Category: Study

October 1, 2020 COVID-19, Study

Spam Epidemiology and transmission dynamics of COVID-19 in two Indian states

A new study of more than a half-million people in India who were exposed to the novel coronavirus suggests that the virus’ continued spread is driven by only a small percentage of those who become infected, known as superspreaders. The study also found that children and young adults are potentially much more important to transmitting the virus than previously thought. The paper is the largest COVID-19 contact-tracing study to date.

Link to Study https://science.sciencemag.org/content/early/2020/09/29/science.abd7672.full

August 17, 2020 COVID-19, Study

Coronavirus (COVID-19) related mortality rates and the effects of air pollution

Long-term exposure to air pollution may increase the risk of death from Covid-19, according to a large study. It analysed more than 46,000 coronavirus deaths in England and showed that a small, single-unit increase in people’s exposure to small-particle pollution over the previous decade may increase the death rate by up to 6%. A single-unit increase in nitrogen dioxide, which is at illegal levels in most urban areas, was linked to a 2% increase in death rates.

Link to study: https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/environmentalaccounts/methodologies/coronaviruscovid19relatedmortalityratesandtheeffectsofairpollutioninengland

July 16, 2020 COVID-19, Study

Longitudinal evaluation and decline of antibody responses in SARS-CoV-2 infection

Researchers say that antibodies in patients who have become infected by the virus may decline, or even disappear, within months, suggesting immunity from an eventual vaccine could fade as well over. Only 17% of the 60% of patients who had had a particularly strong antibody response when they were fighting the virus still had those antibodies at the same levels three months later. In some cases, the antibodies disappeared entirely, the researchers found. The study, if backed up by further evidence, would further undermine the concept of herd immunity.

Link to study: https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.07.09.20148429v1

June 19, 2020 COVID-19, Study

Genomewide Association Study of Severe Covid-19 with Respiratory Failure

Study shows that people with Type A blood have a higher risk of catching coronavirus and of developing severe symptoms, while people with Type O blood have a lower risk. People with Type A blood had a 45% higher risk of becoming infected than people with other blood types, and people with Type O blood were just 65% as likely to become infected as people with other blood types.

Link to study: https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa2020283

COVID-19, Study

Coronavirus testing indicates transmission risk increases along wildlife supply chains for human consumption in Viet Nam

Study shows that field rats sold in markets and restaurants of Southeast Asia harbour multiple coronaviruses, a study shows. The proportion of positives increased as live animals were moved from “field to fork”, suggesting they were picking up viruses in the process. The strains detected are different from Covid-19 and are not thought to be dangerous to human health. However, scientists have warned that the wildlife trade is an incubator for disease. The mixing of multiple coronaviruses, and their amplification along the supply chain into restaurants, suggests “maximal risk for end consumers”.

Link to study: https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.06.05.098590v1

June 16, 2020 COVID-19, Study

Rationing social contact during the COVID-19 pandemic: Transmission risk and social benefits

The study identifies the businesses that have the best overall risk-benefit profiles when weighing important factors such as essential value to shoppers and the economy, as well as the relative risk of contracting COVID-19—or as one researcher put it, which businesses give us the most bang for our buck. At the top of the pile are banks, which are economically important yet uncrowded and visited infrequently.

Link to study: https://www.pnas.org/content/early/2020/06/09/2008025117

May 4, 2020 COVID-19, Study

Effect of Alert Level 4 on Reff : review of international COVID-19 cases

This study mapped the coronavirus epidemic curve for 25 countries and modeled how the spread of the virus has changed in response to the various lockdown measures. It classifies each country’s public health response using New Zealand’s four alert system. Levels 1 and 2 represent relatively relaxed controls, whereas levels 3 and 4 are stricter. By mapping the change in the effective reproduction number (Reff, an indicator of the actual spread of the virus in the community) against response measures, the research shows countries that implemented level 3 and 4 restrictions sooner had greater success in pushing Reff to below 1.

