INTRODUCTION: Health literacy plays an essential role in one's ability to acquire and understand critical medical information in the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infodemic and in other pandemics. We aimed to summarise the assessment, levels and determinants of pandemic-related health literacy and its associated clinical outcomes. METHODS: A systematic review was performed in Medline ® , Embase ® , PsycINFO ® , CINAHL ® and four major preprint servers. Observational and interventional studies that evaluated health literacy related to the novel COVID-19, severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) were included. Items used in health literacy instruments were grouped under the themes of knowledge, attitudes and practices. Determinants of health literacy were grouped into five domains: sociodemographic, medical, psychological/psychiatric, health systems-related and others. RESULTS: Of the 2,065 articles screened, 70 articles were included. Of these, 21, 17 and 32 studies evaluated health literacy related to COVID-19, SARS and MERS, respectively. The rates of low pandemic health literacy ranged from 4.3% to 57.9% among medical-related populations and from 4.0% to 82.5% among nonmedical populations. Knowledge about the symptoms and transmission of infection, worry about infection, and practices related to mask usage and hand hygiene were most frequently evaluated. Sociodemographic determinants of health literacy were most frequently studied, among which higher education level, older age and female gender were found to be associated with better health literacy. No studies evaluated the outcomes associated with health literacy. CONCLUSION The level of pandemic-related health literacy is suboptimal. Healthcare administrators need to be aware of health literacy determinants when formulating policies in pandemics.
Humans ; Health Literacy ; COVID-19/epidemiology* ; Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome/epidemiology* ; Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice ; Pandemics ; SARS-CoV-2 ; Coronavirus Infections/epidemiology* ; Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus ; Female ; Male

Autopsy ; Betacoronavirus ; COVID-19 ; Coronavirus Infections/epidemiology* ; Disease Outbreaks ; Humans ; Pandemics ; Pneumonia, Viral/epidemiology* ; SARS-CoV-2

Betacoronavirus ; COVID-19 ; Coronavirus Infections/epidemiology* ; Humans ; Pandemics ; Pneumonia, Viral/epidemiology* ; SARS-CoV-2

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), was found initially in Wuhan, China in early December 2019. The pandemic has spread to 216 countries and regions, infecting more than 23310 000 people and causing over 800 000 deaths globally by Aug. 24, 2020, according to World Health Organization (https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/ novel-coronavirus-2019). Fever, cough, and dyspnea are the three common symptoms of the condition, whereas the conventional transmission route for SARS-CoV-2 is through droplets entering the respiratory tract. To date, infection control measures for COVID-19 have been focusing on the involvement of the respiratory system. However, ignoring potential faecal transmission and the gastrointestinal involvement of SARS-CoV-2 may result in mistakes in attempts to control the pandemic.
Betacoronavirus/isolation & purification* ; COVID-19 ; China/epidemiology* ; Coronavirus Infections/virology* ; Environmental Microbiology ; Feces/virology* ; Gastrointestinal Diseases/virology* ; Humans ; Models, Biological ; Pandemics ; Pneumonia, Viral/virology* ; RNA, Viral/genetics* ; SARS-CoV-2 ; Virus Shedding

Through literature review and group discussion, Special Expert Group for Control of the Epidemic of Novel Coronavirus Pneumonia of the Chinese Preventive Medicine Association formulated an update on the epidemiological characteristics of novel coronavirus pneumonia (NCP). The initial source of the 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) was the Huanan seafood market in Wuhan, Hubei province, China, with pangolins as a potential animal host. Currently the main source of infection is NCP patients, and asymptomatic carriers may also be infectious. The virus is believed transmitted mostly via droplets or contact. People are all generally susceptible to the virus. The average incubation period was 5.2 days, and the basic reproductive number R(0) was 2.2 at the onset of the outbreak. Most NCP patients were clinically mild cases. The case fatality rate was 2.38%, and elderly men with underlying diseases were at a higher risk of death. Strategies for prevention and control of NCP include improving epidemic surveillance, quarantining the source of infection, speeding up the diagnosis of suspected cases, optimizing the management of close contacts, tightening prevention and control of cluster outbreaks and hospital infection, preventing possible rebound of the epidemic after people return to work from the Chinese Spring Festival holiday, and strengthening community prevention and control.
Aged ; Animals ; Asymptomatic Diseases/epidemiology* ; Betacoronavirus ; COVID-19 ; China/epidemiology* ; Contact Tracing ; Coronavirus ; Coronavirus Infections/epidemiology* ; Humans ; Infectious Disease Incubation Period ; Male ; Pandemics ; Pneumonia, Viral/epidemiology* ; Public Health Surveillance/methods* ; Quarantine ; SARS-CoV-2

