microbiologists and experts in systematic literature review identified and prioritized clinical questions related to the use of SARS-CoV-2 serologic tests. Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) methodology was used to assess the certainty of evidence and make testing recommendations.

Results
The panel agreed on eight diagnostic recommendations.

Conclusions
Information on the clinical performance and utility of SARS-CoV-2 serologic tests are rapidly emerging. Based on available evidence, detection of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies may be useful for confirming the presence of current or past infection in selected situations. The panel identified three potential indications for serologic testing including: 1) evaluation of patients with a high clinical suspicion for COVID-19 when molecular diagnostic testing is negative and at least two weeks have passed since symptom onset; 2) assessment of multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children; and 3) for conducting serosurveillance studies. The certainty of available evidence supporting the use of serology for either diagnosis or epidemiology was, however, graded as very low to moderate.

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10/09/2020 Institutional Recommendations
Emergency Use Authorization for Vaccines to Prevent COVID-19 Guidance ...

Emergency Use Authorization for Vaccines to Prevent COVID-19 Guidance for Industry

U.S. FOOD AND DRUG

Authors
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Food and Drug Administration Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research

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04/09/2020 Practice
A living WHO guideline on drugs for covid-19

THE BMJ

Authors
François Lamontagne, Thomas Agoritsas, Helen Macdonald, Yee-Sin Leo, Janet Diaz, Arnav Agarwal, John Adabie Appiah, Yaseen Arabi, Lucille Blumberg, Carolyn S Calfee, Bin Cao, Maurizio Cecconi, Graham Cooke, Jake Dunning, Heike Geduld, Patrick Gee, Hela Manai, David S Hui, Seema Kanda, Leticia Kawano-Dourado, Yae-Jean Kim, Niranjan Kissoon, Arthur Kwizera, Jon Henrik Laake, Flavia R Machado, Nida Qadir, Rohit Sarin, Yinzhong Shen, Linan Zeng, Romina Brignardello-Petersen, Lyubov Lytvyn, Reed Siemieniuk, Dena Zeraatkar, Jessica Bartoszko, Long Ge, Brittany Maguire, Bram Rochwerg, Gordon Guyatt, Per Olav Vandvik

ABSTRACT
Clinical question What is the role of drug interventions in the treatment and prevention of covid-19?
Recommendations The first version on this living guidance focuses on corticosteroids. It contains a strong recommendation for systemic corticosteroids in patients with severe and critical covid-19, and a weak or conditional recommendation against systemic corticosteroids in patients with non-severe covid-19. Corticosteroids are inexpensive and are on the World Health Organisation list of essential medicines.
How this guideline was created This guideline reflects an innovative collaboration between the WHO and the MAGIC Evidence Ecosystem Foundation, driven by an urgent need for global collaboration to provide trustworthy and living covid-19 guidance. A standing international panel of content experts, patients, clinicians, and methodologists, free from relevant conflicts of interest, produce recommendations for clinical practice. The panel follows standards, methods, processes, and platforms for trustworthy guideline development using the GRADE approach. We apply an individual patient perspective while considering contextual factors (that is, resources, feasibility, acceptability, equity) for countries and healthcare systems.
The evidence A living systematic review and network meta-analysis, supported by a prospective meta-analysis, with data from eight randomised trials (7184 participants) found that systemic corticosteroids probably reduce 28 day mortality in patients with critical covid-19 (moderate certainty evidence; 87 fewer deaths per 1000 patients (95% confidence interval 124 fewer to 41 fewer)), and also in those with severe disease (moderate certainty evidence; 67 fewer deaths per 1000 patients (100 fewer to 27 fewer)). In contrast, systemic corticosteroids may increase the risk of death in patients without severe covid-19 (low certainty evidence; absolute effect estimate 39 more per 1000 patients, (12 fewer to 107 more)). Systemic corticosteroids probably reduce the need for invasive mechanical ventilation, and harms are likely to be minor (indirect evidence).
Understanding the recommendations The panel made a strong recommendation for use of corticosteroids in severe and critical covid-19 because there is a lower risk of death among people treated with systemic corticosteroids (moderate certainty evidence), and they believe that all or almost all fully informed patients with severe and critical covid-19 would choose this treatment. In contrast, the panel concluded that patients with non-severe covid-19 would decline this treatment because they would be unlikely to benefit and may be harmed. Moreover, taking both a public health and a patient perspective, the panel warned that indiscriminate use of any therapy for covid-19 would potentially rapidly deplete global resources and deprive patients who may benefit from it most as potentially lifesaving therapy.

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01/09/2020 Original Investigation
The Use of Bronchoscopy During the Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pandemic

CHEST JOURNAL

Authors
Momen M. Wahidi, MD; Samira Shojaee, MD, MPH; Carla R. Lamb, MD; David Ost, MD, MPH; Fabien Maldonado, MD; George Eapen, MD; Daniel A. Caroff, MD, MPH; Michael P. Stevens, MD, MPH; Daniel R. Ouellette, MD; Craig Lilly, MD; Donna D. Gardner, DrPH, RRT, FCCP; Kristen Glisinski, MD; Kelly Pennington, MD; Raed Alalawi,

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31/08/2020 SYNOPSIS
Investigation and Serologic Follow-Up of Contacts of Early Confirmed C...

Investigation and Serologic Follow-Up of Contacts of Early Confirmed Case-Patient with COVID-19, Washington, USA

CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION

Authors
Victoria T. Chu , Brandi Freeman-Ponder1, Scott Lindquist, Christopher Spitters, Vance Kawakami, Jonathan W. Dyal, Shauna Clark, Hollianne Bruce, Jeffrey S. Duchin, Chas DeBolt, Sara Podczervinski, Marisa D’Angeli, Kristen Pettrone, Rachael Zacks, Grace Vahey, Michelle L. Holshue, Misty Lang, Rachel M. Burke, Melissa A. Rolfes, Mariel Marlow, Claire M. Midgley, Xiaoyan Lu, Stephen Lindstrom, Aron J. Hall, Alicia M. Fry, Natalie J. Thornburg, Susan I. Gerber, Satish K. Pillai, Holly M. Biggs

ABSTRACT
We describe the contact investigation for an early confirmed case of coronavirus disease (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), in the United States. Contacts of the case-patient were identified, actively monitored for symptoms, interviewed for a detailed exposure history, and tested for SARS-CoV-2 infection by real-time reverse transcription PCR (rRT-PCR) and ELISA. Fifty contacts were identified and 38 (76%) were interviewed, of whom 11 (29%) reported unprotected face-to-face interaction with the case-patient. Thirty-seven (74%) had respiratory specimens tested by rRT-PCR, and all tested negative. Twenty-three (46%) had ELISA performed on serum samples collected ≈6 weeks after exposure, and none had detectable antibodies to SARS-CoV-2. Among contacts who were tested, no secondary transmission was identified in this investigation, despite unprotected close interactions with the infectious case-patient.

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28/08/2020 Q&A DETAIL
Q & A on COVID-19 in children aged 0 – 18 years and the role of school...

Q & A on COVID-19 in children aged 0 – 18 years and the role of school settings in COVID-19 transmission

ECDC

Authors
ECDC

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21/08/2020 Editorial
Advice on the use of masks for children in the community in the contex...

