Background Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is a novel virus that belongs to the coronaviruses and causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). In this study, we explored the demographic details, clinical features, and routinely conducted laboratory investigations of patients with COVID-19 during the second and third waves of the pandemic to understand their possible diagnostic and prognostic values in Egypt. Methods In this retrospective cohort study, the demographic characteristics, detailed medical history, laboratory findings, and symptoms of all enrolled patients with SARS-CoV-2 were collected from the medical records of Beni Suef University Hospitals between December 15, 2020, and April 15, 2021. Results This retrospective study included 473 patients, almost all of whom were elderly. The median age of the patients was 48 years, and those with moderate and severe disease were older than those with mild infections. The proportion of females was higher (63.4%) than males (36.6%). Diabetes mellitus (DM) was the most common comorbidity (17.3%), and fever was the most typical manifestation of COVID-19 (62.6%). Those with severe disease showed a higher C-reactive protein level (CRP) than those with moderate (p-value 0.009) or mild (p-value 0.01) diseases. Serum ferritin levels were significantly higher in patients with severe disease than in those with moderate disease (p-value 0.018). In contrast, D-dimer and serum creatinine were normal and showed no significant difference in all comparisons (p-value overall 0.21). Conclusion This study observed several variations in COVID-19 patients’ characteristics. The new manifestations included skin rash, bone and low back pains, and rigors. In contrast to females, most males had moderate-to-severe illness. Old age and higher body mass index was associated with increasing severity. D-dimer and complete blood count were normal and could not identify potential COVID‐19 patients. Patients who had mild illness were still at risk of developing post-COVID complications.

No abstract

Ischemic heart disease (IHD) is a pressing public health concern with high prevalence, mortality, and morbidity. Although the value of neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and platelet-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) as markers of the acute coronary syndrome are well recognized, there is a paucity of data deciphering their role in screening for stable ischemic heart disease (SIHD) in the presence of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). The present study investigates the value of NLR and PLR as markers of SIHD in T2DM. We evaluated the predictive value of NLR and PLR for SIHD by comparing T2DM patients having angiographically proven SIHD to T2DM patients without IHD at different cutoff levels by evaluating the area under the curve (AUC) obtained from receiver-operating-characteristic analysis. Raised NLR and PLR were significantly associated with SIHD ( P < .001 for each). On performing AUC-receiver-operating-characteristic analysis, NLR of > 2.39 and PLR of > 68.80 were associated with the highest prevalence of SIHD (NLR, AUC: 0.652 [0.605–0.699]; CI: 95%; P < .001, PLR, AUC: 0.623 [0.575–0.671] CI: 95%; P < .001). The sensitivities and specificities for these cutoff values were 50% and 73% for NLR and 73% and 46% for PLR, respectively. NLR and PLR were significantly higher in SIHD compared to those without; however, these markers had limited predictive potential in the setting of T2DM.

No abstract

With nodular sclerosis (NS) being the most common subtype of Hodgkin Lymphoma in Western countries, we aim to investigate incidence rates and trends and survival rates of NS in the last two decades using the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) program. For included patients, we calculated incidence rates, annual percent change (APC) in incidence trends, and performed survival analysis through Kaplan Meier and Cox regression. Our study included 20,216 patients with NS diagnosed between 2000 and 2015, showing that NS incidence decreased over the study period. Unlike previous reports, NS was mostly diagnosed in males. Compared to white patients, black patients had a higher risk of death, which may be due to previously-reported differences in access to care according to patient-related criteria as socioeconomic status and race. This highlights the need of equal access to care, irrespective of patients’ demographic criteria, for more effective management of NS.

Background: Surgical myectomy (SM) and Alcohol septal ablation (ASA) are two known therapies recommended for symptomatic hypertrophic cardiomyopathy patients. Although, their results are contradictory between the outcomes of these two procedures to this day. Hypothesis: This meta-analysis evaluates and compares the two procedure-related clinical outcomes. Method: We performed a systematic literature search on PubMed, Embase and Cochrane for relevant articles from inception until May 20, 2022. Unadjusted odds ratios (OR) were pooled using a random-effect model, and a p-value of <0.05 was considered statistically significant. Result: A total of 23 articles with 17165 patients comparing the outcomes among SM vs ASA with a mean follow-up of 44.18±24.06 months. The odds of short-term mortality [OR, 0.51(95%CI: 0.33-0.79), p = 0.002] were significantly lower in ASA group, while reintervention [OR, 2.93 (95%CI: 0.99-8.70), p = 0.05], and pacemaker implantation [OR, 1.97(95%CI: 1.28-3.03), p = 0.002] were significantly higher among ASA group compared to SM. Long term mortality [OR, 0.91(95%CI: 0.57-1.47), p = 0.71], SCD [OR, 1.55(95%CI: 0.76-3.17), p = 0.23], CVM [ OR, 0.76(95%CI: 0.39-1.46), p = 0.40], Stroke [OR, 1.24(95%CI: 0.24-6.26), p = 0.80], and MI [OR, 1.04(95%CI: 0.19-5.57), p = 0.97] were not different between both procedures. Conclusion: ASA and SM procedure for treating HOCM carries a similar risk of long-term mortality and other cardiovascular and cerebrovascular outcomes among both groups. However, ASA carries a lower incidence of short-term mortality and higher incidence of reintervention and pacemaker implantation than SM.

No abstract

Background and Aims The COVID‐19 pandemic and the resultant change in sedentary behaviors have had immense health, economic, and social implications globally. As governments worldwide imposed lockdowns and curfews, the amount of time spent indoors greatly increased. This lead to a dramatic change in physical activity (PA) levels and profound consequences on daily routines. Our study aimed to investigate patterns of PA during the COVID‐19 pandemic among adults residing in Saudi Arabia. Methods This cross‐sectional survey‐based study aimed to investigate patterns of PA during the COVID‐19 pandemic among adults residing in Saudi Arabia. The International Physical Activity Questionnaire was utilized to measure participants' PA levels between April 2021 and May 2021. Participants were then classified into three groups according to their PA level, and their PA levels and sedentary behaviors were analyzed. Results We surveyed 463 participants, 315 (68%) of which were female and 134 (32%) of which were male with a median age of 23 (interquartile range, 21–35) years. Moderate‐to‐high PA was reported by 257 (55.7%) of the participants. There was a significant decrease in PA during the COVID‐19 pandemic and resultant lockdowns among the participants ( p = 0.04), with higher rates of sedentary behavior among males than females ( p = 0.14). Conclusions The decline in PA is a profound challenge of the COVID‐19 pandemic that needs to be addressed by health practitioners and policymakers. Our study highlights the decline in PA levels seen during the COVID‐19 pandemic and the importance of promotional programs and interventions to increase PA among the Saudi Arabian population without compromising the essential health restrictions and social distancing.