We use a cultural psychology approach to examine the relevance of the Health Belief Model (HBM) for predicting a variety of behaviors that had been recommended by health officials during the initial stages of the COVID-19 lockdown for containing the spread of the virus and not overburdening the health system in Europe. Our study is grounded in the assumption that health behavior is activated based on locally relevant perceptions of threats, susceptibility and benefits in engaging in protective behavior, which requires careful attention to how these perceptions might be structured and activated. We assess the validity of the HBM in two European countries that have been relatively understudied, using simultaneous measurements during acute periods of infection in Romania and Italy. An online questionnaire provided a total of (N = 1863) valid answers from both countries. First, to understand individual difference patterns within and across populations, we fit a General Linear Model in which endorsement was predicted by behavior, country, their interaction, and a random effect for participants. Second, we assess the effect of demographics and health beliefs on prevention behaviors by fitting a multi-group path model across countries, in which each behavior was predicted by the observed health belief variables and demographics. Health beliefs showed stronger relationships with the recommended behaviors than demographics. Confirming previously reported relationships, self-efficacy, perceived severity, and perceived benefits were consistently related to the greater adoption of individual behaviors, whereas greater perceived barriers were related to lower adoption of health behaviors. However, we also point to important location specific effects that suggest that local norms shape protective behavior in highly contextualized ways.

COVID-19 is a worldwide emergency; therefore, there is a critical need for foundational knowledge about B and T cell responses to SARS-CoV-2 essential for vaccine development. However, little information is available defining which determinants of SARS-CoV-2 other than the spike glycoprotein are recognized by the host immune system. In this study, we focus on the SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid protein as a suitable candidate target for vaccine formulations. Major B and T cell epitopes of the SARS-CoV-2 N protein are predicted and resulting sequences compared with the homolog immunological domains of other coronaviruses that infect human beings. The most dominant of B cell epitope is located between 176C206 amino acids in the SRGGSQASSRSSSRSRNSSRNSTPGSSRGTS sequence. Further, we identify sequences which are predicted to bind multiple common MHC I and MHC II alleles. Most notably there is a region of potential T cell cross-reactivity within the SARS-CoV-2 N protein position 102C110 amino acids that traverses multiple human alpha and betacoronaviruses. Vaccination strategies designed to target these conserved epitope regions could generate immune responses that are cross-reactive across human coronaviruses, with potential to protect or modulate disease. Finally, these predictions can facilitate effective vaccine design against this high priority virus.

BACKGROUND: COVID-19 infection is usually mild in children. Progression to severe disease with multiple organ systems compromise described as Multi Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C) is a rare occurrence believed to be immunologically mediated. Previous reports describe a possible link between children of Latino origin and high incidence of MIS-C in the US. 40% of the total population in Western Massachusetts is of Latino origin. METHODS: Retrospective chart review of 30 children admitted to Baystate Medical Center in Springfield, Massachusetts from April 2020-June 2021 meeting Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) criteria for MIS-C. Demographics, laboratory data, and clinical outcomes including progression to Macrophage Activation Syndrome (MAS) were analyzed. RESULTS: 60% of children were Hispanic. Mean age (9.1 yrs). Range (3m-20 yrs). COVID PCR positive (78%) and COVID Antibody positive (68%). The most common symptom was fever (96.8%) followed by gastrointestinal symptoms (84%). Respiratory symptoms (29%), dermatological manifestations (39%). Most common comorbidity, asthma (19%) followed by obesity (17%). Leukocytosis (47%), lymphopenia (45%), Anemia (55%), thrombocytopenia (20%), high CRP (90%), ferritinemia (57%), acute kidney injury (20%), elevated liver enzymes (53%), 52% children had electrocardiogram (EKG) abnormalities, 34% had abnormal echocardiograms, none displayed coronary artery dilation. Progression to MAS (20%). All patients were treated with intravenous immunoglobulin G, steroids, aspirin, and anakinra (IL1 receptor antagonist) if progression to MAS. All patients survived. CONCLUSION: In our population, gastrointestinal symptoms were predominant despite a high prevalence of asthma and obesity, previous reports of children with MIS-C describe predominance of respiratory manifestations. We did not encounter any coronary aneurysms during admission. Most children had positive PCR or Antibodies for COVID 19 and showed important abnormalities in multiple cell lines and inflammatory markers. More research is needed to fully understand ethnical risk factors associated with disease severity especially the risk of progression to MAS from MIS-C in children of Latino origin diagnosed with COVID 19 infection. DISCLOSURES: All Authors: No reported disclosures

