Long COVID-19 syndrome associated with Omicron XBB.1.5 infection: a case report.

BACKGROUND: There is interest in lingering non-specific symptoms after severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection, referred to as Long coronavirus disease 2019 (Long COVID-19). It remains unknown whether the risk of Long COVID-19 is associated with pre-existing comorbidities or initial COVID-19 severity, including infections due to new Omicron lineages which predominated in 2023. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this case report was to characterize the clinical features of acute XBB.1.5 infection followed by Long COVID-19. METHODS: We followed a 73-year old female resident of Rio de Janeiro with laboratory-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 during acute infection and subsequent months. The SARS-CoV-2 lineage was determined by genome sequencing. FINDINGS: The participant denied comorbidities and had completed a two-dose vaccination schedule followed by two booster doses eight months prior to SARS-CoV-2 infection. Primary infection by viral lineage XBB.1.5. was clinically mild, but the participant subsequently reported persistent fatigue. MAIN CONCLUSIONS: This case demonstrates that Long COVID-19 may develop even after mild disease due to SARS-CoV-2 in fully vaccinated and boosted individuals without comorbidities. Continued monitoring of new SARS-CoV-2 lineages and associated clinical outcomes is warranted. Measures to prevent infection should continue to be implemented including development of new vaccines and antivirals effective against novel variants

Impact of COVID-19 on cardiovascular testing in the United States versus the rest of the world

Objectives: This study sought to quantify and compare the decline in volumes of cardiovascular procedures between the United States and non-US institutions during the early phase of the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the care of many non-COVID-19 illnesses. Reductions in diagnostic cardiovascular testing around the world have led to concerns over the implications of reduced testing for cardiovascular disease (CVD) morbidity and mortality. Methods: Data were submitted to the INCAPS-COVID (International Atomic Energy Agency Non-Invasive Cardiology Protocols Study of COVID-19), a multinational registry comprising 909 institutions in 108 countries (including 155 facilities in 40 U.S. states), assessing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on volumes of diagnostic cardiovascular procedures. Data were obtained for April 2020 and compared with volumes of baseline procedures from March 2019. We compared laboratory characteristics, practices, and procedure volumes between U.S. and non-U.S. facilities and between U.S. geographic regions and identified factors associated with volume reduction in the United States. Results: Reductions in the volumes of procedures in the United States were similar to those in non-U.S. facilities (68% vs. 63%, respectively; p = 0.237), although U.S. facilities reported greater reductions in invasive coronary angiography (69% vs. 53%, respectively; p < 0.001). Significantly more U.S. facilities reported increased use of telehealth and patient screening measures than non-U.S. facilities, such as temperature checks, symptom screenings, and COVID-19 testing. Reductions in volumes of procedures differed between U.S. regions, with larger declines observed in the Northeast (76%) and Midwest (74%) than in the South (62%) and West (44%). Prevalence of COVID-19, staff redeployments, outpatient centers, and urban centers were associated with greater reductions in volume in U.S. facilities in a multivariable analysis. Conclusions: We observed marked reductions in U.S. cardiovascular testing in the early phase of the pandemic and significant variability between U.S. regions. The association between reductions of volumes and COVID-19 prevalence in the United States highlighted the need for proactive efforts to maintain access to cardiovascular testing in areas most affected by outbreaks of COVID-19 infection

Rainfall and river flow trends using Mann–Kendall and Sen’s slope estimator statistical tests in the Cobres River basin

The main objective of this study is to obtain a better understanding of the spatial and temporal variability and trends of rainfall and river flow in the Cobres River basin, southern Portugal, using statistical tools. The present study is focused on the analysis of the trends in annual precipitations and river flow at a regional scale over 40 years (1960–2000). Datasets of daily precipitation recorded in eight rainfall stations and three river flow stations were analyzed. The nonparametric Mann–Kendall and Sen’s methods were used to determine whether there was a positive or negative trend in rainfall data with their statistical significance. A detailed statistical analysis applied to the river flow and rainfall time series of all gauges indicates that rainfall is highly temporally variable and there is a decrease in the annual rainfall amount for the period studied (1960–2000). Thus, there are signs of significant rainfall reduction in the basin, and in fact, some rain gauges show a small rainfall increase during the recent decades. The annual river flow variation has a cyclic behavior with a period length of approximately 10 years. The results seem integrated to the global and European continental scale findings: Decreasing trends are dominant for almost all indices; most of the calculated slopes are statistically insignificant; the distribution of positive and negative slopes in the area is extremely irregular; and the changes in basin are more significant compared to other studies

