Published in Open Forum Infectious Diseases
Several reports on epidemiological and clinical features of the 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) had been published. However, mortality and morbidity analysis, important for better understanding of the pathogenesis of this disease, are scarce. We examine the clinical and laboratory features of 14 patients who died of COVID-19. The cohort consist...
Published in Open Forum Infectious Diseases
Background Clinical findings indicated that a fraction of Corona Virus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients diagnosed as mild early may progress to severe cases. However, it is difficult to distinguish these patients in the early stage. The present study was to describe the clinical characteristics of these patients, analyze related factors and explore...
Published in Open Forum Infectious Diseases
In 2017, state health departments notified the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention about 4 patients with shigellosis who experienced persistent illness after treatment with oral third-generation cephalosporins. Given increasing antibiotic resistance among Shigella , these cases highlight the need to evaluate the efficacy of oral cephalospori...
Published in Open Forum Infectious Diseases
Objective There is limited data on abdominal obesity and the influence of genetics on weight change after antiretroviral therapy (ART) initiation. We assessed body mass index (BMI) and waist hip ration (WHR) change over time in the Swiss HIV Cohort study (SHCS). Methods Mixed-effects models characterizing BMI and WHR change over time in 1090 SHCS p...
Published in Open Forum Infectious Diseases
With the rising prevalence of heart disease in the United States, there is increasing reliance on durable mechanical circulatory support (MCS) to treat patients with end-stage heart failure. Left ventricular assist devices (LVADs), the most common form of durable MCS, are implanted mechanical pumps that connect to an external power source through a...
Published in Open Forum Infectious Diseases
Hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine have garnered unprecedented attention as potential therapeutic agents against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), yet evidence of clinical benefit is scant. We review these studies and call for additional randomized clinical trials.
Published in Open Forum Infectious Diseases
This perspective argues for universal masking of the U.S. public during COVID-19 due to the high contagiousness of SARS-CoV-2; viral shedding of viable SARS-CoV-2 from asymptomatic individuals; and likely contribution of masking to other public health strategies for curbing transmission.
Published in Open Forum Infectious Diseases
The leading risk factor for Clostridioides ( Clostridium ) difficile infection (CDI) is broad-spectrum antibiotics, which lead to low microbial diversity, or dysbiosis. Current therapeutic strategies for CDI are insufficient, as they do not address the key role of the microbiome in preventing C. difficile spore germination into toxin-producing vege...
Published in Open Forum Infectious Diseases
Although it ameliorates lung cancer, immunotherapy with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) presents complications of infectious diseases, including tuberculosis. Incidence of tuberculosis during immunotherapy remains unclear. We found that 1.7% of patients developed active tuberculosis during immunotherapy at our institution. In patients with a po...
Published in Open Forum Infectious Diseases
