Editor's Note The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will discontinue COVID-19 travel warnings for foreign countries, the October 3 New York Times reports. The CDC instead will issue travel health notices when there are COVID-19 variants of concern or other related factors that would affect travel for certain…

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The CDC’s healthcare-associated infection (HAI) prevalence survey estimated that 110,800 surgical site infections (SSIs) were connected with inpatient procedures in 2015. As of 2020, Advancing Surgical Care reported that there are around 5,700 Medicare-certified ambulatory surgical centers (ASCs) in the US. Of these, only 6 states require ASCs to use…

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Editor's Note This Canadian study finds that most COVID-19 patients recover within 12 months, irrespective of severity. Researchers surveyed 106 patients recovering from COVID-19 at 3-, 6-, and 12 months. A total of 75% had recovered at the 12-month mark, but 25% still had at least one of three common…

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Editor's Note The recently revised “Guideline for Processing Flexible Endoscopes” recommends that flexible endoscopes be stored in drying cabinets, the September 14 Periop Today reports. The explanation for this new recommendation includes: Optimal storage facilitates drying and decreases the potential for contamination. Studies on drying cabinets, which circulate HEPA-filtered air…

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Editor's Note This study by researchers at UC San Francisco finds that step counts—a measure of physical activity—were markedly lower early in the COVID-19 pandemic compared to prepandemic, and they remain lower in the 2 years following the onset of the pandemic. The researchers used data collected from the Azumio…

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Editor's Note This study from Saudi Arabia finds that nurses working in the intensive care unit (ICU) had a significantly higher risk of COVID-19 infection. A total of 1,594 healthcare workers (HCWs) with COVID-19 infections were analyzed—103 working in the ICU and 1,491 working in non-ICU locations. The ICU had…

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Editor's Note This study by researchers in South Korea analyzes a COVID-19 outbreak caused by vaccine breakthrough infections in a hospital where 91.9% of healthcare workers were vaccinated. In addition, it was mandatory that all healthcare workers and caregivers wear masks or respirators at all times except when eating. During…

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Editor's Note The Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI) on August 24 announced the publication of a new standard: “ANSI/AAMI ST98:2022, Cleaning validation of health care products—Requirements for development and validation of a cleaning process for medical devices.” The new standard not only provides manufacturers with a formalized…

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Editor's Note This meta-analysis led by researchers in Spain finds that regular physical activity is associated with a lower risk of COVID-19 infection, severity, and mortality. The analysis included 1,853,610 adults from multiple countries worldwide—54% were women, and the average age was 53. Compared with physically inactive individuals, those who…

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Editor's Note This study led by researchers at Kaiser Permanente, Southern California, Pasadena, finds that masking mandates had a significant role in influencing people to wear masks during COVID-19. A total of 109,999 individuals in 126 US cities were included in the analysis. Data were collected by 231 students affiliated with…

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