Advice on the use of masks for children in the community in the context of COVID-19

UNICEF

Authors
UNICEF - WHO

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20/08/2020 Guidelines
Infectious Diseases Society of America Guidelines on the Treatment and...

Infectious Diseases Society of America Guidelines on the Treatment and Management of Patients with COVID-19

IDSA

Authors
IDSA

Read More »

19/08/2020 Articles
International electronic health record-derived COVID-19 clinical cours...

International electronic health record-derived COVID-19 clinical course profiles: the 4CE consortium

NATURE

Authors
Gabriel A. Brat, Griffin M. Weber, Nils Gehlenborg, Paul Avillach, Nathan P. Palmer, Luca Chiovato, James Cimino, Lemuel R. Waitman, Gilbert S. Omenn, Alberto Malovini, Jason H. Moore, Brett K. Beaulieu-Jones, Valentina Tibollo, Shawn N. Murphy, Sehi L’ Yi, Mark S. Keller, Riccardo Bellazzi, David A. Hanauer, Arnaud Serret-Larmande, Alba Gutierrez-Sacristan, John J. Holmes, Douglas S. Bell, Kenneth D. Mandl, Robert W. Follett, Jeffrey G. Klann, Douglas A. Murad, Luigia Scudeller, Mauro Bucalo, Katie Kirchoff, Jean Craig, Jihad Obeid, Vianney Jouhet, Romain Griffier, Sebastien Cossin, Bertrand Moal, Lav P. Patel, Antonio Bellasi, Hans U. Prokosch, Detlef Kraska, Piotr Sliz, Amelia L. M. Tan, Kee Yuan Ngiam, Alberto Zambelli, Danielle L. Mowery, Emily Schiver, Batsal Devkota, Robert L. Bradford, Mohamad Daniar, Christel Daniel, Vincent Benoit, Romain Bey, Nicolas Paris, Patricia Serre, Nina Orlova, Julien Dubiel, Martin Hilka, Anne Sophie Jannot, Stephane Breant, Judith Leblanc, Nicolas Griffon, Anita Burgun, Melodie Bernaux, Arnaud Sandrin, Elisa Salamanca, Sylvie Cormont, Thomas Ganslandt, Tobias Gradinger, Julien Champ, Martin Boeker, Patricia Martel, Loic Esteve, Alexandre Gramfort, Olivier Grisel, Damien Leprovost, Thomas Moreau, Gael Varoquaux, Jill-Jênn Vie, Demian Wassermann, Arthur Mensch, Charlotte Caucheteux, Christian Haverkamp, Guillaume Lemaitre, Silvano Bosari, Ian D. Krantz, Andrew South, Tianxi Cai, Isaac S. Kohane


ABSTRACT
We leveraged the largely untapped resource of electronic health record data to address critical clinical and epidemiological questions about Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). To do this, we formed an international consortium (4CE) of 96 hospitals across five countries (www.covidclinical.net). Contributors utilized the Informatics for Integrating Biology and the Bedside (i2b2) or Observational Medical Outcomes Partnership (OMOP) platforms to map to a common data model. The group focused on temporal changes in key laboratory test values. Harmonized data were analyzed locally and converted to a shared aggregate form for rapid analysis and visualization of regional differences and global commonalities. Data covered 27,584 COVID-19 cases with 187,802 laboratory tests. Case counts and laboratory trajectories were concordant with existing literature. Laboratory tests at the time of diagnosis showed hospital-level differences equivalent to country-level variation across the consortium partners. Despite the limitations of decentralized data generation, we established a framework to capture the trajectory of COVID-19 disease in patients and their response to interventions.

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13/08/2020 Articles
Face mask use in the general population and optimal resource allocatio...

Face mask use in the general population and optimal resource allocation during the COVID-19 pandemic

NATURE

Authors
Colin J. Worby, Hsiao-Han Chang

ABSTRACT
The ongoing novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has already infected millions worldwide and, with no vaccine available, interventions to mitigate transmission are urgently needed. While there is broad agreement that travel restrictions and social distancing are beneficial in limiting spread, recommendations around face mask use are inconsistent. Here, we use mathematical modeling to examine the epidemiological impact of face masks, considering resource limitations and a range of supply and demand dynamics. Even with a limited protective effect, face masks can reduce total infections and deaths, and can delay the peak time of the epidemic. However, random distribution of masks is generally suboptimal; prioritized coverage of the elderly improves outcomes, while retaining resources for detected cases provides further mitigation under a range of scenarios. Face mask use, particularly for a pathogen with relatively common asymptomatic carriage, is an effective intervention strategy, while optimized distribution is important when resources are limited.

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31/07/2020 Original Investigation
Assessment of SARS-CoV-2 Screening Strategies to Permit the Safe Reope...

Assessment of SARS-CoV-2 Screening Strategies to Permit the Safe Reopening of College Campuses in the United States

JAMA

Authors
A. David Paltiel, Amy Zheng, Rochelle P. Walensky



ABSTRACT
Importance The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic poses an existential threat to many US residential colleges; either they open their doors to students in September or they risk serious financial consequences.
Objective To define severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) screening performance standards that would permit the safe return of students to US residential college campuses for the fall 2020 semester.
Design, Setting, and Participants This analytic modeling study included a hypothetical cohort of 4990 students without SARS-CoV-2 infection and 10 with undetected, asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection at the start of the semester. The decision and cost-effectiveness analyses were linked to a compartmental epidemic model to evaluate symptom-based screening and tests of varying frequency (ie, every 1, 2, 3, and 7 days), sensitivity (ie, 70%-99%), specificity (ie, 98%-99.7%), and cost (ie, $10/test-$50/test). Reproductive numbers (Rt) were 1.5, 2.5, and 3.5, defining 3 epidemic scenarios, with additional infections imported via exogenous shocks. The model assumed a symptomatic case fatality risk of 0.05% and a 30% probability that infection would eventually lead to observable COVID-19–defining symptoms in the cohort. Model projections were for an 80-day, abbreviated fall 2020 semester. This study adhered to US government guidance for parameterization data.
Main Outcomes and Measures Cumulative tests, infections, and costs; daily isolation dormitory census; incremental cost-effectiveness; and budget impact.
Results At the start of the semester, the hypothetical cohort of 5000 students included 4990 (99.8%) with no SARS-CoV-2 infection and 10 (0.2%) with SARS-CoV-2 infection. Assuming an Rt of 2.5 and daily screening with 70% sensitivity, a test with 98% specificity yielded 162 cumulative student infections and a mean isolation dormitory daily census of 116, with 21 students (18%) with true-positive results. Screening every 2 days resulted in 243 cumulative infections and a mean daily isolation census of 76, with 28 students (37%) with true-positive results. Screening every 7 days resulted in 1840 cumulative infections and a mean daily isolation census of 121 students, with 108 students (90%) with true-positive results. Across all scenarios, test frequency was more strongly associated with cumulative infection than test sensitivity. This model did not identify symptom-based screening alone as sufficient to contain an outbreak under any of the scenarios we considered. Cost-effectiveness analysis selected screening with a test with 70% sensitivity every 2, 1, or 7 days as the preferred strategy for an Rt of 2.5, 3.5, or 1.5, respectively, implying screening costs of $470, $910, or $120, respectively, per student per semester.
Conclusions and Relevance In this analytic modeling study, screening every 2 days using a rapid, inexpensive, and even poorly sensitive (>70%) test, coupled with strict behavioral interventions to keep Rt less than 2.5, is estimated to maintain a controllable number of COVID-19 infections and permit the safe return of students to campus.


