Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Colin R. Dormuth, Jason D. Kim, Anat Fisher, Jolanta Piszczek, I. Fan Kuo
Summary: This cohort study examined the association of nirmatrelvir and ritonavir with prevention of death or admission to hospital in individuals at different risks of complications from COVID-19 infection. The results showed that treatment with nirmatrelvir and ritonavir was associated with significant reductions in the risk of COVID-19 hospitalization or death in clinically extremely vulnerable and moderately immunocompromised individuals. However, no statistically significant preventive effect was observed in other higher-risk individuals.
Review
Medicine, General & Internal
Beatrice A. Golomb, Jun Hee Han, Peter H. Langsjoen, Eero Dinkeloo, Alice E. Zemljic-Harpf
Summary: Despite the favorable observational associations and theoretical benefits, the past associations of statins to non-COVID-19 infection outcomes were not supported in meta-analysis of RCTs, suggesting potential disparities due to healthy-user/tolerator effects and indication bias. The drop in cholesterol levels in less severely affected individuals and the impaired mitochondrial function caused by statins may contribute to apparent favorable statin associations and increased risks in patients with existing mitochondrial compromise. The high rates of rhabdomyolysis in hospitalized COVID-19 patients highlight the need to consider both risks and benefits of statins. Advocacy for statins in COVID-19 should be suspended until clear evidence of RCT benefits with attention to risk modifiers.
JOURNAL OF CLINICAL MEDICINE
(2023)
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Tabitha A. Hrynick, Santiago Ripoll Lorenzo, Simone E. Carter
Summary: Vertical responses to prevent and contain COVID-19 have negatively impacted access to and use of other health services, especially in low-income and middle-income countries, emphasizing the need for proportionate and socially just responses.
Review
Environmental Sciences
Rocio Giron-Navarro, Ivonne Linares-Hernandez, Luis Antonio Castillo-Suarez
Summary: This review summarizes research data on SARS-CoV-2 in water environments, highlighting contamination risks for clean water sources and community drinking water. Evidence suggests that SARS-CoV-2 can be present in wastewater and potentially spread to seawater or freshwater, posing high risks of COVID-19 infection through contact with untreated or inadequately treated water.
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH
(2021)
Review
Microbiology
Olivier Vandenberg, Delphine Martiny, Olivier Rochas, Alex van Belkum, Zisis Kozlakidis
Summary: In this review, Vandenberg et al. explore the crucial role of diagnostic tests during the early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic, addressing technical and implementation issues encountered and suggesting future directions for improved diagnostics in potential future outbreaks.
NATURE REVIEWS MICROBIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Jiayu Liang, Clifford S. Swanson, Liang Wang, Qiang He
Summary: Prolonged building closures during the COVID-19 pandemic have led to extreme stagnation in building water systems, resulting in significantly increased presence of Legionella. Re-opening previously closed buildings poses elevated exposure risks to Legionella from building water systems.
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF INFECTION CONTROL
(2021)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Jennifer F. F. Helgeson, Payam Aminpour, Juan F. F. Fung, Alfredo Roa Henriquez, Ariela Zycherman, David Butry, Claudia Nierenberg, Yating Zhang
Summary: The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on small businesses, particularly those already facing socio-economic stressors and natural hazards. The study found that businesses experiencing concurrent natural hazards during the pandemic had greater negative impacts, and HUGO enterprises (those historically underrepresented groups) were disproportionately affected by COVID-19. The results highlight the need for additional interventions to address the opportunity gap and support HUGO businesses, especially in areas with overlapping incidents of natural hazards.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF DISASTER RISK REDUCTION
(2022)
Review
Environmental Sciences
Hossein D. Atoufi, David J. Lampert, Mika Sillanpaa
Summary: The COVID-19 pandemic has had various impacts on the environment, including changes in energy demands, air quality, and plastic pollution. Remote work has increased the carbon footprint of Internet usage, while improper handling of personal protective equipment leads to the release of microplastics into the environment.
