.New Delhi,India

 

1.India globally at number 2 position with 10 millions lesser cases and more than double the deaths(149205) of USA.

 

2.India approve AstraZeneca and Bharat Biotech vaccines under emergency use provision for mass roll out.

 

3.Around 50 countries around the world have already started vaccinating their people against COVID-19.

 

4.Singapore to seek public engagement with young couples on raising families in a post-COVID-19 world

 

5.Globally, the number of acute flaccid paralysis (AFP) cases reported declined 33% and the mean number of days between the second stool collected and receipt by the laboratory increased by 70% in last 9 months

 

6.Public Health England (PHE) would be disbanded and its function integrated into a new organisation called the National Institute for Health Protection. 

7.The NHS in England faces unprecedented challenges in 2021—first to deal with the backlog of both physical and mental healthcare that the pandemic has caused, and second to create a system of health and care that tackles  health inequalities  

8.Over 2000 healthcare workers have died from covid-19, more than anywhere else in the world in MEXICO

9.Reasons for Mexico Covid19 Response Failure

• Vast inequality, underfunded health system, large informal economy, and belts of cramped, multigenerational housing

• Lack of strategy, combined with mixed messages from the president, has exacerbated the situation in a country that is poorly equipped for a pandemic. 

• President has refused to wear a mask himself and played down their effectiveness. He has declined to make them compulsory or declare a national lockdown, which he sees as authoritarian and economically damaging.

• Lowest testing rates in the world. Wider testing would be a “waste of time, effort, and money,” as per President

 

10.Presence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies confers subsequent immunity in most people for at least six months

 

11.An Italian doctors association has warned or disciplined 10 medics for promoting anti-vaccination propaganda

 

12.EU leaders are concerned that anti-vaccination sentiment could seriously undermine the continent’s attempts to vanquish covid-19. In some countries, including Italy, Germany, Spain, and Sweden, public scepticism over covid-19 vaccines is thought to be high.

 

13.Spanish authorities have said that they will compile a register of people who refuse covid-19 vaccinations, which they will share with other EU countries

 

14.In many countries, screening for cervical cancer, a leading cause of cancer death in Africa  was also halted, and medical camps, which can normally screen up to 200 women in a day, could now screen no more than 15 per day because of social distancing guidelines

 

15.COVID-19 pandemic has been puzzling to many public health experts because Africa has reported far fewer cases and deaths from COVID-19 than predicted. There are several factors that may influence the trajectory of the COVID-19 pandemic in Africa. These include limited testing (which limits detection and isolation, and thus public health measures), a much younger population (and thus fewer severe cases and deaths), climatic differences (which could affect transmission), preexisting immunity, genetic factors, early implementation of public health measures, and timely leadership

 

16.New Mathematical model, θ -SEIHQRD taking into account quarantine and undetected infections.New formula for the effective reproduction number. Project different scenarios to show the impact of undetected cases and control measures

 

17.Olfaction dysfunction found to be significantly more prevalent in patients with mild flu syndrome in COVID-19. It may be a predictor of a good prognosis for this infection. 

 

18.Manic-like symptoms might be a delayed response to CNS infection by SARS-CoV-2 in patients with no history of psychiatric illness 

 

19.Elevated pro-inflammatory cytokine levels are observed in individuals with psychotic, mood  and anxiety-related disorders  when compared with their respective healthy controls, while therapeutic use of pro-inflammatory cytokines, like IFN, are known to induce depressive symptoms 

 

20.Presence of neutralizing immunoglobulin G (IgG) autoantibodies reported in as much as 10% of COVID patients (more men than women) who developed life-threatening pneumonia. These autoantibodies disable or neutralize type I IFNs, thereby inhibiting or reducing the inflammatory response to prevent pathogen-induced inflammation.

 

21.Anti-SARS-CoV-2 effects of chlorpromazine (and other psychotropics) have been suggested. These possible protective effects are based on the structural similarities between certain psychotropics, especially tricyclic antidepressants, phenothiazine antipsychotics and methylene blue, and investigational anti- SARS-CoV-2 drugs, such as chloroquine.

 

22.Adjunctive psychotropic treatments during SARS-CoV-2 infection

 

• Agomelatine; Given its inherent anxiolytic and antidepressant properties , agomelatine could be a useful medicine to consider in COVID-19 related mood and anxiety disorder

• Antioxidantsα-Lipoic acid is an antioxidant that may lower all-cause mortality in SARS-CoV-2 infected patient

• Gamma mangostin, inhibits C19MP (a main protease of SARS-CoV-2), with improved binding affinity versus other known inhibitors, such as lopinavir and ritonavir

• Thymoquinone can prevent viral binding to the ACE2 receptors via modulating the heat shock protein cell surface

• Melatonin which has been suggested to benefit patients with myocardial injury and respiratory complications in COVID-19 patients

 

• Dexamethasone could worsen underlying psychiatric conditions by increasing oxidative stress, inflammation and inducing dysregulated glutamatergic neurotransmission

 

• Lithium carbonate improved inflammatory activity and immune response in patients with severe SARS-CoV-2 infection.

 

23.Treatment of SARS-CoV-2 patients with a combination of methylene blue, vitamin C and N-acetyl cysteine ( NAC) could increase the survival rate of these patients, possibly due to anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidative effects.

 

24.Melatonin has recently been proposed as adjuvant anti-SARS-CoV-2 option due to its mitochondrial enhancing properties 

 

25.Phosphodiesterase inhibitors:PDE-5 inhibitors (e.g. sildenafil and tadalafil) could be useful as adjunctive SARS-CoV-2 treatment by counteracting the Ang-II-mediated downregulation of AT-1 receptor and reducing pro-inflammatory cytokines

 

26.Pioglitazone could potentially be used to reduce the cytokine storm, associated with SARS-CoV-2, at least in those patients that have a manifest condition of metabolic syndrome.

 

27.COVID-19 had higher serum luteinizing hormone (LH) levels and decreased testosterone: LH ratio compared to controls but there was no statistical difference in serum testosterone levels in cases compared to controls (3.97ng/mL in cases versus 4.79ng/mL in controls). 

• No differences were also seen for estradiol, but there were significant increases in prolactin levels.

• Additionally, on multivariable analyses, serum testosterone: LH ratio among cases was negatively associated with serum white blood cell count and C-reactive protein levels. 

• Men who required a higher level of care or died had lower total serum testosterone levels than those who recovered clinically. Additionally, an increase in mortality and intensive care unit transfer was seen in men with total testosterone 

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28.Pregnancy appears to be an independent risk factor for severe COVID-19-associated complications. Severe COVID-19 in pregnancy is associated with increased rates of cesarean delivery and preterm birth.

 

• Thanks for Happy Reading

• With regards

• Dr Dharmesh Lal(dharmeshlal@yahoo.co.in)

• DNB,MD,DHA,MBBS