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28/07/2020 Link
THE COVID-19 HOST GENETICS INITIATIVE

COVID-19 HG

Authors
COVID-19 hg


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24/07/2020 Original Investigation
Knowledge, Concerns, and Behaviors of Individuals During the First Wee...

Knowledge, Concerns, and Behaviors of Individuals During the First Week of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pandemic in Italy

JAMA

Authors
Francesco Pagnini, Andrea Bonanomi, Semira Tagliabue, Michela Balconi, Mauro Bertolotti, Emanuela Confalonieri, Cinzia Di Dio, Gabriella Gilli, Guendalina Graffigna, Camillo Regalia, Emanuela Saita, Daniela Villani



ABSTRACT
Importance At the beginning of a public health crisis, such as the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, it is important to collect information about people’s knowledge, worries, and behaviors to examine their influence on quality of life and to understand individual characteristics associated with these reactions. Such information could help to guide health authorities in providing informed interventions and clear communications.
Objectives To document the initial knowledge about COVID-19 and recommended health behaviors; to assess worries (ie, one’s perception of the influence of the worries of others on oneself), social appraisal, and preventive behaviors, comparing respondents from areas under different movement restrictions during the first week after the outbreak; and to understand how worries, perceived risk, and preventive behaviors were associated with quality of life and individual characteristics among Italian adults.
Design, Setting, and Participants This convenience sample, nonprobablistic survey study recruited adult participants with a snowballing sampling method in any Italian region during the first week of the COVID-19 outbreak in Italy from February 26, 2020, to March 4, 2020. Data were analyzed from March 5 to 12, 2020.
Exposures Information was collected from citizens living in the quarantine zone (ie, red zone), area with restricted movements (ie, yellow zone), and COVID-19–free regions (ie, green zone).
Main Outcomes and Measures Levels of knowledge on the virus, contagion-related worries, social appraisal, and preventive behaviors were assessed with ratings of quality of life (measured using the Short Form Health Survey). Additionally, some individual characteristics that may be associated with worries and behaviors were assessed, including demographic characteristics, personality traits (measured using Big Five Inventory-10), perceived health control (measured using the internal control measure in the Health Locus of Control scale), optimism (measured using the Revised Life Orientation Test), and the need for cognitive closure (measured using the Need for Closure Scale).
Results A total of 3109 individuals accessed the online questionnaire, and 2886 individuals responded to the questionnaire at least partially (mean [SD] age, 30.7 [13.2] years; 2203 [76.3%] women). Most participants were well informed about the virus characteristics and suggested behaviors, with a mean (SD) score of 77.4% (17.3%) correct answers. Quality of life was similar across the 3 zones (effect size = 0.02), but mental health was negatively associated with contagion-related worries (β = –0.066), social appraisal (β = –0.221), and preventive behaviors (β = –0.066) in the yellow zone (R2 = 0.108). Social appraisal was also associated with reduced psychological well-being in the green zone (β = –0.205; R2 = 0.121). In the yellow zone, higher worries were negatively correlated with emotional stability (β = –0.165; R2 = 0.047). Emotional stability was also negatively associated with perceived susceptibility in the yellow (β = –0.108; R2 = 0.040) and green (β = –0.170; R2 = 0.087) zones. Preventative behaviors and social appraisal were also associated with the need for cognitive closure in both yellow (preventive behavior: β = 0.110; R2 = 0.023; social appraisal β = 0.115; R2 = 0.104) and green (preventive behavior: β = 0.174; R2 = 0.022; social appraisal: 0.261; R2 = 0.137) zones.
Conclusions and Relevance These findings suggest that during the first week of the COVID-19 outbreak in Italy, people were well informed and had a relatively stable level of worries. Quality of life did not vary across the areas, although mental well-being was challenged by the social appraisal and worries related to the contagion. Increased scores for worries and concerns were associated with more cognitive rigidity and emotional instability.

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24/07/2020 Editorial
Covid-19: arrivare preparati all’autunno

E&P (EPIDEMIOLOGIA E PREVENZIONE)

Authors
Paolo Vineis, Lucia Bisceglia, Francesco Forastiere, Stefania Salmaso, Salvatore Scondotto



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22/07/2020 Press Release
New COVID-19 Law Lab to provide vital legal information and support fo...

New COVID-19 Law Lab to provide vital legal information and support for the global COVID-19 response

WHO (WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION)

Authors
WHO (WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION)



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22/07/2020 HEALTHCARE WORKERS
Duration of Isolation and Precautions for Adults with COVID-19

CDC (CENTER FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION)

Authors
National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases (NCIRD), Division of Viral Diseases home



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22/07/2020 Report
Effectiveness of Cloth Masks for Protection Against Severe Acute Respi...

Effectiveness of Cloth Masks for Protection Against Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2

CDC (CENTER FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION)

Authors
Abrar A. Chughtai, Holly Seale, C. Raina Macintyre



ABSTRACT
Cloth masks have been used in healthcare and community settings to protect the wearer from respiratory infections. The use of cloth masks during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic is under debate. The filtration effectiveness of cloth masks is generally lower than that of medical masks and respirators; however, cloth masks may provide some protection if well designed and used correctly. Multilayer cloth masks, designed to fit around the face and made of water-resistant fabric with a high number of threads and finer weave, may provide reasonable protection. Until a cloth mask design is proven to be equally effective as a medical or N95 mask, wearing cloth masks should not be mandated for healthcare workers. In community settings, however, cloth masks may be used to prevent community spread of infections by sick or asymptomatically infected persons, and the public should be educated about their correct use.

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13/07/2020 Research
Lockdown timing and efficacy in controlling COVID-19 using mobile phon...

Lockdown timing and efficacy in controlling COVID-19 using mobile phone tracking

THE LANCET

Authors
Marco Vinceti Tommaso Filippini Kenneth J. Rothman Fabrizio Ferrari Alessia Goffi Giuseppe Maffeis Nicola Orsini



ABSTRACT
Background Italy's severe COVID-19 outbreak was addressed by a lockdown that gradually increased in space, time and intensity. The effectiveness of the lockdown has not been precisely assessed with respect to the intensity of mobility restriction and the time until the outbreak receded. Methods We used processed mobile phone tracking data to measure mobility restriction, and related those data to the number of new SARS-CoV-2 positive cases detected on a daily base in the three most affected Italian regions, Lombardy, Veneto and Emilia-Romagna, from February 1 through April 6, 2020, when two subsequent lockdowns with increasing intensity were implemented by the Italian government. Findings During the study period, mobility restriction was inversely related to the daily number of newly diagnosed SARS-CoV-2 positive cases only after the second, more effective lockdown, with a peak in the curve of diagnosed cases of infection occurring 14 to 18 days from lockdown in the three regions and 9 to 25 days in the included provinces. An effective reduction in transmission must have occurred nearly immediately after the tighter lockdown, given the lag time of around 10 days from asymptomatic infection to diagnosis. The period from lockdown to peak was shorter in the areas with the highest prevalence of the infection. This effect was seen within slightly more than one week in the most severely affected areas. Interpretation It appears that the less rigid lockdown led to an insufficient decrease in mobility to reverse an outbreak such as COVID-19. With a tighter lockdown, mobility decreased enough to bring down transmission promptly below the level needed to sustain the epidemic. Funding No funding sources have been used for this work.

