COVID-19

COVID-19 Roundup: N95s, 6 Virus Strains, ED Visits

Sterilizing N95 Masks

A new study has found that a low-cost moist heat treatment effectively decontaminated N95 masks without damaging their structural integrity. The researchers exposed 4 models of N95 mask to SARS-CoV-2 and measured viral activity after 60 min of exposure to 70°C treatment with 0 relative humidity. The process was repeated on masks exposed to E. coli at various levels of relative humidity.

“A single heat treatment rendered SARS-CoV-2 undetectable in all mask samples. Compared with untreated inoculated control masks, E. coli cultures at 24 hours were virtually undetectable from masks treated at 70°C and 50% relative humidity,” they wrote.

6 Strains of SARS-CoV-2

There are at least 6 strains of SARS-CoV-2, but despite its mutations, there is little variability between them, according to researchers. They conducted an analysis of 48,635 coronavirus genomes from all over the world, finding that on average, the virus presents approximately 7 mutations per sample, roughly half the variability rate of influenza.

"The SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus is presumably already optimized to affect human beings, and this explains its low evolutionary change", explains Federico Giorgi, a researcher at Unibo and coordinator of the study. "This means that the treatments we are developing, including a vaccine, might be effective against all the virus strains,” they said in an accompanying press release.

Emergency Department Visits

Rates of emergency department visits have decreased significantly since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new study.

Researchers conducted a retrospective, observational, cross-sectional study of visit and admission rates from 24 EDs in 5 states from January 1 to April 30, 2020. Overall, the total number of visits decreased by 41.5% to 63.5%, depending on the state.

“These findings suggest that practitioners and public health officials should emphasize the importance of visiting the ED during the COVID-19 pandemic for serious symptoms, illnesses, and injuries that cannot be managed in other settings.”

RLF-100

Treatment for 3 days with RLF-100 (aviptadil), a synthetic form of a peptide found within the lungs, was associated with rapid recovery from respiratory failure in critical cases of COVID-19. The therapy, which was fast-tracked by the FDA in June 2020, is currently undergoing a Phase 2/3 clinical trial with 70 participants, but is being administered to patients on an emergency basis.

COVID-19 Updates from CDC

As of July 31, 2020, the CDC has received reports of a total of 32,009,840 specimens tested for SARS-CoV-2, of which, 3,057,280 (9.6%) were positive.

Levels of influenza-like illness (ILI) are low, but high for the time of year. Levels of COVID-19-like illness have decreased since the previous week, with nearly all regions showing decreases or stable levels.

Overall, the cumulative COVID-19-associated hospitalization rate is 130.1 per 100,000. Rates are highest among individuals aged 65 years and older (360.2 per 100,000) and those aged 50-64 years (196.3 per 100,000). Weekly hospitalization rates decreased during week 30 but are subject to change as more data becomes available.

Percentages of deaths attributed to pneumonia, influenza, or COVID-19 increased from week 26 to week 28, which is the first time this number has increased since mid-April. While the percentage for week 30 is currently 8.6%, this number is expected to increase as more death certificates are processed.

—Michael Potts

References:

  1. Daeschler SC, Manson N, Joachim K, et al. Effect of moist heat reprocessing of N95 respirators on SARS-CoV-2 inactivation and respirator function. Published online July 30, 2020. CMAJ. Doi: 10.1503/cmaj.201203
  2. Mercatelli D, Giorgi FM. Geographic and genomic distribution of SARS-CoV-2 mutations. Published online July 22, 2020. Front Microbiol. doi:10.3389/fmicb.2020.01800
  3. The six strains of SARS-CoV-2. News release. Bolongna, Spain: Universita Di Bologna; August 3, 2020. https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2020-08/udb-tss080320.php
  4. Jeffery MM, D’Onofrio G, Paek H, et al. Trends in emergency department visits and hospital admissions in health care systems in 5 states in the first months of the COVID-19 pandemic in the US. Published online August 3, 2020. JAMA Intern Med. doi:10.1001/jamainternmed.2020.3288
  5. Relief, NeuroRx say emergency treatment with RLF-100 helps critically ill COVID patients. News release. Tel Aviv, Israel; Relief Therapeutics and NeuroRx Inc: August 2, 2020. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-relief-hldg-neuror/relief-neurorx-say-emergency-treatment-with-rlf-100-helps-critically-ill-covid-patients-idUSKBN24Y0OR
  6. COVIDView: a weekly surveillance summary of US COVID-19 Activity. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/covidview/index.html. Updated July 17, 2020. Accessed August 3, 2020.