Study: Mayo Clinic finds COVID-19 convalescent plasma safe
Editor's Note This study from Mayo Clinic researchers finds that investigational COVID-19 convalescent plasma is safe following transfusion in 20,000 hospitalized patients. From April 3 to June 11, 2020, the 7-day mortality declined from 12% in the first 5,000 transfused patients to 8.6% in 15,000 subsequent patients. Mortality was higher…
Survey finds patient fears may limit return to surgery
Editor's Note As hospitals begin ramping up elective surgical procedures, healthcare leaders face significant challenges, the June 23 Becker’s Hospital Review reports. A market research survey by Lumeon (Boston) found that the top operational concern for healthcare leaders is making sure patients feel safe to schedule and come into hospitals…
ACP: Use of N95, surgical, and cotton masks to prevent COVID-19
Editor's Note: The American College of Physicians (ACP) on June 18 issued new practice points on the effectiveness of N95 respirators, surgical masks, and cloth masks for the prevention of COVID-19 in addition to standard precautions in healthcare and community settings. The ACP Practice Points, which were funded by the…
Sandia Labs partners with hospitals, manufacturers to increase availability of masks for healthcare workers
Editor's Note Sandia National Laboratories (Albuquerque, New Mexico), one of three National Nuclear Security Administration research and development laboratories in the US, announced on June 22 that it is partnering with hospitals and device manufacturers to increase the availability of respirator masks for healthcare workers. Sandia is helping manufacturers test…
Brain MRI findings in severe COVID-19
Editor's Note In this retrospective study, researchers from the French Society of Neuroradiology found three main brain MRI patterns in patients with severe COVID-19. The analysis of 37 patients from 16 centers found: signal abnormalities in the medial temporal lobe (43%), an area of the brain related to cognitive and…
Joint Commission: Special COVID-19 equipment, utilities ITM survey considerations
Editor's Note The Joint Commission announced June 17 that it has resumed limited survey activities this month, and that scoring of items that are not compliant will not be the primary focus during the COVID-19 public health emergency. However, the Joint Commission says, there are several elements of performance (EPs)…
CDC: Patients with underlying conditions 12 times as likely to die from COVID-19
Editor's Note Patients with underling conditions, such as heart disease, chronic lung disease, and diabetes were hospitalized six times as often and died 12 times as often from COVID-19 as those without underlying conditions, the Centers for Disease Control and Infection (CDC) reports. Severe outcomes increased with age—the percentages of…
Cleveland Clinic develops COVID-19 risk calculator
Editor's Note The Cleveland Clinic announced June 15 that its researchers have developed the world’s first model to predict the likelihood of patients testing positive for COVID-19 and their outcomes from the disease. The model was based on data from nearly 12,000 patients in the Cleveland Clinic’s COVID-19 Registry, including…
Coordinated COVID-19 response helped ‘flatten the curve’ in Washington State
Editor's Note A regional, coalition-guided, multifaceted approach that engaged healthcare systems, long-term care facilities, state and local governments, and organizations to rapidly respond to the COVID-19 outbreak, kept Washington State’s death rate the lowest of all states with major outbreaks, this study finds. Six key factors helped “flatten the curve:”…
Dexamethasone reduces COVID-19 deaths by one-third
Editor's Note In preliminary results of this study from the University of Oxford, UK, a low-cost steroid, dexamethasone, reduced deaths by up to one third in hospitalized patients with severe respiratory complications of COVID-19. A total of 2,104 patients were randomized to receive dexamethasone 6 mg once per day for…
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