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08/07/2020 Paper
Triage of patients with venous and lymphatic diseases during the COVID...

Triage of patients with venous and lymphatic diseases during the COVID-19 pandemic – The Venous and Lymphatic Triage and Acuity Scale (VELTAS):

SAGE JOURNALS

Authors
Kurosh Parsi, Andre M van Rij, Mark H Meissner, Alun H Davies, Marianne De Maeseneer, Peter Gloviczki, Stephen Benson, Oscar Bottini, Victor Manuel Canata, Paul Dinnen, Antonios Gasparis, Sergio Gianesini, David Huber, David Jenkins, Brajesh K Lal, Lowell Kabnick, Adrian Lim, William Marston, Alberto Martinez Granados, Nick Morrison, Andrew Nicolaides, Peter Paraskevas, Malay Patel, Stefania Roberts, Christopher Rogan, Marlin W Schul, Pedro Komlos, Andrew Stirling, Simon Thibault, Roy Varghese, Harold J Welch, Cees HA Wittens



ABSTRACT
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic has resulted in diversion of healthcare resources to the management of patients infected with SARS-CoV-2 virus. Elective interventions and surgical procedures in most countries have been postponed and operating room resources have been diverted to manage the pandemic. The Venous and Lymphatic Triage and Acuity Scale was developed to provide an international standard to rationalise and harmonise the management of patients with venous and lymphatic disorders or vascular anomalies. Triage urgency was determined based on clinical assessment of urgency with which a patient would require medical treatment or surgical intervention. Clinical conditions were classified into six categories of: (1) venous thromboembolism (VTE), (2) chronic venous disease, (3) vascular anomalies, (4) venous trauma, (5) venous compression and (6) lymphatic disease. Triage urgency was categorised into four groups and individual conditions were allocated to each class of triage. These included (1) medical emergencies (requiring immediate attendance), example massive pulmonary embolism; (2) urgent (to be seen as soon as possible), example deep vein thrombosis; (3) semi-urgent (to be attended to within 30–90 days), example highly symptomatic chronic venous disease, and (4) discretionary/non-urgent- (to be seen within 6–12 months), example chronic lymphoedema. Venous and Lymphatic Triage and Acuity Scale aims to standardise the triage of patients with venous and lymphatic disease or vascular anomalies by providing an international consensus-based classification of clinical categories and triage urgency. The scale may be used during pandemics such as the current COVID-19 crisis but may also be used as a general framework to classify urgency of the listed conditions.

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02/07/2020 Technical Report
Use of gloves in healthcare and non- healthcare settings in the contex...

Use of gloves in healthcare and non- healthcare settings in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic"

ECDC

Authors
ECDC

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01/07/2020 Articles
Agents and robots for collaborating and supporting physicians in healt...

Agents and robots for collaborating and supporting physicians in healthcare scenarios

ELSEVIER

Authors
Francesco Lanza, Valeria Seidita, Antonio Chella

Monitoring patients through robotics telehealth systems is an interesting scenario where patients’ conditions, and their environment, are dynamic and unknown variables. We propose to improve telehealth systems’ features to include the ability to serve patients with their needs, operating as human caregivers. The objective is to support the independent living of patients at home without losing the opportunity to monitor their health status. Application scenarios are several, and they spread from simple clinical assisting scenarios to an emergency one. For instance, in the case of a nursing home, the system would support in continuously monitoring the elderly patients. In contrast, in the case of an epidemic diffusion, such as COVID-19 pandemic, the system may help in all the early triage phases, significantly reducing the risk of contagion. However, the system has to let medical assistants perform actions remotely such as changing therapies or interacting with patients that need support. The paper proposes and describes a multi-agent architecture for intelligent medical care. We propose to use the beliefs-desires-intentions agent architecture, part of it is devised to be deployed in a robot. The result is an intelligent system that may allow robots the ability to select the most useful plan for unhandled situations and to communicate the choice to the physician for his validation and permission.

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30/06/2020 Insights
Reopening US Schools in the Era of COVID-19: Practical Guidance From O...

Reopening US Schools in the Era of COVID-19: Practical Guidance From Other Nations

JAMA

Authors
Lala Tanmoy Das, Erika L. Abramson, Rainu Kaushal

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30/06/2020 Guidelines
COVID-19 Aviation Health Safety Protocol Operational guidelines for th...

COVID-19 Aviation Health Safety Protocol Operational guidelines for the management of air passengers and aviation personnel to the COVID-19 pandemic"

EUROPEAN UNION AVIATION SAFETY AGENCY (EASA) - EUROPEAN CENTRE FOR DISEASE PREVENTION AND CONTROL (ECDC)

Authors
European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) - European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC)

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29/06/2020 Health Policy
Digital tools against COVID-19: taxonomy, ethical challenges, and navi...

Digital tools against COVID-19: taxonomy, ethical challenges, and navigation aid

THE LANCET

Authors
Urs Gasser, Marcello Ienca, James Scheibner, Joanna Sleigh, Effy Vayena


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29/06/2020 Viewpoint
Applications of digital technology in COVID-19 pandemic planning and r...

Applications of digital technology in COVID-19 pandemic planning and response

THE LANCET

Authors
Sera Whitelaw, Mamas A Mamas, Eric Topol, Harriette G C Van Spall


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27/06/2020 Comment
Offline: The second wave

THE LANCET

Authors
Richard Horton


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26/06/2020 Editorial
Editorial Evaluation and Peer Review During a Pandemic How Journals Ma...

Editorial Evaluation and Peer Review During a Pandemic How Journals Maintain Standards

JAMA

Authors
Howard Bauchner, Phil B. Fontanarosa, Robert M. Golub

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26/06/2020 PERSPECTIVE
Reducing transmission of SARS-CoV-2

SCIENCE

Authors
Kimberly A. Prather, Chia C. Wang, Robert T. Schooley


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25/06/2020 Q&A DETAIL
Q&A: Dexamethasone and COVID-19

WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION

Authors
WHO TEAM


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18/06/2020 Viewpoint
Special considerations in the management of adult patients with acute ...