As the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has spread, so has the psychological impact of the disease been felt worldwide. Despite this, the mechanisms of COVID-19-related psychological problems and mental disorders remain unclear. As such, effective therapeutic schemes or intervention strategies cannot be developed. It is, therefore, necessary to establish a theoretical basis of psychological problems and mental disorders related to public health emergencies such as COVID-19. Herein, the potential mechanisms of occurrence and development of COVID-19-related psychological problems and mental disorders have been discussed from two angles: the pandemic as a public health emergency itself and the extensive quarantine situation during the pandemic.

PURPOSE This study aims to validate the effect of autoclaved autogenous bone (AAB), incorporating Escherichia coli-derived recombinant human bone morphogenetic protein-2 (ErhBMP-2), on critical-sized, segmental radius defects in rabbits. Delivery systems using absorbable collagen sponge (ACS) and fibrin glue (FG) were also evaluated. METHODS Radius defects were made in 12 New Zealand white rabbits. After autoclaving, the resected bone was reinserted and fixed. The animals were classified into three groups: only AAB reinserted (group 1, control), and AAB and ErhBMP-2 inserted using an ACS (group 2) or FG (group 3) as a carrier. Animals were sacrificed six or 12 weeks after surgery. Specimens were evaluated using radiology and histology. RESULTS Micro-computed tomography images showed the best bony union in group 2 at six and 12 weeks after operation. Quantitative analysis showed all indices except trabecular thickness were the highest in group 2 and the lowest in group 1 at twelve weeks. Histologic results showed the greatest bony union between AAB and radial bone at twelve weeks, indicating the highest degree of engraftment. CONCLUSION ErhBMP-2 increases bony healing when applied on AAB graft sites. In addition, the ACS was reconfirmed as a useful delivery system for ErhBMP-2.

BackgroundIn December of 2019, a new disease which is caused by SARS-CoV-2, as an epidemic disease out of Wuhan, China, began to circulate. On March 11, 2020, the Republic of Turkey Ministry of Health had announced the first case from Turkey. The aim of this study is to analyze the scientific publications in the field of COVID-19 included in Science Citation Index Expanded (SCIE) from Turkey and to establish a theoretical background for future studies in the health literature with obtained valuable information about the publications. We searched all papers published in the field of COVID-19 by using the terms of COVID-19, 2019-n-CoV, SARS-CoV-2, Coronavirus disease 19, and 2019 novel coronavirus as scientific nomenclatures of COVID-19 in the topic search section of the software.ResultsOverall, 47,368 papers, indexed by SCI-E, were found related to COVID-19 between January 1, 2020, and December 13, 2020. Of these, 931 were from Turkey. In terms of specialities, the most contribution was from the Medicine General Internal followed by Dermatology. Most of the publications were article. English was the most preferred language in papers. Dermatological Theraphy published the most paper.ConclusionsApplying this kind of analysis on an intermittent basis gives a general perspective for contribution of a countries to scientific publications and useful for the further studies.