April 27, 2020 COVID-19, Study

Misinformation During a Pandemic leads to negative health outcomes

A novel study looking at impacts of coverage of COVID-19 by two Fox News shows in the United States – Hannity and Tucker Carlson Tonight – on viewers’ behavior and downstream health outcomes. Carlson warned viewers about the threat posed by the coronavirus from early February, while Hannity originally dismissed the risks associated with the virus before gradually adjusting his position starting late February.  Hannity’s viewers changed behavior in response to the virus later than other Fox News viewers, while Carlson’s viewers changed behavior earlier. Greater viewership of Hannity relative to Tucker Carlson Tonight is strongly associated with a greater number of COVID-19 cases and deaths in the early stages of the pandemic.  The researchers say that provision of misinformation in the early stages of a pandemic can have important consequences for how a disease ultimately affects the population.

Link to paper: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3580487

April 14, 2020 COVID-19, Study

Mortality associated with COVID-19 outbreaks in care homes: early international evidence

About half of all Covid-19 deaths appear to be happening in care homes in some European countries, according to early figures. Snapshot data from varying official sources shows that in Italy, Spain, France, Ireland and Belgium between 42% and 57% of deaths from the virus have been happening in care homes (non-acute residential and nursing facilities that house people with some form of long-term care needs).

Link to PDF: Mortality associated with COVID-19 outbreaks in care homes: early international evidence

COVID-19, Study

Effect of non-pharmaceutical interventions for containing the COVID-19 outbreak in China

Study shows that by the end of February 2020 without non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) in China– such as early detection, isolation of cases and social distancing – the number of infected people would have been 67 times larger than that which occurred. If NPIs could have been conducted one week, two weeks, or three weeks earlier in China, cases could have been reduced by 66%, 86%, and 95%, respectively, together with significantly reducing the number of affected areas. Improved disease detection, isolation of cases and social distancing are likely to a far greater positive impact on containment than travel restrictions, says the study.

Link to study: https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.03.03.20029843v3

April 11, 2020 COVID-19, Study

Effectiveness of convalescent plasma therapy in severe COVID-19 patients

A new preliminary study shows a single 200 mL dose of convalescent plasma (CP) from COVID-19 patients who recently recovered shortened the duration of symptoms, improved oxygen levels and increased the clearance of the virus in patients who were still suffering from the disease. “One dose of convalescent plasma with a high concentration of neutralizing antibodies can rapidly reduce the viral load and tends to improve clinical outcomes”.

https://www.pnas.org/content/early/2020/04/02/2004168117

April 6, 2020 COVID-19, Study

The FDA-approved Drug Ivermectin inhibits the replication of SARS-CoV-2 in vitro

Study showed that a single dose of the drug, Ivermectin, could stop the SARS-CoV-2 virus growing in cell culture – effectively eradicating all genetic material of the virus within 48 hours. Ivermectin is an anti-parasitic drug that has also been shown to be effective in vitro against a broad range of viruses including HIV, Dengue, Influenza and Zika virus.

Link to study: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0166354220302011

March 30, 2020 COVID-19, Study

Association of Cardiac Injury With Mortality in Hospitalized Patients With COVID-19 in Wuhan, China

New study in JAMA Cardiology says COVID-19 can not only be deadly for people with existing heart conditions, but it can also cause cardiac injury for people without pre-existing heart conditions. The study looked at 416 COVID-19 patients hospitalized in Wuhan, China and found that 19.7% suffered a cardiac injury, which put them at higher risk for a fatal version of Coronavirus.

Link to article: https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamacardiology/fullarticle/2763524

March 24, 2020 COVID-19, Study

Decoding evolution and transmissions of novel pneumonia coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) using the whole genomic data

Phyloepidemiologic analyses indicated the SARS-CoV-2 source at the Hua Nan market should be imported from other places. The crowded market boosted SARS-CoV-2 rapid circulations in the market and spread it to the whole city in early December 2019. 

Link to Study: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/339351990_Decoding_evolution_and_transmissions_of_novel_pneumonia_coronavirus_SARS-CoV-2_using_the_whole_genomic_data

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