HSP70 expression in blood cells in diploid and triploid rainbow trouts as short-term stress thermal and welfare statement model

En la fisiología de los peces triploides, falta información sobre sus respuestas moleculares bajo estrés y cómo cuantificar los niveles o la intensidad del estrés. Por lo tanto, los objetivos de este ensayo fueron evaluar el patrón de HSP70 en las branquias, el corazón y los músculos de truchas arco iris diploides y triploides no estresadas, y en las células sanguíneas después de la exposición al estrés por calor para evaluar sus niveles de estrés. Se observó una detección inmunohistoquímica de HSP70 similar en las muestras de branquias, corazón y músculos en ambas ploidías. Sin embargo, la expresión de HSP70 en sangre varió entre ploidías durante el tiempo experimental. Las truchas diploides de control y estresadas mostraron niveles análogos de HSP70, pero las truchas triploides estresadas por calor mostraron niveles más bajos de HSP70 durante todo el experimento con diferencias observadas después de 12 h y 24 h. Se esperaba una mayor expresión de HSP70 en ambas ploidías una vez que esta proteína protege a las células contra una amplia gama de agentes perturbadores. Evidencias recientes mostraron que los peces triploides tienen una menor expresión génica y este hecho debe ser explorado en futuras investigaciones en truchas arcoíris. En conclusión, las comparaciones a lo largo del tiempo entre los niveles diploides y triploides de HSP70 en truchas podrían usarse en la evaluación del estrés y de bienestar. &nbsp;In triploid fish physiology there is a lack of information about its molecular responses under stress and how to quantify the stress levels or intensity. Thus, the goals of this trial were to evaluate the pattern of HSP70 in the gills, heart and muscles of non-stressed diploid and triploid rainbow trouts, and in the blood cells after the exposure to heat stress in order to assess their stress levels. Similar HSP70 immunohistochemical detection in the gills, heart and muscles samples was seen in both ploidies. However, HSP70 expression in blood varied between ploidies over the experimental time. Control and stressed diploid trouts showed analogous HSP70 levels, but heat stressed triploid trouts showed lower HSP70 levels throughout the experiment with differences observable after 12h and 24h. It was expected higher HSP70 expression in both ploidies once this protein protects the cells against a wide range of disturbing agents. Recent evidences showed that triploid fishes have lower gene expression and this fact must be explored in future investigation in rainbow trouts. In conclusion, comparisons over time between diploid and triploid HSP70 levels in trouts could be used in stress evaluation and welfare statement

Third molar maturity index (I _3M) assessment according to different geographical zones:a large multi-ethnic study sample

Identification of living undocumented individuals highlights the need for accurate, precise, and reproducible age estimation methods, especially in those cases involving minors. However, when their country of origin is unknown, or it can be only roughly estimated, it is extremely difficult to apply assessment policies, procedures, and practices that are accurate and child-sensitive. The main aim of this research is to optimize the correct classification of adults and minors by establishing new cut-off values for four different continents (Africa, America, Asia, and Europe). For this purpose, a vast sample of 10,701 orthopantomographs (OPTs) from four continents was evaluated. For determination and subsequent validation of the new third molar maturity index (I3M) cut-off values by world regions, a cross-validation by holdout method was used and contingency tables (confusion matrices) were generated. The lower third molar maturity indexes, from both left and right side (I3ML and I3MR) and the combination of both sides (I3ML_I3MR) were calculated. The new cut-off values, that aim to differentiate between a minor and an adult, with more than 74.00% accuracy for all populations were as follows (I3ML; I3MR; I3ML_I3MR, respectively): Africa = (0.10; 0.10; 0.10), America = (0.10; 0.09; 0.09), Asia = (0.15; 0.17; 0.14), and Europe = (0.09; 0.09; 0.09). The higher sensitivity (Se) was detected for the I3ML for male African people (91%) and the higher specificity (Sp) of all the parameters (I3ML; I3MR; I3ML_I3MR) for Europeans both male and female (&gt; 91%). The original cut-off value (0.08) is still useful, especially in discriminating individuals younger than 18 years old which is the goal of the forensic methods used for justice.</p