Epigenetic deregulation is an emerging hallmark of cancer that enables tumor cells to escape surveillance by tumor suppressors and ultimately progress. The structure of the epigenome consists of covalent modifications of chromatin components, including acetylation by histone acetyltransferases (HATs) and deacetylation by histone deacetylases (HDACs). Targeting these enzymes with inhibitors to restore epigenetic homeostasis has been explored for many cancers. Osteosarcoma, an aggressive bone malignancy that primarily affects children and young adults, is notable for widespread genetic and epigenetic instability. This may explain why therapy directed at unique molecular pathways has failed to substantially improve outcomes in osteosarcoma over the past four decades. In this review, we discuss the potential of targeting the cancer epigenome, with a focus on histone deacetylase inhibitors (HDACi) for osteosarcoma. We additionally highlight the safety and tolerance of HDACi, combination chemotherapy with HDACi, and the ongoing challenges in the development of these agents.

With the increasing spread of COVID-19, it is important to systematically test more and more people. The current strategy for test-kit allocation is mostly rule-based, focusing on individuals having (a) symptoms for COVID-19, (b) travel history or (c) contact history with confirmed COVID-19 patients. Such testing strategy may miss out on detecting asymptomatic individuals who got infected via community spread. Thus, it is important to allocate a separate budget of test-kits per day targeted towards preventing community spread and detecting new cases early on. In this report, we consider the problem of allocating test-kits and discuss some solution approaches. We believe that these approaches will be useful to contain community spread and detect new cases early on. Additionally, these approaches would help in collecting unbiased data which can then be used to improve the accuracy of machine learning models trained to predict COVID-19 infections.

Allergy to natural rubber latex (NRLA) from Hevea brasiliensis is a relevant public health issue, in particular in healthcare workers and groups at risk. Clinical manifestations of NRLA can range from mild skin disorders to life-threatening systemic reactions. Prevention measures remain the gold-standard treatment for patients suffering from NRLA, but the only etiological therapy able to influence the natural history of NRLA is specific desensitization. This review aims to underline the epidemiological, clinical and diagnostic aspects of NRLA, and carries out a complete and wide-ranging review of the current literature on NRLA management and immunotherapy.

The rapid detection of viruses is becoming increasingly important to prevent widespread infections. However, virus detection via reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) is time-consuming, as it involves independent nucleic acid extraction and complementary DNA synthesis. This process limits the potential for rapid diagnosis and mass analysis, which are necessary to curtail viral spread. In this study, a simple and rapid thermolysis method was developed to circumvent the need for extraction and purification of viral RNA. The developed protocol was applied to one-chip digital PCR (OCdPCR), which allowed thermolysis, RT, and digital PCR in a single unit comprising 20,000 chambers of sub-nanoliter volume. Two viruses such as tobacco mosaic virus and cucumber mosaic virus were tested as model viral particles. First, the temperature, exposure time, and template concentration were optimized against tobacco mosaic viral particles, and the most efficient conditions were identified as 85C, 5 min, and 0.01 g/nL with a cycle threshold of approximately 33. Finally, the OCdPCR analysis yielded 1,130.2 copies/L using 10(?2) g/nL of viral particles in a 30 min thermolysis-RT reaction at 70C. This novel protocol shows promise as a quick, accurate, and precise method for large-scale viral analysis in the future.

