Suchergebnisse

As a part of measures to decrease spikes in coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases and deaths outside of hospitals, the government of South Korea introduced a plan for community treatment centers (CTCs) to isolate and monitor patients with mild COVID-19 symptoms. We assessed outcomes of 568 patients admitted to 3 CTCs near Daegu. More (64.6%) women than men (35.4%) were admitted, and the mean age of patients was 36.0 years (SD +15.0 years). Among all patients, 75.7% remained asymptomatic while at the CTCs. The mean time patients remained at CTCs was 19.6 days (SD +5.8 days) from the day of diagnosis until our study ended on March 23, 2020. Because they offer appropriate clinical triaging and daily monitoring for patients, CTCs are a safe alternative to medical institutions for asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic patients with COVID-19.

Health care workers (HCWs) are at great risk of influenza infection and transmission. Vaccination for seasonal influenza is routinely recommended, but this strategy should be reconsidered in a pandemic situation. Between October 2009 and September 2010, a multicenter study was conducted to assess the long-term immunogenicity of the A/H1N1 2009 monovalent influenza vaccine among HCWs compared to non-health care workers (NHCWs). The influence of prior seasonal influenza vaccination was also assessed with respect to the immunogenicity of pandemic H1N1 influenza vaccine. Serum hemagglutinin inhibition titers were determined prevaccination and then at 1, 6, and 10 months after vaccination. Of the 360 enrolled HCW subjects, 289 participated in the study up to 10 months after H1N1 monovalent influenza vaccination, while 60 of 65 NHCW subjects were followed up. Seroprotection rates, seroconversion rates, and geometric mean titer (GMT) ratios fulfilled the European Union's licensure criteria for influenza A/California/7/2009 (H1N1) at 1 month after vaccination in both the HCWs and NHCWs, without any significant difference. At 6 months after vaccination, the seroprotection rate was more significantly lowered among the NHCWs than among the HCWs (P < 0.01). Overall, postvaccination (1, 6, and 10 months after vaccination) GMTs for A/California/7/2009 (H1N1) were significantly lower among the seasonal influenza vaccine recipients than among the nonrecipients (P < 0.05). In conclusion, HCWs should be encouraged to receive an annual influenza vaccination, considering the risk of repeated exposure. However, prior reception of seasonal influenza vaccine showed a negative influence on immunogenicity for the pandemic A/H1N1 2009 influenza vaccine.

The rate of maternal influenza vaccination in Korea is much lower than the general population. We evaluated the influenza vaccination rate during pregnancy and assessed women's perceptions of the influenza vaccine. One thousand women of childbearing age were surveyed from April through May 2014, using a questionnaire about vaccination history, general understanding of influenza vaccination and that examined factors that influence decisions about influenza vaccination. We also conducted an intervention to evaluate potential improvement in vaccination behavior. The influenza vaccination rate during pregnancy was 37.3%. The common reasons listed in support of vaccination included the perception of the risk of influenza infection, recommendations from health care providers, and belief in the effectiveness of the influenza vaccine. The most common reasons for not vaccinating included concern about harmful effects and the lack of recommendation from health care providers. Based on the results of the questionnaire and intervention, it is important to provide accurate information and for health care providers to recommend the influenza vaccine to pregnant women. It is also necessary for the government to encourage women to receive the influenza vaccination as a healthcare policy.