Resurgence of vaccine-preventable diseases in Venezuela as a regional public health threat in the Americas

Venezuela’s tumbling economy and authoritarian rule have precipitated an unprecedented humanitarian crisis. Hyperinflation rates now exceed 45,000%, and Venezuela’s health system is in free fall. The country is experiencing a massive exodus of biomedical scientists and qualified healthcare professionals. Reemergence of arthropod-borne and vaccine-preventable diseases has sparked serious epidemics that also affect neighboring countries. In this article, we discuss the ongoing epidemics of measles and diphtheria in Venezuela and their disproportionate impact on indigenous populations. We also discuss the potential for reemergence of poliomyelitis and conclude that action to halt the spread of vaccine-preventable diseases within Venezuela is a matter of urgency for the country and the region. We further provide specific recommendations for addressing this crisis. © 2019 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). All rights reserved

Dermatitis Linearis: Vesicating Dermatosis Caused by Paederus Species (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae). Case Series and Review

Objective: Outbreaks of dermatitis linearis have been documented worldwide. We present a case series of dermatitis linearis from Latin America to highlight the importance of this clinical entity. Clinical, historical, epidemiological, and pathological aspects of the condition are discussed, and a concise current approach to the management and treatment of this morbidity is presented. Methods: We present a series of 4 selected cases reflecting the clinical spectrum exhibited in dermatitis linearis by Paederus along with a review of the literature. Results: In this review we demonstrate the need for awareness of dermatitis linearis as a clinical entity that must be considered in the broad list of differential diagnosis embracing vesicating linear lesions. Conclusions: Capture of the insect, epidemiologic features, and a high clinical suspicion can aid in making the correct diagnosis. Primary prevention through public awareness, decreased use of artificial lighting, and mosquito nets can limit the extent and severity of outbreaks. © 2013 Wilderness Medical Society

Resurgence of vaccine-preventable diseases in Venezuela as a regional public health threat in the Americas

Venezuela’s tumbling economy and authoritarian rule have precipitated an unprecedented humanitarian crisis. Hyperinflation rates now exceed 45,000%, and Venezuela’s health system is in free fall. The country is experiencing a massive exodus of biomedical scientists and qualified healthcare professionals. Reemergence of arthropod-borne and vaccine-preventable diseases has sparked serious epidemics that also affect neighboring countries. In this article, we discuss the ongoing epidemics of measles and diphtheria in Venezuela and their disproportionate impact on indigenous populations. We also discuss the potential for reemergence of poliomyelitis and conclude that action to halt the spread of vaccine-preventable diseases within Venezuela is a matter of urgency for the country and the region. We further provide specific recommendations for addressing this crisis. © 2019 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). All rights reserved

COVID-19-Associated cardiac pathology at the postmortem evaluation: a collaborative systematic review.

Many postmortem studies address the cardiovascular effects of COVID-19 and provide valuable information, but are limited by their small sample size. The aim of this systematic review is to better understand the various aspects of the cardiovascular complications of COVID-19 by pooling data from a large number of autopsy studies. We searched the online databases Ovid EBM Reviews, Ovid Embase, Ovid Medline, Scopus, and Web of Science for concepts of autopsy or histopathology combined with COVID-19, published between database inception and February 2021. We also searched for unpublished manuscripts using the medRxiv services operated by Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory. Articles were considered eligible for inclusion if they reported human postmortem cardiovascular findings among individuals with a confirmed SARS coronavirus type 2 (CoV-2) infection. Confirmed COVID-19 patients with post-mortem cardiovascular findings. None. Studies were individually assessed for risk of selection, detection, and reporting biases. The median prevalence of different autopsy findings with associated interquartile ranges (IQRs). This review cohort contained 50 studies including 548 hearts. The median age of the deceased was 69 years. The most prevalent acute cardiovascular findings were myocardial necrosis (median: 100.0%; IQR, 20%-100%; number of studies = 9; number of patients = 64) and myocardial oedema (median: 55.5%; IQR, 19.5%-92.5%; number of studies = 4; number of patients = 46). The median reported prevalence of extensive, focal active, and multifocal myocarditis were all 0.0%. The most prevalent chronic changes were myocyte hypertrophy (median: 69.0%; IQR, 46.8%-92.1%) and fibrosis (median: 35.0%; IQR, 35.0%-90.5%). SARS-CoV-2 was detected in the myocardium with median prevalence of 60.8% (IQR 40.4-95.6%). Our systematic review confirmed the high prevalence of acute and chronic cardiac pathologies in COVID-19 and SARS-CoV-2 cardiac tropism, as well as the low prevalence of myocarditis in COVID-19