BACKGROUND: Community-led interventions that address structural and social determinants of health are lacking among (im)migrant workers, especially seafood workers. This lack of medical attention is especially alarming given their high rate of injury and death. METHODS: Community-based participatory research (CBPR), a relational model that values the participants as equal partners in research, dissemination, and implementation, guided the interviews and mobile clinic. Seafood workers were engaged throughout data collection, analysis, and interpretation and played a significant role in moving the findings from research into actionable change. RESULTS: To address the lack of healthcare options for (im)migrants, and at the request of the seafood workers participating in the ongoing CBPR study, we successfully implemented and treated workers in our mobile clinic. DISCUSSION: Many of these individuals had not been seen by a healthcare provider in years, highlighting the importance of community trust and rapport building when addressing interconnected health and safety issues. CONCLUSIONS: Although CBPR and free (mobile) health clinics are in and of themselves not novel concepts, when applied to high-risk occupational settings with under-reached populations (e.g., (im)migrant workers), they have the ability to improve health and prevent injury. This intervention adds to the growing literature detailing the potential benefits of using CBPR, and meeting people where they are, especially with historically marginalized populations.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) was first reported in December 2019 in Wuhan, China, and then moved to almost every country showing an unprecedented outbreak. The world health organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic. Since then, millions of people were infected, and millions have lost their lives all around the globe. By the end of 2020, effective vaccines that could prevent the fast spread of the disease started to loom on the horizon. Nevertheless, isolation, social distancing, face masks, and quarantine are the best-known measures, in the time being, to fight the pandemic. On the other hand, contact tracing is an effective procedure in tracking infections and saving others lives. In this paper, we devise a new approach using a hybrid harmony search (HHS) algorithm that casts the problem of finding strongly connected components (SCCs) to contact tracing. This new approach is named as hybrid harmony search contact tracing (HHS-CT) algorithm. The hybridization is achieved by integrating the stochastic hill climbing into the operators' design of the harmony search algorithm. The HHS-CT algorithm is compared to other existing algorithms of finding SCCs in directed graphs, where it showed its superiority over these algorithms. The devised approach provides a 77.18% enhancement in terms of run time and an exceptional average error rate of 1.7% compared to the other existing algorithms of finding SCCs.

Insomnia is a major health issue associated with great psychological burden. Research of insomnia during a pandemic crisis is limited. The aim of the present study was to explore sleep difficulties during the COVID-19 pandemic in a Greek population. The three-day online survey included questions about sociodemographic characteristics, contact with COVID-19 and COVID-19-related negative attitudes, as well as the Athens Insomnia Scale (AIS), the Intolerance to Uncertainty scale (IUS), the De Jong Gierveld Loneliness scale (JGLS) and the Patient Health Questionnaire-2 (PHQ-2) Depression Scale. Altogether, 2,427 individuals participated in the study (with 2,363 of them providing all basic demographic data). Sleep problems were detected in 37.6% of the participants. Women and people in urban areas were more vulnerable to sleep problems, while younger age showed a non-significant trend. Those uncertain about having themselves, or someone close to them contracted the virus, also demonstrated elevated insomnia scores. Lastly, according to the regression analysis, higher levels of intolerance to uncertainty, COVID-19-related worry, loneliness, as well as more severe depressive symptoms, were all predictive of insomnia. Results may be used for the development of therapeutic strategies and implementation of social policies to support people with sleep difficulties.

BACKGROUND: Poor mental health status and associated risk factors of public health workers have been overlooked during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study used the effort-reward imbalance model to investigate the association between work-stress characteristics (effort, over-commitment, reward) and mental health problems (anxiety and depression) among front-line public health workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in China. METHODS: A total of 4850 valid online questionnaires were collected through a self- constructed sociodemographic questionnaire, the adapted ERI questionnaire, the 9-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) and the 7-item General Anxiety Disorder Scale (GAD-7). Hierarchical logistic regression analysis was conducted to investigate the association between ERI factors and mental health problems (i.e., depression and anxiety), with reward treated as a potential moderator in such associations. RESULTS: The data showed that effort and over-commitment were positively associated with depression and anxiety, while reward was negatively associated with depression and anxiety. Development and job acceptance were the two dimensions of reward buffered the harmful effect of effort/over-commitment on depression and anxiety, whereas esteem was non-significant. CONCLUSIONS: This study confirmed the harmful effects of effort and over-commitment on mental health among public health workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in China. Such effects could be alleviated through an appropriate reward system, especially the development and job acceptance dimensions of such a system. These findings highlight the importance of establishing an emergency reward system, comprising reasonable work-allocation mechanism, bonuses and honorary titles, a continuous education system and better career-development opportunities.