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Construction & Building Technology
Jorge E. Pesantez, Faisal Alghamdi, Shreya Sabu, G. Mahinthakumar, Emily Zechman Berglund
Summary: This research utilizes digital twin technology to assess the impact of infrastructure due to changes in water demands associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, providing valuable analyses and insights for water utility managers.
SUSTAINABLE CITIES AND SOCIETY
(2022)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Shima Ghoochani, Maryam Salehi, Dave DeSimone, Mitra Salehi Esfandarani, Linkon Bhattacharjee
Summary: The prolonged water stagnation caused by school closures during the COVID-19 pandemic has raised concerns about water safety in schools, particularly regarding the release of lead and other heavy metals. This research found that extended water stagnation resulted in increased concentrations of lead, iron, zinc, and copper in tap water, posing a risk of elevated blood lead levels in children. Implementing remediation actions can reduce the release of lead into tap water.
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE-WATER RESEARCH & TECHNOLOGY
(2022)
Review
Environmental Sciences
Stavroula Tsitsifli, Dionysios S. Tsoukalas
Summary: The importance of clean drinking water for health cannot be overstated, as poor water quality continues to lead to outbreaks. Despite global and national institutional frameworks, there are still many factors contributing to water contamination. Risk assessment tools are being developed worldwide to proactively address drinking water quality, with benefits including improved water quality and operational efficiency, reduced complaints and costs, and fewer hazardous incidents. Identifying critical success factors such as financial resources, staff training, control point identification, hazard severity estimation, coordination, and monitoring is crucial for successful implementation.
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Environmental Sciences
D. Karunanidhi, P. Aravinthasamy, M. Deepali, T. Subramani, K. Shankar
Summary: Groundwater samples collected from 30 locations in the Coimbatore region of southern India showed a reduction in fluoride and nitrate pollution levels due to a decrease in industrial and agricultural activities during the COVID-19 lockdown, as well as dilution effects from seasonal rainfall. The chemical facies of groundwater shifted from Na-HCO3-Cl and Na-Cl to the Ca-HCO3 type, indicating the influence of factors such as mineral weathering, carbonate dissolution, and anthropogenic inputs on groundwater chemistry in the region. Overall, the findings suggest positive benefits to groundwater quality resulting from measures to control anthropogenic inputs of pollutants.
ARCHIVES OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONTAMINATION AND TOXICOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Levi Altringer, Sophie C. McKee, Jason D. Kougher, Michael J. Begier, Stephanie A. Shwiff
Summary: Taking advantage of the reduced aircraft movements due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we examined the correlation between air traffic volume and wildlife-aircraft collisions (wildlife strikes) at the top 50 airports in the United States. Both air traffic volume and the number of wildlife strikes decreased during the COVID-19 months of 2020 (March-December). However, there was a notable increase in the wildlife strike rate from May to September 2020, particularly at airports with larger declines in air traffic volume. We concluded that this increase was partly due to changes in wildlife abundance and behavior in response to reduced air traffic volume.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2023)
Review
Acoustics
R. D'Souza, R. Ashraf, H. Rowe, J. Zipursky, L. Clarfield, C. Maxwell, C. Arzola, S. Lapinsky, K. Paquette, S. Murthy, M. P. Cheng, I Malhame
Summary: This review summarizes evidence on the use of routine and investigational pharmacologic interventions for pregnant and lactating patients with COVID-19. Individualized decision-making is crucial, such as for antenatal corticosteroids and magnesium sulfate use. Dexamethasone is the only proven experimental treatment for mechanically ventilated pregnant patients with COVID-19.
ULTRASOUND IN OBSTETRICS & GYNECOLOGY
(2021)
Review
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Kobi Peleg, Moran Bodas, Attila J. Hertelendy, Thomas D. Kirsch
Summary: The current All-Hazards Approach framework in disaster risk planning is criticized for its flaws highlighted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The alternative Top-Hazards Approach emphasizes the need for different planning and mitigation tactics for inherently different disaster events.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF DISASTER RISK REDUCTION
(2021)