Special considerations in the management of adult patients with acute leukaemias and myeloid neoplasms in the COVID-19 era: recommendations from a panel of international experts

THE LANCET

Authors
Amer M Zeidan*, Prajwal C Boddu*, Mrinal M Patnaik, Jan Philipp Bewersdorf, Maximilian Stahl, Raajit K Rampal, Rory Shallis, David P Steensma, Michael R Savona, Mikkael A Sekeres, Gail J Roboz, Daniel J DeAngelo, Andre C Schuh, Eric Padron, Joshua F Zeidner, Roland B Walter, Francesco Onida, Amir Fathi, Amy DeZern, Gabriela Hobbs, Eytan M Stein, Paresh Vyas, Andrew H Wei, David T Bowen, Pau Montesinos,Elizabeth A Griffiths, Amit K Verma, Alla Keyzner, Michal Bar-Natan, Shyamala C Navada , Marina Kremyanskaya, Aaron D Goldberg, Aref Al-Kali, Mark L Heaney, Aziz Nazha, Huda Salman, Selina Luger, Keith W Pratz, Heiko Konig, Rami Komrokji, Michael Deininger, Blanca Xicoy Cirici, Vijaya Raj Bhatt, Lewis R Silverman, Harry P Erba, Pierre Fenaux, Uwe Platzbecker, Valeria Santini, Eunice S Wang, Martin S Tallman, Richard M Stone, John Mascarenhas


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18/06/2020 Press Release
Coronavirus: Using European supercomputing, EU-funded research project...

Coronavirus: Using European supercomputing, EU-funded research project announces promising results for potential treatment

EUROPEAN COMMISSION

Authors
EUROPEAN COMMISSION


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15/06/2020 Articles
Cardiac rehabilitation activities during the COVID-19 pandemic in Ital...

Cardiac rehabilitation activities during the COVID-19 pandemic in Italy. Position Paper of the AICPR (Italian Association of Clinical Cardiology, Prevention and Rehabilitation)

MONALDI ARCHIVES FOR CHEST DISEASE 2020

Authors
Antonio Mazza, Roberto Pedretti, Filippo Sarullo, Francesco Fattirolli, Pompilio Faggiano, Francesco Giallauria, Carlo Vigorito, Elisabetta Angelino, Silvia Brazzo, Matteo Ruzzolini


ABSTRACT
The COVID-19 outbreak is having a significant impact on both cardiac rehabilitation (CR) inpatient and outpatient healthcare organization. The variety of clinical and care scenarios we are observing in Italy depends on the region, the organization of local services and the hospital involved. Some hospital wards have been closed to make room to dedicated beds or to quarantine the exposed health personnel. In other cases, CR units have been converted or transformed into COVID-19 units. The present document aims at defining the state of the art of CR during COVID-19 pandemic, through the description of the clinical and management scenarios frequently observed during this period and the exploration of the future frontiers in the management of cardiac rehabilitation programs after the COVID-19 outbreak.

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14/06/2020 Reviews
A compendium answering 150 questions on COVID-19 and SARS-CoV-2

WILEY ONLINE LIBRARY

Authors
Carmen Riggioni, Pasquale Comberiati, Mattia Giovannini, Ioana Agache, Mübeccel Akdis, Magna Alves‐Correia, Josep M. Antó, Alessandra Arcolaci, Ahmet Kursat Azkur, Dilek Azkur, Burcin Beken, Cristina Boccabella, Jean Bousquet, Heimo Breiteneder, Daniela Carvalho, Leticia De las Vecillas, Zuzana Diamant, Ibon Eguiluz‐Gracia, Thomas Eiwegger, Stefanie Eyerich, Wytske Fokkens, Ya‐dong Gao, Farah Hannachi, Sebastian L. Johnston, Marek Jutel, Aspasia Karavelia, Ludger Klimek, Beatriz Moya, Kari Nadeau, Robyn O'Hehir, Liam O'Mahony, Oliver Pfaar, Marek Sanak, Jürgen Schwarze, Milena Sokolowska, María J. Torres, Willem van de Veen, Menno C. van Zelm, De Yun Wang, Luo Zhang, Rodrigo Jiménez‐Saiz, Cezmi A. Akdis



ABSTRACT
In December 2019, China reported the first cases of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). This disease, caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has developed into a pandemic. To date it has resulted in~5.6 million confirmed cases and caused 353,334 related deaths worldwide. Unequivocally, the COVID-19 pandemic is the gravest health and socioeconomic crisis of our time. In this context, numerous questions have emerged in demand of basic scientific information and evidence-based medical advice on SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19. Although the majority of the patients show a very mild, self-limiting viral respiratory disease, many clinical manifestations in severe patients are unique to COVID-19, such as severe lymphopenia and eosinopenia, extensive pneumonia, a "cytokine storm" leading to acute respiratory distress syndrome, endothelitis, thrombo-embolic complications and multiorgan failure. The epidemiologic features of COVID-19 are distinctive and have changed throughout the pandemic. Vaccine and drug development studies and clinical trials are rapidly growing at an unprecedented speed. However, basic and clinical research on COVID-19-related topics should be based on more coordinated high-quality studies. This paper answers pressing questions, formulated by young clinicians and scientists, on SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 and allergy, focusing on the following topics: virology, immunology, diagnosis, management of patients with allergic disease and asthma, treatment, clinical trials, drug discovery, vaccine development and epidemiology. Over 140 questions were answered by experts in the field providing a comprehensive and practical overview of COVID-19 and allergic disease.

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09/06/2020 Institutional Recommendations
The Covid crisis and a possible turning point for the European Union S...

The Covid crisis and a possible turning point for the European Union Statement by the Lincei Committee on Covid-19

ACCADEMIA NAZIONALE DEI LINCEI

Authors
Lincei Committee on Covid-19



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07/06/2020 INSTITUTIONAL RECOMMENDATION
Covid-19: Fair Access to Vaccines Statement by the Lincei Committee on...

Covid-19: Fair Access to Vaccines Statement by the Lincei Committee on Covid-19

ACCADEMIA NAZIONALE DEI LINCEI

Authors
Commissione Covid-19 ACCADEMIA NAZIONALE DEI LINCEI


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05/06/2020 Guidelines
Advice on the use of masks in the context of COVID-19

WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION

Authors
WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION


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04/06/2020 Communication
High impact of COVID-19 in long-term care facilities, suggestion for m...

High impact of COVID-19 in long-term care facilities, suggestion for monitoring in the EU/EEA, May 2020

EUROSURVEILLANCE

Authors
Kostas Danis, Laure Fonteneau, Scarlett Georges, Côme Daniau, Sibylle Bernard- Stoecklin, Lisa Domegan, Joan O’Donnell, Siri Helene Hauge, Sara Dequeker, Eline Vandael, Johan Van der Heyden, Françoise Renard, Natalia Bustos Sierra, Enrico Ricchizzi, Birgitta Schweickert, Nicole Schmidt, Muna Abu Sin, Tim Eckmanns, José-Artur Paiva , Elke Schneider



ABSTRACT
Residents in long-term care facilities (LTCF) are a vulnerable population group. Coronavirus disease (COVID-19)-related deaths in LTCF residents represent 30–60% of all COVID-19 deaths in many European countries. This situation demands that countries implement local and national testing, infection prevention and control, and monitoring programmes for COVID-19 in LTCF in order to identify clusters early, decrease the spread within and between facilities and reduce the size and severity of outbreaks.

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03/06/2020 SPEECHES
WHO Director-General's opening remarks at the media briefing on COVID-...

WHO Director-General's opening remarks at the media briefing on COVID-19

WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION

Authors
WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION

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03/06/2020 STATEMENT
Medicines assessment during public health emergencies needs good scien...

Medicines assessment during public health emergencies needs good science, best practices and proper communication

CIOMS

Authors
Council for International Organizations of Medical Sciences (CIOMS) International Expert Working Group

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29/05/2020 Guidelines
Ricerca e gestione dei contatti di casi COVID-19 (Contact tracing) ed ...