AIM The aim of this present work was to design and establish an efficient synthesis of new thienyl pyrazolo[1,5-a] pyrimidines using enviormental friendly reaction solvent. Further, the newly synthesized compounds were evaluated for antimicrobial activity. MATERIALS AND METHOD A series of thienyl pyrazolo[1,5-a] pyrimidines have been synthesized by the condensation reaction of 4-(4'-chloro-phenylazo)-5-amino pyrazole with , - unsaturated carbonyl composites (chalcones) using NaOH in polyethylene glycol-400 as green reaction solvent. The dissemination technique recommended by the National Clinical Laboratory Standards Committee was used to study the antimicrobial activities of synthesized compounds. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Polyethylene glycol-400 prompted an efficient synthesis of thienyl pyrazolo[1,5-a] pyrimidines has been discussed. By using PEG-400 as green reaction solvent, excellent yields of the proucts were obtained in shorter reaction reaction time. Reaction solvent was recovered and reused without loss of its activity. The synthesized compounds have shown interesting antibacterial activity. Hydroxyl and halo substitution with thienyl moiety emerged as active antibacterial and antifungal study. CONCLUSION The advantage of this methodology incorporates the green method, excellent yields, easy workup, avoidance of toxic solvents and expensive catalyst. The new dimension pyrazolo[1,5-a] pyrimidine derivatives with thienyl moiety exhibit promising anti-microbial activity.

AIMS: Restarting planned surgery during the COVID-19 pandemic is a clinical and societal priority, but it is unknown whether it can be done safely and include high-risk or complex cases We developed a Surgical Prioritization and Allocation Guide (SPAG) Here, we validate its effectiveness and safety in COVID-free sites METHODS: A multidisciplinary surgical prioritization committee developed the SPAG, incorporating procedural urgency, shared decision-making, patient safety, and biopsychosocial factors;and applied it to 1,142 adult patients awaiting orthopaedic surgery Patients were stratified into four priority groups and underwent surgery at three COVID-free sites, including one with access to a high dependency unit (HDU) or intensive care unit (ICU) and specialist resources Safety was assessed by the number of patients requiring inpatient postoperative HDU/ICU admission, contracting COVID-19 within 14 days postoperatively, and mortality within 30 days postoperatively RESULTS: A total of 1,142 patients were included, 47 declined surgery, and 110 were deemed high-risk or requiring specialist resources In the ten-week study period, 28 high-risk patients underwent surgery, during which 68% (13/19) of Priority 2 (P(2), surgery within one month) patients underwent surgery, and 15% (3/20) of P(3) ( three months) groups Of the 1,032 low-risk patients, 322 patients underwent surgery Overall, 21 P(3) and P(4) patients were expedited to 'Urgent' based on biopsychosocial factors identified by the SPAG During the study period, 91% (19/21) of the Urgent group, 52% (49/95) of P(2), 36% (70/196) of P(3), and 26% (184/720) of P(4) underwent surgery No patients died or were admitted to HDU/ICU, or contracted COVID-19 CONCLUSION: Our widely generalizable model enabled the restart of planned surgery during the COVID-19 pandemic, without compromising patient safety or excluding high-risk or complex cases Patients classified as Urgent or P(2) were most likely to undergo surgery, including those deemed high-risk This model, which includes assessment of biopsychosocial factors alongside disease severity, can assist in equitably prioritizing the substantial list of patients now awaiting planned orthopaedic surgery worldwide Cite this article: Bone Jt Open 2021;2(2):134-140

A global health emergency has been declared by the World Health Organization as the 2019-nCoV outbreak spreads across the world, with confirmed patients in Canada. Patients infected with 2019-nCoV are at risk for developing respiratory failure and requiring admission to critical care units. While providing optimal treatment for these patients, careful execution of infection control measures is necessary to prevent nosocomial transmission to other patients and to healthcare workers providing care. Although the exact mechanisms of transmission are currently unclear, human-to-human transmission can occur, and the risk of airborne spread during aerosol-generating medical procedures remains a concern in specific circumstances. This paper summarizes important considerations regarding patient screening, environmental controls, personal protective equipment, resuscitation measures (including intubation), and critical care unit operations planning as we prepare for the possibility of new imported cases or local outbreaks of 2019-nCoV. Although understanding of the 2019-nCoV virus is evolving, lessons learned from prior infectious disease challenges such as Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome will hopefully improve our state of readiness regardless of the number of cases we eventually manage in Canada.

