Infection with SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for the global COVID-19 pandemic, causes a respiratory illness that can severely impact other organ systems and is possibly precipitated by cytokine storm, septic shock, thrombosis, and oxidative stress. SARS-CoV-2 infected individuals may be asymptomatic or may experience mild, moderate, or severe symptoms with or without pneumonia. The mechanisms by which SARS-CoV-2 infects humans are largely unknown. Mouse hepatitis virus 1 (MHV-1)-induced infection was used as a highly relevant surrogate animal model for this study. We further characterized this animal model and compared it with SARS-CoV-2 infection in humans. MHV-1 inoculated mice displayed death as well as weight loss, as reported earlier. We showed that MHV-1-infected mice at days 7–8 exhibit severe lung inflammation, peribronchiolar interstitial infiltration, bronchiolar epithelial cell necrosis and intra-alveolar necrotic debris, alveolar exudation (surrounding alveolar walls have capillaries that are dilated and filled with red blood cells), mononuclear cell infiltration, hyaline membrane formation, the presence of hemosiderin-laden macrophages, and interstitial edema. When compared to uninfected mice, the infected mice showed severe liver vascular congestion, luminal thrombosis of portal and sinusoidal vessels, hepatocyte degeneration, cell necrosis, and hemorrhagic changes. Proximal and distal tubular necrosis, hemorrhage in interstitial tissue, and the vacuolation of renal tubules were observed. The heart showed severe interstitial edema, vascular congestion, and dilation, as well as red blood cell extravasation into the interstitium. Upon examination of the MHV-1 infected mice brain, we observed congested blood vessels, perivascular cavitation, cortical pericellular halos, vacuolation of neuropils, darkly stained nuclei, pyknotic nuclei, and associated vacuolation of the neuropil in the cortex, as well as acute eosinophilic necrosis and necrotic neurons with fragmented nuclei and vacuolation in the hippocampus. Our findings suggest that the widespread thrombotic events observed in the surrogate animal model for SARS-CoV-2 mimic the reported findings in SARS-CoV-2 infected humans, representing a highly relevant and safe animal model for the study of the pathophysiologic mechanisms of SARS-CoV-2 for potential therapeutic interventions.
Background Adherence to HIV care is complex, as barriers to care are multidimensional, particularly for ethnic minority women. Mobile health (mHealth) solutions are supportive in improving HIV health care outcomes. In the United States, however, mHealth interventions are not widely implemented in public HIV clinics and have not been customized for women. There is an unmet need for culturally and linguistically appropriate mHealth interventions that address the health care needs of minority women living with HIV. Objective This study aims to describe a protocol investigating the feasibility of an mHealth intervention for treatment adherence among women living with HIV. This is a two-phase, mixed methods, pilot randomized controlled trial that begins with qualitative patient interviews to inform the system design. Participants will be block randomized by language (English, Spanish, and Haitian Creole) to 1 of 2 study arms. Methods Women (age ≥18 years) who were followed up at the women’s HIV clinic of an academic medical center, with a recent history of nonadherence to HIV care (missed appointments, unsuppressed viral load, or not taking medications as prescribed), will be enrolled. The experimental arm will receive the intervention, which includes health reminders and psychoeducational messaging, plus clinical standard of care reminders. The psychoeducational messaging will target patient-level barriers of HIV stigma and medical mistrust and resilience as a patient-level strength. The control arm will receive standard of care reminders only (ie, mailed appointments and automated telephone calls). All aspects of the study and intervention will be offered in the participants’ preferred language. The primary outcome is the feasibility and acceptability of the study. The secondary outcomes are changes in self-reported medication adherence, depression symptoms, HIV stigma, medical mistrust, resilience, and clinic attendance and viral suppression extracted from the participants’ medical records. Data will be assessed at baseline (T0) and 2 subsequent clinic visits—approximately 3 to 4 months from the baseline (time 1; T1) and 6 to 9 months from the baseline (time 2; T2). Qualitative data will be transcribed and analyzed iteratively. Bivariate analyses will compare data by the study group (chi-square, odds ratios, and t tests). Exploratory analyses will be conducted for each outcome variable—T1 and T2 values will be compared with values at T0 by the study group. Results As of March 2020, baseline quantitative data were collected on 54 participants (28 English speakers, 14 Spanish speakers, and 12 Haitian Creole speakers). The first 3 focus groups (1 in each of the 3 languages) were completed, with a total of 20 participants. The findings are currently being integrated into the beta version of the mHealth texting system. Conclusions The findings of this novel HIV adherence intervention may shed light on the barriers and facilitators of HIV health care and the mechanisms of an mHealth intervention that is customized for ethnic minority women living with HIV. Trial Registration ClinicalTrials.gov NCT03738410; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03738410 International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID) DERR1-10.2196/17656