Ricerca e gestione dei contatti di casi COVID-19 (Contact tracing) ed App Immuni.

MINISTERO DELLA SALUTE

Authors
DIREZIONE GENERALE DELLA PREVENZIONE SANITARIA, DIREZIONE GENERALE DELLA PROGRAMMAZIONE SANITARIA, DIREZIONE GENERALE DELLA DIGITALIZZAZIONE, DEL SISTEMA INFORMATIVO SANITARIO E DELLA STATISTICA

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27/05/2020 Guidelines
Clinical management of COVID-19: interim guidance

WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION

Authors
WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION

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27/05/2020 Viewpoint
Digital Smartphone Tracking for COVID-19 Public Health and Civil Liber...

Digital Smartphone Tracking for COVID-19 Public Health and Civil Liberties in Tension

JAMA

Authors
I. Glenn Cohen; Lawrence O. Gostin; Daniel J. Weitzner

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26/05/2020 Faqs
Industry Hotline: COVID-19 Diagnostic Tests and Shortages

US FOOD & DRUG

Authors
US FOOD & DRUG

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26/05/2020 Report
COVID-19 Guide for the Rehabilitation Clinician: A Review of Non-Pulmo...

COVID-19 Guide for the Rehabilitation Clinician: A Review of Non-Pulmonary Manifestations and Complications

American Journal of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation

Authors
Lopez Marielisa, Bell Kathleen, Annaswamy Thiru, Juengst Shannon, Ifejika Nneka



ABSTRACT
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) – also known as COVID-19 – is primarily known for respiratory illness. While it is clear that patients with moderate to severe cases of COVID-19 will require pulmonary rehabilitation, physiatrists will need to consider effective management plans for COVID-19 survivors with extra-pulmonary involvement. This report will summarize key non-pulmonary considerations to guide rehabilitation clinicians who may be involved in the care of COVID-19 survivors with the best available early evidence.

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26/05/2020 Guidelines
Covid-19 and acute kidney injury in hospital: summary of NICE guidelin...

Covid-19 and acute kidney injury in hospital: summary of NICE guidelines

THE BMJ

Authors
Nicholas M Selby, Lui G Forni, Christopher M Laing, Kerry L Horne ,Rhys Evans, Bethany J Lucas, Richard J Fluck


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22/05/2020 Guidelines
Indicazioni per l’attuazione di misure contenitive del contagio da SAR...

Indicazioni per l’attuazione di misure contenitive del contagio da SARS-CoV-2 attraverso procedure di sanificazione di strutture non sanitarie (superfici, ambienti interni) e abbigliamento.

Ministero della Salute DIREZIONE GENERALE DELLA PREVENZIONE SANITARIA Ufficio 4

Authors
MINISTERO DELLA SALUTE

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22/05/2020 Viewpoint
Labor and Delivery Visitor Policies During the COVID-19 Pandemic Balan...

Labor and Delivery Visitor Policies During the COVID-19 Pandemic Balancing Risks and Benefits

JAMA

Authors
Kavita Shah Arora, Jaclyn T. Mauch, Kelly Smith Gibson

Read More »

21/05/2020 Guidelines
EASA-ECDC COVID-19 Operational guidelines for management of passengers...

EASA-ECDC COVID-19 Operational guidelines for management of passengers final

EASA (EUROPEAN UNION AVIATION SAFETY AGENCY)

Authors
EASA (EUROPEAN UNION AVIATION SAFETY AGENCY)

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18/05/2020 Viewpoint
Accelerating COVID-19 Therapeutic Interventions and Vaccines (ACTIV).....

Accelerating COVID-19 Therapeutic Interventions and Vaccines (ACTIV)...

JAMA

Authors
Francis S. Collins, Paul Stoffels

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15/05/2020 Scientific Brief
Multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children and adolescents temporal...

Multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children and adolescents temporally related to COVID-19

WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION

Authors
WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION

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13/05/2020 Research
Scope, quality, and inclusivity of clinical guidelines produced early ...

Scope, quality, and inclusivity of clinical guidelines produced early in the covid-19 pandemic: rapid review

The BMJ

Authors
Andrew Dagens, Louise Sigfrid, Erhui Cai, Sam Lipworth, Vincent Cheung,, Eli Harris, librarian, Peter Bannister,, Ishmeala Rigby, Peter Horby

ABSTRACT
Objective To appraise the availability, quality, and inclusivity of clinical guidelines produced in the early stage of the coronavirus disease 2019 (covid-19) pandemic.
Design Rapid review.
Data sources Ovid Medline, Ovid Embase, Ovid Global Health, Scopus, Web of Science Core Collection, and WHO Global Index Medicus, searched from inception to 14 Mar 2020. Search strategies applied the CADTH database guidelines search filter, with no limits applied to search results. Further studies were identified through searches of grey literature using the ISARIC network.
Inclusion criteria Clinical guidelines for the management of covid-19, Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS), and severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) produced by international and national scientific organisations and government and non-governmental organisations relating to global health were included, with no exclusions for language. Regional/hospital guidelines were excluded. Only the earliest version of any guideline was included.
Quality assessment Quality was assessed using the Appraisal of Guidelines for Research and Evaluation (AGREE) II tool. The quality and contents of early covid-19 guidelines were also compared with recent clinical guidelines for MERS and SARS.
Results 2836 studies were identified, of which 2794 were excluded after screening. Forty two guidelines were considered eligible for inclusion, with 18 being specific to covid-19. Overall, the clinical guidelines lacked detail and covered a narrow range of topics. Recommendations varied in relation to, for example, the use of antiviral drugs. The overall quality was poor, particularly in the domains of stakeholder involvement, applicability, and editorial independence. Links between evidence and recommendations were limited. Minimal provision was made for vulnerable groups such as pregnant women, children, and older people.
Conclusions Guidelines available early in the covid-19 pandemic had methodological weaknesses and neglected vulnerable groups such as older people. A framework for development of clinical guidelines during public health emergencies is needed to ensure rigorous methods and the inclusion of vulnerable populations

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12/05/2020 Correspondence
Answering to the Call of Critically Ill Patients: Limiting Sonographer...

Answering to the Call of Critically Ill Patients: Limiting Sonographer Exposure to COVID-19 with Focused Protocols

ELSEVIER

Authors
Abigail Kaminski, Abby Payne, Sarah Roemer, Denise Ignatowski, Bijoy K.Khandheria



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09/05/2020 Scientifc Report
Criteria for releasing COVID-19 patients from isolation

WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION

Authors
WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION


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08/05/2020 Open
Guidance for the management of adult patients with coronavirus disease...

Guidance for the management of adult patients with coronavirus disease 2019

Chinese Medical Journal

Authors
Jie-Ming Qu, Chen Wang, Bin Cao

ABSTRACT

In December 2019, a novel coronavirus was identified in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China and later the disease was named coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). On March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) officially announced that COVID-19 had reached global pandemic status. This article summarized the understanding of the etiology, pathogenesis, epidemiology, clinical characteristics, diagnosis, treatment, rehabilitation, and prevention and control measures of COVID-19 based on the available data and anti-epidemic experience in China.