Objective: An outbreak of 2019 novel coronavirus diseases (COVID-19) in Wuhan, China has spread quickly nationwide. Here, we report results of a descriptive, exploratory analysis of all cases diagnosed as of February 11, 2020. Methods: All COVID-19 cases reported through February 11, 2020 were extracted from China's Infectious Disease Information System. Analyses included: 1) summary of patient characteristics; 2) examination of age distributions and sex ratios; 3) calculation of case fatality and mortality rates; 4) geo-temporal analysis of viral spread; 5) epidemiological curve construction; and 6) subgroup analysis. Results: A total of 72 314 patient records-44 672 (61.8%) confirmed cases, 16 186 (22.4%) suspected cases, 10567 (14.6%) clinical diagnosed cases (Hubei only), and 889 asymptomatic cases (1.2%)-contributed data for the analysis. Among confirmed cases, most were aged 30-79 years (86.6%), diagnosed in Hubei (74.7%), and considered mild/mild pneumonia (80.9%). A total of 1 023 deaths occurred among confirmed cases for an overall case-fatality rate of 2.3%. The COVID-19 spread outward from Hubei sometime after December 2019 and by February 11, 2020, 1 386 counties across all 31 provinces were affected. The epidemic curve of onset of symptoms peaked in January 23-26, then began to decline leading up to February 11. A total of 1 716 health workers have become infected and 5 have died (0.3%). Conclusions: The COVID-19 epidemic has spread very quickly. It only took 30 days to expand from Hubei to the rest of Mainland China. With many people returning from a long holiday, China needs to prepare for the possible rebound of the epidemic.
Adult ; Aged ; Asymptomatic Diseases/epidemiology* ; Betacoronavirus ; COVID-19 ; China/epidemiology* ; Coronavirus ; Coronavirus Infections/mortality* ; Disease Outbreaks ; Humans ; Middle Aged ; Mortality/trends* ; Pandemics ; Pneumonia, Viral/mortality* ; SARS-CoV-2

Betacoronavirus ; COVID-19 ; Coronavirus ; Coronavirus Infections/epidemiology* ; Humans ; Liver/pathology* ; Liver Diseases/virology* ; Pandemics ; Pneumonia, Viral/epidemiology* ; SARS-CoV-2

In Taiwan, high-risk patients have been identified and tested for preventing community spread of COVID-19. Most sample collection was performed in emergency departments (EDs). Traditional sample collection requires substantial personal protective equipment (PPE), healthcare professionals, sanitation workers, and isolation space. To solve this problem, we established a multifunctional sample collection station (MSCS) for COVID-19 testing in front of our ED. The station is composed of a thick and clear acrylic board (2 cm), which completely separates the patient and medical personnel. Three pairs of gloves (length, 45 cm) are attached and fixed on the outside wall of the MSCS. The gloves are used to conduct sampling of throat/nasal swabs, sputum, and blood from patients. The gap between the board and the building is only 0.2 cm (sealed with silicone sealant). ED personnel communicate with patients using a small two-way broadcast system. Medical waste is put in specific trashcans installed in the table outside the MSCS. With full physical protection, the personnel conducting the sampling procedure need to wear only their N95 mask and gloves. After we activated the station, our PPE, sampling time, and sanitization resources were considerably conserved during the 4-week observation period. The MSCS obviously saved time and PPE. It elevated the efficiency and capacity of the ED for handling potential community infections of COVID-19.
Betacoronavirus ; Clinical Laboratory Techniques ; Coronavirus Infections ; diagnosis ; epidemiology ; Emergency Service, Hospital ; organization & administration ; Humans ; Mass Screening ; methods ; Pandemics ; Personal Protective Equipment ; supply & distribution ; Pneumonia, Viral ; diagnosis ; epidemiology ; Taiwan ; epidemiology

Betacoronavirus ; Blood Coagulation Disorders ; epidemiology ; etiology ; Coronavirus Infections ; complications ; Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation ; epidemiology ; etiology ; Fibrin Fibrinogen Degradation Products ; analysis ; Humans ; Pandemics ; Pneumonia, Viral ; complications ; Venous Thromboembolism ; epidemiology ; etiology

Betacoronavirus ; Communication ; Coronavirus Infections ; epidemiology ; prevention & control ; therapy ; Disease Outbreaks ; Humans ; Medical Staff ; Pandemics ; prevention & control ; Patient Care Team ; Personal Protective Equipment ; Pneumonia, Viral ; epidemiology ; prevention & control ; therapy