Background: Infection of the respiratory system is the main focus of the broad family of enveloped, positive-strand RNA viruses known as coronaviruses. The coronavirus that causes COVID-19 disease is a legitimate global public health threat. Mucormycosis and aspergillosis are the most typical fungal infections of the orbit. The most prevalent causative fungus for mucormycosis is a Rhizopus species, which belongs to the order Mucorales. Objective: Assessment of Mucormycosis in Covid-19 pandemic and its radiological diagnosis. Methods: We scoured medical publications and databases including PubMed, Google Scholar, and Science Direct for information on Covid-19 and Mucormycosis between May 1988 and February 2023, however, only the latest or most comprehensive study was considered. The authors also assessed the usefulness of references drawn from similar books. As a result, non-English documents have been overlooked due to a lack of resources to translate them. It was commonly recognized that scientific research did not include things like unpublished publications, oral presentations, conference abstracts, or dissertations. Conclusion:Due to the indeterminate nature of the imaging results in mucormycosis, CT and MRI scans are better suited for preoperative planning than diagnosis. T2-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings can range from hyperintensity to hypointensity, and fat planes may be lost.
BACKGROUND Adherence to HIV care is complex, as barriers to care are multidimensional, particularly for ethnic minority women. Mobile health (mHealth) solutions are supportive in improving HIV health care outcomes. In the United States, however, mHealth interventions are not widely implemented in public HIV clinics and have not been customized for women. There is an unmet need for culturally and linguistically appropriate mHealth interventions that address the health care needs of minority women living with HIV. OBJECTIVE This study aims to describe a protocol investigating the feasibility of an mHealth intervention for treatment adherence among women living with HIV. This is a two-phase, mixed methods, pilot randomized controlled trial that begins with qualitative patient interviews to inform the system design. Participants will be block randomized by language (English, Spanish, and Haitian Creole) to 1 of 2 study arms. METHODS Women (age ≥18 years) who were followed up at the women’s HIV clinic of an academic medical center, with a recent history of nonadherence to HIV care (missed appointments, unsuppressed viral load, or not taking medications as prescribed), will be enrolled. The experimental arm will receive the intervention, which includes health reminders and psychoeducational messaging, plus clinical standard of care reminders. The psychoeducational messaging will target patient-level barriers of HIV stigma and medical mistrust and resilience as a patient-level strength. The control arm will receive standard of care reminders only (ie, mailed appointments and automated telephone calls). All aspects of the study and intervention will be offered in the participants’ preferred language. The primary outcome is the feasibility and acceptability of the study. The secondary outcomes are changes in self-reported medication adherence, depression symptoms, HIV stigma, medical mistrust, resilience, and clinic attendance and viral suppression extracted from the participants’ medical records. Data will be assessed at baseline (T0) and 2 subsequent clinic visits—approximately 3 to 4 months from the baseline (time 1; T1) and 6 to 9 months from the baseline (time 2; T2). Qualitative data will be transcribed and analyzed iteratively. Bivariate analyses will compare data by the study group (chi-square, odds ratios, and t tests). Exploratory analyses will be conducted for each outcome variable—T1 and T2 values will be compared with values at T0 by the study group. RESULTS As of March 2020, baseline quantitative data were collected on 54 participants (28 English speakers, 14 Spanish speakers, and 12 Haitian Creole speakers). The first 3 focus groups (1 in each of the 3 languages) were completed, with a total of 20 participants. The findings are currently being integrated into the beta version of the mHealth texting system. CONCLUSIONS The findings of this novel HIV adherence intervention may shed light on the barriers and facilitators of HIV health care and the mechanisms of an mHealth intervention that is customized for ethnic minority women living with HIV. CLINICALTRIAL ClinicalTrials.gov NCT03738410; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03738410 INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT DERR1-10.2196/17656
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