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08/05/2020 Articles
Quantifying SARS-CoV-2 transmission suggests epidemic control with dig...

Quantifying SARS-CoV-2 transmission suggests epidemic control with digital contact tracing

Science

Authors
Luca Ferretti, Chris Wymant, Michelle Kendall, Lele Zhao, Anel Nurtay, Lucie Abeler-Dörner, Michael Parker, David Bonsall, Christophe Fraser

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06/05/2020 Articles
COVID-19: l’organizzazione del follow-up e la raccolta dati suglioutco...

COVID-19: l’organizzazione del follow-up e la raccolta dati suglioutcomes a medio e lungo termine.

SIMIT

Authors
SIMIT

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29/04/2020 Letter
The art of medicine Revisiting the 1957 and 1968 influenza pandemics

The Lancet

Authors
Mark Honigsbaum

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29/04/2020 Letter
Preliminary observations of anaesthesia ventilators use for prolonged ...

Preliminary observations of anaesthesia ventilators use for prolonged mechanical ventilation...

ELSEVIER

Authors
Aurélie Gouel-Cheron, CamilleCouffignale, Yoann Elmaleh, Elie Kantor, Philippe Montravers

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27/04/2020 Editorial
Global regulatory agility during covid-19 and other health emergencies

BMJ

Authors
Tippi K Mak, John CW Lim, Prapassorn Thanaphollert, Gugu N Mahlangu, Emer Cook, Murray M Lumpkin

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27/04/2020 Perspectives
Twentieth-Century Lessons for a Modern Coronavirus Pandemic

JAMA

Authors
Angel Desai

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24/04/2020 Overview
Availability of medicines during COVID-19 pandemic

EUROPEAN MEDICINE AGENCY

Authors
JAN JACOBS

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23/04/2020 Review
Recommendations for general surgery activities in a pandemic scenario ...

Recommendations for general surgery activities in a pandemic scenario (SARS-CoV-2)

BJS SOCIETY

Authors
F. Di Marzo, M. Sartelli, R. Cennamo, G. Toccafondi, F. Coccolini, G. La Torre, G. Tulli, M. Lombardi, M. Cardi

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22/04/2020 Articles
COVID-19 Rapid Diagnostic Tests: use in low resource settings

INSTITUTE OF TROPICAL MEDICINE ANTWERP

Authors
JAN JACOBS

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20/04/2020 Guidelines
Managing COVID-19 symptoms (including at the end of life) in the commu...

Managing COVID-19 symptoms (including at the end of life) in the community...

THE BMJ

Authors
National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) in collaboration with NHS England and NHS Improvement

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11/04/2020 Articles
Infectious Diseases Society of America Guidelines on the Treatment and...

Infectious Diseases Society of America Guidelines on the Treatment and Management of Patients with COVID-19

ISDA

Authors
Adarsh Bhimraj, Rebecca L. Morgan, Amy Hirsch Shumaker, Valery Lavergne, Lindsey Baden, Vincent Chi-Chung Cheng, Kathryn M. Edwards, Rajesh Gandhi, Jason Gallagher, William J. Muller, John C. O’Horo, Shmuel Shoham, M. Hassan Murad, Reem A. Mustafa, Shahnaz Sultan, Yngve Falck-Ytter



ABSTRACT
Background: There are many pharmacologic therapies that are being used or considered for treatment of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). There is a need for frequently updated practice guidelines on their use, based on critical evaluation of rapidly emerging literature.
Objective: Develop evidence-based rapid guidelines intended to support patients, clinicians and other health-care professionals in their decisions about treatment and management of patients with COVID-19.
Methods: In March 2020, the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) formed a multidisciplinary guideline panel of infectious disease clinicians, pharmacists, and methodologists with varied areas of expertise. The process followed a rapid recommendation checklist. The panel prioritized questions and outcomes. Then a systematic review of the peer-reviewed and grey literature was conducted. The Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) approach was used to assess the certainty of evidence and make recommendations.
Results: On April 11, 2020, IDSA released online initial treatment recommendations and narrative summaries of other treatments under evaluation. Since that time, the guideline panel and methodologists have continued to monitor the literature and issue updates and addendums to these guidelines in response to evolving research.
Conclusions: Since the inception of its work, the panel has expressed the overarching goal that patients be recruited into ongoing trials, which would provide much needed evidence on the efficacy and safety of various therapies for COVID-19, given that we could not make a determination whether the benefits outweigh harms for most treatments.

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09/04/2020 Analysis
Face masks for the public during the covid-19 crisis

THE BMJ

Authors
Trisha Greenhalgh, Manuel B Schmid, Thomas Czypionka, Dirk Bassler, Laurence Gruer

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09/04/2020 Articles
Interim Guidance for Basic and Advanced Life Support in Adults, Childr...

Interim Guidance for Basic and Advanced Life Support in Adults, Children...

CIRCULATION

Authors
Dana P. Edelson, Comilla Sasson , Paul S. Chan, Dianne L. Atkins, Khalid Aziz, Lance B. Becker, Robert A. Berg, Steven M. Bradley, Steven C. Brooks, Adam Cheng, Marilyn Escobedo, Gustavo E. Flores, Saket Girotra, Antony Hsu, Beena D. Kamath-Rayne, Henry C. Lee, Rebecca E. Lehotzky, Mary E. Mancini, Raina M. Merchant, Vinay M. Nadkarni, Ashish R. Panchal, Mary Ann R. Peberdy, Tia T. Raymond, Brian Walsh, David S. Wang, Carolyn M. Zelop, Alexis Topjian

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09/04/2020 Editorial
Covid-19: should the public wear face masks?

THE BMJ

Authors
Babak Javid, Michael P Weekes, Nicholas J Matheson

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07/04/2020 News
Covid-19: What is the evidence for cloth masks?

THE BMJ

Authors
Elisabeth Mahase

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07/04/2020 Research
High Contagiousness and Rapid Spread of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndr...

High Contagiousness and Rapid Spread of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2

CDC

Authors
Steven Sanche, Yen Ting Lin, Chonggang Xu, Ethan Romero-Severson, Nick Hengartner, Ruian Ke

ABSTRACT

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 is the causative agent of the 2019 novel coronavirus disease pandemic. Initial estimates of the early dynamics of the outbreak in Wuhan, China, suggested a doubling time of the number of infected persons of 6–7 days and a basic reproductive number (R0) of 2.2–2.7. We collected extensive individual case reports across China and estimated key epidemiologic parameters, including the incubation period. We then designed 2 mathematical modeling approaches to infer the outbreak dynamics in Wuhan by using high-resolution domestic travel and infection data. Results show that the doubling time early in the epidemic in Wuhan was 2.3–3.3 days. Assuming a serial interval of 6–9 days, we calculated a median R0 value of 5.7 (95% CI 3.8–8.9). We further show that active surveillance, contact tracing, quarantine, and early strong social distancing efforts are needed to stop transmission of the virus.

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06/04/2020 Circolare
Circolare sulle procedure semplificate per gli studi e gli usi compass...

Circolare sulle procedure semplificate per gli studi e gli usi compassionevoli...

