Epidemiological profile and performance of triage decision-making process of COVID-19 suspected cases in southern Tunisia

Jmaa, Maïssa Ben; Ayed, H. Ben; Kassis, Mondher; Hmida, M. Ben; Trigui, Maroua; Maamri, H.; Ketata, N.; Yaïch, S.; Trabelsi, J.; Mejdoub, Yosra; Turki, Manel; Marrakchi, Chakib; Kammoun, S.; Jemâa, Mounir Ben; Féki, H.; Damak, Jamel

doi:10.1016/j.afjem.2021.10.001

Cited by 3 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 16 publications

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“…25 In contrast to these studies, a similar scoring system from southern Tunisia, which included contact history, fever, cough and/or dyspnea, sore throat, nausea/vomiting/diarrhea, renal/respiratory, or cardiac failure, had insufficient AUC to discriminate COVID-19 cases. 26 Our results demonstrate that the "Possible COVID-19 Case Questioning Guide for Outpatients" triage chart had high sensitivity and specificity value as a whole, with a considerable AUC for discriminating possible COVID-19 cases, similar to the currently published literature. However, it had an unsatisfactory diagnostic value for predicting PCR positivity in patients referred to the pandemic outpatient area, underlying a poor correlation with PCR positivity within possible cases.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 83%

Real-world diagnostic value of a nationwide standardized COVID-19 triage chart in Turkey

Öztürk¹,

Tazegül²

2022

Adv Clin Exp Med

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Background. Effective triage is critical during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic. An appropriate triage plan is crucial to direct suspected COVID-19 cases to a designated area, in order to separate such patients from other patients and staff.Objectives. To report the diagnostic value of the "Possible Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Case Questioning Guide for Outpatients", a nationwide standard triage chart, and of the individual questions within the triage chart for detecting COVID-19 in patients admitted to our hospital. Materials and methods.A total of 39,681 outpatients admitted to our hospital between April 1 and April 30, 2021, underwent triage questioning. The triage chart consisted of 3 symptom questions and 4 contact and travel questions. Patients who responded "yes" to at least 1 question were referred to the pandemic area; others were considered low-risk and did not undergo routine COVID-19 polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test.Results. Briefly, 3529 outpatients were referred to the pandemic area; among them, 1055 were PCR-positive. Among 36,152 low-risk patients, 94 were PCR-positive. The sensitivity of the triage chart was 91.82%, specificity was 93.58%, positive likelihood ratio was 14.30, and negative likelihood ratio was 0.09. Triage questions were in moderate agreement with PCR results (Cohen's Kappa: 0.429, p < 0.0001). The diagnostic value of the triage chart was mainly attributed to the questions regarding possible COVID-19 infection symptoms rather than contact history. However, the questions included in the triage chart had none to slight agreement with the PCR test results in the pandemic outpatients. Conclusions.The triage chart has high sensitivity and specificity for discriminating possible COVID-19 cases in all outpatients, but has unsatisfactory diagnostic value for predicting PCR positivity in pandemic outpatients. Therefore, the current triage chart should be used accordingly, i.e., to define possible COVID-19 cases rather than PCR-positive cases. Further studies regarding COVID-19 triage for possible and PCR-positive cases should also focus on the individual diagnostic value of less prevalent symptoms.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 83%

Real-world diagnostic value of a nationwide standardized COVID-19 triage chart in Turkey

Öztürk¹,

Tazegül²

2022

Adv Clin Exp Med

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The evolution of the global COVID-19 epidemic in Morocco and understanding the different therapeutic approaches of chitosan in the control of the pandemic

et al. 2022

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In 2020, Coronavirus disease (COVID-19), a new viral respiratory disease caused by a virus that belongs to Coronaviridae family, has been identified. It is a very severe flu that negatively affects the functions of the lung and other respiratory organs. COVID-19 virus can be transmitted between people either by touching an infected person or by direct contact with their respiratory droplets. Therefore, the COVID-19 virus has become a global concern due to its rapid spread and severity. Based on the World Health Organization report from 2 March 2020 to 24 October 2022, the total infected cases and deaths in Morocco are around 1,265,389 (3.46%) and 16,280 (0.04%), respectively. Recently, some scientists have found that chitosan, a polymer existed in nature, can inhibit COVID-19 infection and repair damaged tissue. Therefore, understanding chitosan mechanisms in controlling COVID-19, might lead to innovative strategies in the medical field, such as developing drugs against SARS-CoV-2, and replacing vaccines, which have negative side effects. This review aims to show the evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic worldwide, specifically in Morocco, its pathophysiology, and its ability to silence the immune system. This review also provides an overview of the treatments and measures applied to protect human beings and how chitosan acts and controls COVID-19.

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Lessons from the frontline: The value of emergency care processes and data to pandemic responses across the Pacific region

Mitchell

O’Reilly

Herron

et al. 2022

The Lancet Regional Health - Western Pacific

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Epidemiological profile and performance of triage decision-making process of COVID-19 suspected cases in southern Tunisia

Cited by 3 publications

References 16 publications

Real-world diagnostic value of a nationwide standardized COVID-19 triage chart in Turkey

Real-world diagnostic value of a nationwide standardized COVID-19 triage chart in Turkey

The evolution of the global COVID-19 epidemic in Morocco and understanding the different therapeutic approaches of chitosan in the control of the pandemic

Lessons from the frontline: The value of emergency care processes and data to pandemic responses across the Pacific region

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