Evaluation of the Pulmonary Function Test (PFT) in Patients Affected by Severe COVID-19 Pneumonia: 6 to 12 Weeks After Discharge

The most lethal adverse effect of COVID-19 is acute respiratory distress syndrome, which can lead to rapid death. This symptom even causes concern for patients who have recovered and have been discharged. Therefore, it is obligatory to test and monitor variations in their lungs’ function after recovery. In this study, we evaluated the pulmonary function of 64 patients with severe COVID-19, six weeks to 3 months after discharge. Pulmonary function parameters were measured by spirometry and body box according to the criteria of the American Thoracic Society and under the supervision of an adult pulmonologist. According to the forced expiratory volume (FEV1)/forced vital capacity (FVC) ratio and total lung capacity (TLC) values, it was found that 3.1% of people had an obstructive pattern, 40.63% of patients had the restrictive pattern, and 6.25% of improved individuals showed a mixed pattern. Furthermore, the study of diffusion capacity of carbon monoxide (DLCO) index revealed that 13.3%, 25%, and 53% of cases had mild, moderate, and severe disorders of gas exchange, respectively. In addition, determining the maximum amount of inspiratory muscles (PI max) and expiratory muscles (PE max) disclosed that the rate of these two indicators in 62.5% and 71.88% of the subjects were less than 50%, respectively. In general, the results of the present study suggest that pulmonary function test and follow-up of patients' condition are not only recommended but seems to be essential after recovery due to the large percentage of patients with the restricted pattern a few weeks after recovery.

Simultaneous monitoring of SARS-CoV-2, bacteria, and fungi in indoor air of hospital: a study on Hajar Hospital in Shahrekord, Iran

The novel SARS-CoV-2 outbreak was declared as pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO) on March 11, 2020. Understanding the airborne route of SARS-CoV-2 transmission is essential for infection prevention and control. In this study, a total of 107 indoor air samples (45 SARS-CoV-2, 62 bacteria, and fungi) were collected from different wards of the Hajar Hospital in Shahrekord, Iran. Simultaneously, bacterial and fungal samples were also collected from the ambient air of hospital yard. Overall, 6 positive air samples were detected in the infectious 1 and infectious 2 wards, intensive care unit (ICU), computed tomography (CT) scan, respiratory patients' clinic, and personal protective equipment (PPE) room. Also, airborne bacteria and fungi were simultaneously detected in the various wards of the hospital with concentrations ranging from 14 to 106 CFU m-3 and 18 to 141 CFU m-3, respectively. The highest mean concentrations of bacteria and fungi were observed in respiratory patients' clinics and ICU wards, respectively. Significant correlation (p < 0.05) was found between airborne bacterial concentration and the presence of SARS-CoV-2, while no significant correlation was found between fungi concentration and the virus presence. This study provided an additional evidence about the presence of SARS-CoV-2 in the indoor air of a hospital that admitted COVID-19 patients. Moreover, it was revealed that the monitoring of microbial quality of indoor air in such hospitals is very important, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, for controlling the nosocomial infections.

Profile and preliminary results of Iranian sub cohort chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in Shahrekord PERSIAN cohort in southwest Iran

Background

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a chronic and complex respiratory disorder associated with airflow limitation and increased inflammatory response of the lungs to harmful particles. The purpose of this original study was to describe the results and profile of the Shahrekord Prospective Epidemiological Research Studies in IrAN (PERSIAN) regarding COPD in southwestern Iran.

Methods

This study of asthma and respiratory diseases is a subcohort of the more extensive cohort study, i.e., Shahrekord PERSIAN cohort, a population-based prospective study on people aged 35–70 years in southwestern Iran (n = 10,075). The sample size of the subcohort was 8500 people. Annual follow-ups (person-year) of the cohort were designed to be conducted up to 2036. The instruments to collect data on various exposures were derived from the questionnaires previously developed in extensive multinational studies (occupational exposures, smoking, housing status, and fuel consumption, history of respiratory and chronic diseases, comorbidity, etc.). The Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) and the lower limit of normal (LLN) spirometric criteria were used to confirm COPD diagnosis.

Results

The response rate was 93.85%. The mean age of the participants was 49.48 ± 9.32; 47.9% were male, and 52.9% were female; nearly 16% of the population was current smokers; the fuel used by most of the participants for heating the house and cooking was gas. The most common comorbidity among participants was dyslipidemia; 30% of people have three or more comorbidities. According to GOLD and LLN criteria, the Prevalence of COPD was 3.6% and 8.4%, respectively. 4.3% of the participants had a history of chronic lung disease. The group of subjects with COPD had higher mean age, fewer years of schooling, a higher percentage of smokers with a smoking history of 10 or more pack years. 4.6% of patients had a history of chronic lung disease, 17.6% had a history of asthma in childhood, and 5.2% had a family history of respiratory and pulmonary diseases.

Conclusion

Epidemiological research is necessary to create an appropriate framework to fight COPD. This framework requires a better description of men and women at risk of developing COPD and describing people with early-stage illnesses.