Summary Background Health care workers (HCWs) have a high risk of infection with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), especially those treating patients with confirmed or suspected diagnosis (front-line) Aim To evaluate the incidence and prevalence of the COVID-19 infection among HCWs and to analyse the risk factors and the clinical characteristics among infected ones Methods Observational, retrospective, single-center study (Centro Hospitalar e Universitrio de Coimbra, Portugal) Data were collected from March 1 to June 30, 2020 Findings Overall, 211 (2 63%) out of 8037 HCWs were diagnosed with COVID-19 Most of the infections occurred during the early stage of disease outbreak Among the infected HCWs, only 20 9% (n=44) were from the front-line Both front-line and non-front-line HCWs were exposed primarily to patients (48 6% in both groups), but the non-front -line were (presumably) more infected by colleagues (10 8% vs 24 8%, p=0 04) Front-line HCWs performed more family isolation than non-front -line (88 9% vs 82 5%, p>0 05) and presumably less family members were infected in the former group (19 4% vs 26 3%, p>0 05) The proportion of HCWs with asymptomatic infection was statistically significantly lower in the front-line group (2 4% vs 19 9%, p=0 05) Conclusion The prevention and control actions implemented were effective in mitigating the COVID-19 outbreak;HCW infections occurred mainly in the early stages Non-front -line HCWs were at a higher risk, warranting specific attention and interventions targeting this group

In this paper, we present a susceptible-infected-recovered (SIR) model with individuals wearing facial masks and individuals who do not. The disease transmission rates, the recovering rates and the fraction of individuals who wear masks are all time dependent in the model. We develop a progressive estimation of the disease transmission rates and the recovering rates based on the COVID-19 data published by John Hopkins University. We determine the fraction of individual who wear masks by a maximum likelihood estimation, which maximizes the transition probability of a stochastic susceptible-infected-recovered model. The transition probability is numerically difficult to compute if the number of infected individuals is large. We develop an approximation for the transition probability based on central limit theorem and mean field approximation. We show through numerical study that our approximation works well. We develop a bond percolation analysis to predict the eventual fraction of population who are infected, assuming that parameters of the SIR model do not change anymore. We predict the outcome of COVID-19 pandemic using our theory.

PURPOSE: In this paper, based on the age, sex, disease type, and consultation time of dental emergency during COVID-19 epidemic, a comprehensive analysis of dental emergency management and prevention and control of COVID-19 was conducted. METHODS: A total of 739 emergency dental cases were collected from January 29 2020 to February 28 2020. They were divided into 3 groups,including adolescents (<=18 years), young adults (18 ~ 60 years), and elderly ( >=60 years old). The data was analyzed using SPSS 21.0 software package. RESULTS: The ratio of male to female was 1.24:1. There were 655 emergency cases during the day and 84 cases during the night. The types of diseases included pericoronitis (15.83%), apical periodontitis (14.21%), pulpitis (13.40%), periodontitis (12.31%), oral mucosal disease (12.18%), Oral and maxillofacial trauma (10.55%), oral and maxillofacial space infection (8.39%), dental disease in children (5.41%), oral and maxillofacial tumors (2.84%), temporomandibular joint dislocations and disorders (1.76%), and others (3.11%). CONCLUSIONS: Under the epidemic situation of the new coronavirus, as one of the high-risk departments, it is of great significance to enhance the clinical emergency skills and ability of emergency treatment, improve patients' oral health awareness, address the diagnosis and treatment of essential diseases, for the improvement the quality of dental medical care and the prevention and control of COVID-19 epidemic.