Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has caused a worldwide pandemic. The first reports of patients with COVID-19 were provided to World Health Organization on December 21, 2019 and were presumably associated with seafood markets in Wuhan, China. As of October 25, 2020, more than 42 million cases have been confirmed worldwide, with more than 1.1 million deaths. Asymptomatic transmission contributes significantly to transmission, and clinical features are non-specific to the disease. Thus, the diagnosis of COVID-19 requires specific viral RNA testing. The disease demonstrates extensive human-to-human transmissibility and has infected healthcare workers at high rates. Clinical awareness of the epidemiology and the risk factors for nosocomial transmission of COVID-19 is essential to preventing infection. Moreover, effective control measures should be further identified by comprehensive evaluation of hospital and community responses. In this review, we provide a comprehensive update on the epidemiology, presentation, transmission, risk factors, and public health measures associated with COVID-19. We also review past insights from previous coronavirus epidemics [i.e., severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS)] to suggest measures to reduce transmission.

Globally and in Africa specifically, female sex workers (FSWs) are at an extraordinarily high risk of contracting human immunodeficiencyvirus (HIV). Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) has emerged as an effective and ethical method with which to preventHIV infection among FSWs. PrEP efficacy is, however, closely linked to adherence, and adherence to PrEP among FSWs is a complexand interrelated process that has been shown to be of importance to public health policies and HIV control and interventionprograms. This comprehensive review categorizes barriers to and facilitators of adherence to HIV PrEP for FSWs, and describes fivestrategies for promoting PrEP adherence among FSWs. These strategies encompass 1) a long-term educational effort to decreasethe stigma associated with sex work and PrEP use, 2) education on how PrEP works, 3) lifestyle modification, 4) research on nextgenerationPrEP products to address the inconvenience of taking daily pills, and 5) integration of PrEP into existing services, suchas social services and routine primary care visits, to reduce the economic burden of seeking the medication. Our review is expectedto be useful for the design of future PrEP intervention programs. Multidisciplinary intervention should be considered to promotePrEP adherence among FSWs in order to help control the HIV epidemic.

Background/Aims: Global distribution of dominant liver cancer aetiologies has significantly changed over the past decades. This study analyzed the updated temporal trends of liver cancer aetiologies and sociodemographic status in 204 countries and territories from 1990 to 2019. Methods: The Global Burden of Disease 2019 report was used for statistical analysis. In addition, we performed stratification analysis to five quintiles using sociodemographic index and 21 geographic regions. Results: The crude numbers of liver cancer disease-adjusted life years (DALYs) and deaths significantly increased during the study period (DALYs; 11,278,630 in 1990 and 12,528,422 in 2019, deaths; 365,215 in 1990 and 484,577 in 2019). However, the Age-standardized DALY and mortality rates decreased. Hepatitis B virus (HBV) remains the leading cause of liver cancer DALYs and mortality, followed by hepatitis C virus (HCV), alcohol consumption, and non-alcoholic steatohepatitison-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NASH/NAFLD). Although Age-standardized DALY and mortality rates of liver cancer due to HBV and HCV have decreased, the rates due to alcohol consumption and NASH/NAFLD have increased. In 2019, the population of the East Asia region had the highest Age-standardized DALY and mortality rates, followed by high-income Asia-Pacific and Central Asia populations. Although East Asia and high-income Asia-Pacific regions showed a decrease during the study period, Age-standardized DALY rates increased in Central Asia. High-income North American and Australasian populations also showed a significant increase in Age-standardized DALY. Conclusions Liver cancer remains an ongoing global threat. The burden of liver cancer associated with alcohol consumption and NASH/NAFLD is markedly increasing and projected to continuously increase.

Background: Evidence for the association between underlying non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), the risk of testing severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARSCoV-2) positive, and the clinical consequences of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is controversial and scarce. We aimed to investigate the association between the presence of NAFLD and the risk of SARS-CoV-2 infectivity and COVID-19-related outcomes. Methods: We used the population-based, nationwide cohort in South Korea linked with the general health examination records between January 1, 2018 and July 30, 2020. Data for 212,768 adults older than 20 years who underwent SARS-CoV-2 testing from January 1 to May 30, 2020, were obtained. The presence of NAFLDs was defined using three definitions, namely hepatic steatosis index (HSI), fatty liver index (FLI), and claims-based definition. The outcomes were SARS-CoV-2 test positive, COVID-19 severe illness, and related death. Results: Among 74,244 adults who completed the general health examination, there were 2,251 (3.0%) who were SARS-CoV-2 positive, 438 (0.6%) with severe COVID-19 illness, and 45 (0.06%) COVID-19-related deaths. After exposure-driven propensity score matching, patients with pre-existing HSI-NAFLD, FLI-NAFLD, or claims-based NAFLD had an 11–23% increased risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection (HSI-NAFLD 95% confidence interval [CI], 1–28%; FLI-NAFLD 95% CI, 2–27%; and claims-based NAFLD 95% CI, 2–31%) and a 35–41% increased risk of severe COVID-19 illness (HSI-NAFLD 95% CI, 8–83%; FLI-NAFLD 95% CI, 5–71%; and claims-based NAFLD 95% CI, 1–92%). These associations are more evident as liver fibrosis advanced (based on the BARD scoring system). Similar patterns were observed in several sensitivity analyses including the full-unmatched cohort. Conclusion Patients with pre-existing NAFLDs have a higher likelihood of testing SARSCoV-2 positive and severe COVID-19 illness; this association was more evident in patients with NAFLD with advanced fibrosis. Our results suggest that extra attention should be given to the management of patients with NAFLD during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Humans ; Adolescent ; Pandemics ; Substance-Related Disorders/epidemiology* ; Smoking ; Ethanol ; Republic of Korea/epidemiology* ; Alcohol Drinking/epidemiology*