AIFA

Authors
AIFA

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30/03/2020 Guidelines
Coping with stress during the 2019-nCoV outbreak

World Health Organization

World Health Organization

 

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27/03/2020 Guidelines
Consensus guidelines for managing the airway in patients with COVID-19

WILEY ONLINE LIBRARY

Authors
T. M. Cook K. El‐Boghdadly B. McGuire A. F. McNarry A. Patel A. Higgs

ABSTRACT

Severe acute respiratory syndrome-corona virus-2, which causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), is highly contagious. Airway management of patients with COVID-19 is high risk to staff and patients. We aimed to develop principles for airway management of patients with COVID-19 to encourage safe, accurate and swift performance. This consensus statement has been brought together at short notice to advise on airway management for patients with COVID-19, drawing on published literature and immediately available information from clinicians and experts. Recommendations on the prevention of contamination of healthcare workers, the choice of staff involved in airway management, the training required and the selection of equipment are discussed. The fundamental principles of airway management in these settings are described for: emergency tracheal intubation; predicted or unexpected difficult tracheal intubation; cardiac arrest; anaesthetic care; and tracheal extubation. We provide figures to support clinicians in safe airway management of patients with COVID-19. The advice in this document is designed to be adapted in line with local workplace policies.

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25/03/2020 Report
COVID-19: An executive report

ACCADEMIA DEI LINCEI

Authors
Maurizio Cecconi, Guido Forni, Alberto Mantovani

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23/03/2020 Link
Coronavirus COVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2)

Johns Hopkins Medicine

Authors
Paul G. Auwaerter

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19/03/2020 Press Release
Call to pool research resources into large multi-centre, multi-arm cli...

Call to pool research resources into large multi-centre, multi-arm clinical trials to generate sound evidence on COVID-19 treatments

European Medicines Agency Science Medicine Health

European Medicines Agency Science Medicine Health

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12/03/2020 Articles
Managing the Respiratory care of patients with COVID-19

ITS (ITALIAN THORACIC SOCIETY)

Authors
Harari Sergio Alfonso, Vitacca Michele, Blasi Francesco, Centanni Stefano, Santus Pier Achille, Tarsia Paolo

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10/03/2020 Technical Report
Novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) Discharge criteria for confirmed COVID-...

Novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) Discharge criteria for confirmed COVID-19 cases...

ECDC

Authors
ECDC

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02/03/2020 Interim guidance
Laboratory testing for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in suspecte...

Laboratory testing for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in suspected human cases

WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION

Authors
WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION

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18/02/2020 Guidelines
Surface sampling of coronavirus disease (COVID-19): A practical “how t...

Surface sampling of coronavirus disease (COVID-19): A practical “how to” protocol for health care and public health professionals

World Health Organization

World Health Organization

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10/02/2020 Guidelines
Guidelines for the use of non-pharmaceutical measures to delay and mit...

Guidelines for the use of non-pharmaceutical measures to delay and mitigate the impact of 2019-nCoV

ECDC TECHNICAL REPORT

Authors
ECDC TECHNICAL REPORT

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05/02/2020 Guidelines
Risk Assessment of Novel Coronavirus COVID-19 Outbreaks Outside China

MDPI - Journal of Clinical Medicine

Authors
Péter Boldog, Tamás Tekeli, Zsolt Vizi, Attila Dénes, Ferenc A. Bartha and Gergely Röst

Abstract:

We developed a computational tool to assess the risks of novel coronavirus outbreaks outside of China. We estimate the dependence of the risk of a major outbreak in a country from imported cases on key parameters such as: (i) the evolution of the cumulative number of cases in mainland China outside the closed areas; (ii) the connectivity of the destination country with China, including baseline travel frequencies, the effect of travel restrictions, and the efficacy of entry screening at destination; and (iii) the efficacy of control measures in the destination country (expressed by the local reproduction number Rloc). We found that in countries with low connectivity to China but with relatively high Rloc, the most beneficial control measure to reduce the risk of outbreaks is a further reduction in their importation number either by entry screening or travel restrictions. Countries with high connectivity but low Rloc benefit the most from policies that further reduce Rloc. Countries in the middle should consider a combination of such policies. Risk assessments were illustrated for selected groups of countries from America, Asia, and Europe. We investigated how their risks depend on those parameters, and how the risk is increasing in time as the number of cases in China is growing.

Keywords:
novel coronavirus; transmission; risk assessment; interventions; travel; outbreak; COVID-19; compartmental model; branching process

Target audience
Public health authorities in the EU/EEA Member States (MS) and the UK.

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03/02/2020 Guidelines
COVID-19 rapid guideline: managing symptoms (including at the end of l...

COVID-19 rapid guideline: managing symptoms (including at the end of life) in the community

NICE guideline

Authors
Péter Boldog, Tamás Tekeli, Zsolt Vizi, Attila Dénes, Ferenc A. Bartha and Gergely Röst

Abstract:
The purpose of this guideline is to provide recommendations for managing COVID‑19 symptoms for patients in the community, including at the end of life. It also includes recommendations about managing medicines for these patients, and protecting staff from infection. This guideline is for: health and care practitioners health and care staff involved in planning and delivering services commissioners The recommendations bring together existing national and international guidance and policies advice from specialists working in the NHS from across the UK. These include people with expertise and experience of treating patients for the specific health conditions covered by the guidance during the current COVID-19 pandemic.

Keywords:
novel coronavirus; transmission; risk assessment; interventions; travel; outbreak; COVID-19; compartmental model; branching process

Target audience
Public health authorities in the EU/EEA Member States (MS) and the UK.

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15/03/2016 Articles
Impact analysis studies of clinical prediction rules relevant to prima...

Impact analysis studies of clinical prediction rules relevant to primarycare...

BMJ

Authors
Emma Wallace, Maike J M Uijen, Barbara Clyne, Atieh Zarabzadeh, Claire Keogh

ABSTRACT
Objectives Following appropriate validation, clinical prediction rules (CPRs) should undergo impact analysis to evaluate their effect on patient care. The aim of this systematic review is to narratively review and critically appraise CPR impact analysis studies relevant to primary care. Setting Primary care. Participants Adults and children. Intervention Studies that implemented the CPR compared to usual care were included. Study design Randomised controlled trial (RCT), controlled before–after, and interrupted time series. Primary outcome Physician behaviour and/or patient outcomes. Results A total of 18 studies, incorporating 14 unique CPRs, were included. The main study design was RCT (n=13). Overall, 10 studies reported an improvement in primary outcome with CPR implementation. Of 6 musculoskeletal studies, 5 were effective in altering targeted physician behaviour in ordering imaging for patients presenting with ankle, knee and neck musculoskeletal injuries. Of 6 cardiovascular studies, 4 implemented cardiovascular risk scores, and 3 reported no impact on physician behaviour outcomes, such as prescribing and referral, or patient outcomes, such as reduction in serum lipid levels. 2 studies examined CPRs in decision-making for patients presenting with chest pain and reduced inappropriate admissions. Of 5 respiratory studies, 2 were effective in reducing antibiotic prescribing for sore throat following CPR implementation. Overall, study methodological quality was often unclear due to incomplete reporting. Conclusions Despite increasing interest in developing and validating CPRs relevant to primary care, relatively few have gone through impact analysis. To date, research has focused on a small number of CPRs across few clinical domains only

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