BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

The global pandemic caused by Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) has affected millions, with growing evidence of the potential role of ocular tissues in viral transmission. At the time of writing, local data regarding the phenomenon was limited. This study investigated external ocular manifestations in patients with COVID-19 at a referral center in the Philippines, examined correlations between demographics, systemic manifestations, and laboratory results with ocular manifestations, and determined their timing relative to systemic symptoms.

METHODS

This single-center, descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out from December 8 to 18, 2020 at the adult COVID-19 wards of the Philippine General Hospital involving 72 participants. Data collection involved relevant clinical history taking and performing gross eye examination. The prevalence of ocular manifestations was described with 95% confidence intervals. Correlations between ocular manifestations and quantitative variables were analyzed with point-biserial correlation, and associations with qualitative variables were tested using chi-square or Fisher’s exact tests.

RESULTS

Among participants, 31.9% presented with ocular manifestations with foreign body sensation as the most prevalent ocular symptom (11.1%) and conjunctival hyperemia as the most prevalent ocular finding (19.4%). The median age of patients with ocular manifestations was 41 years old with a higher prevalence in the male population (73.9%, CI=95%, p=0.001). No significant correlation was observed between presence of external ocular manifestations and the different systemic and ocular co-morbidities as well as with COVID-19 clinical classification. Among those who experienced symptoms, majority (29.2%) of the patients experienced systemic symptoms prior to the onset of ocular symptoms. Ocular complaints may present as the sole manifestation (13.9%). Several laboratory parameters were measured and only temperature and AST levels showed a low positive correlation with the presence of ocular manifestations. 

CONCLUSION

Ocular manifestations occur in roughly one third of patients with COVID-19 based on this study population. With some individuals presenting with ocular signs or symptoms as the initial and sole manifestation, healthcare practitioners must exercise caution and remain vigilant in managing patients who present as such. At the time of writing, this is the first local study investigating the different external ocular manifestations in patients with COVID-19. There is a need to pursue more robust studies and conduct more local investigations which will guide both ophthalmologists and other practitioners in strengthening existing guidelines regarding precautionary practices, clinical diagnosis, and management of COVID-19 patients.

Human ; Sars-cov-2 ; Covid-19 ; Philippines ; Adult ; Association ; Classification ; Collection ; Confidence Intervals ; Coronavirus ; Cross-sectional Studies ; Data Collection ; Demography ; Diagnosis ; Disease ; Exercise ; Eye ; Foreign Bodies ; History ; Hospitals ; Hospitals, General ; Hyperemia ; Laboratories ; Male ; Morbidity ; Ophthalmologists ; Pandemics ; Patients ; Population ; Prevalence ; Referral And Consultation ; Role ; Sensation ; Temperature ; Time ; Tissues ; Volition ; World Health Organization ; Writing

With the development of education and technology, the construction of research public platforms has emerged as a critical initiative for many universities and top-tier public hospitals. The core and most fundamental function of a basic public platform is to aggregate large instruments and specific resources, providing open services for instrumental analysis and sample testing. Optimized management and high-quality, efficient services are essential for such platforms. This article elucidates the construction of a research public platform in West China Hospital, focusing on the adoption of hierarchical management and precise services. The core of the hierarchical management lies in building a multi-level service platform composed of routine support platforms, advanced technology platforms, and specially qualification platforms, while establishing a talent hierarchy that differentiates between core and routine positions. This structure is designed to accurately meet the diverse needs of users and enhance resource efficiency. By implementing user access control with differentiated permissions for internal and external users and a dynamic credit-based review system, the laboratory can ensure safe and efficient operations. The four service modes-instrument usage, in-lab experiments, sample testing, and collaborative projects-are precisely aligned with various research scenarios. Proactive engagement with grant-funded projects, customized services for research groups, and a multidimensional training system further strengthen the platform's support for major scientific research tasks. Through systematic management and service innovation, this model achieves efficient integration and sustainable development of platform resources, providing a valuable reference for the construction of public platforms in similar medical institutions.
China ; Research ; Laboratories/organization & administration*

The teaching laboratory is the central place to teach lab courses to undergraduate students. It is thus critical to evaluate how lab skills of students will be affected by the management of this lab. This study attempts to introduce the 6S concept, referring to "Seiri", "Seiton", "Seiso", "Seiketsu", "Shisuke", and "Safety", to the management of teaching laboratory, in particular, to the management of environments, safety, item deposition, reagents and consumables in the laboratory. We find that applying the "6S" management maintains a tidy lab environment, facilitates teaching the lab skills, and improves the quality of teaching, which together achieves the goal of education with the atmosphere. This study can provide a guideline for establishing and managing teaching laboratories in universities.
Education ; organization & administration ; standards ; Environment Design ; Humans ; Laboratories ; organization & administration ; standards ; Students ; Universities ; organization & administration ; standards

Laboratories ; organization & administration ; standards ; statistics & numerical data ; Nigeria ; United Nations ; standards ; Veterinary Medicine ; organization & administration

Clinical laboratories for in vitro diagnostics are facing pressure to preserve cost control while providing better services through new initiatives. Laboratory automation is a partial answer to this problem, having come a long way from the early days of clinical laboratory testing. The journey and implementation of automation in the Singapore General Hospital's Clinical Biochemistry Laboratory has allowed for sustained performance in the light of increasing workload and service commitments amid an evolving healthcare environment. Key to realising predicted outcomes is the optimisation of workflow processes, reduction of errors, and spatial placement of specimen reception and analytical areas. This paper gives an overview of our experience with automation in the clinical laboratory and its subsequent impact on service standards.
Aged ; Automation, Laboratory ; Clinical Laboratory Information Systems ; organization & administration ; Clinical Laboratory Techniques ; Efficiency, Organizational ; statistics & numerical data ; Hospitals, General ; Humans ; Laboratories, Hospital ; organization & administration ; Middle Aged ; Quality of Health Care ; Singapore ; Tertiary Healthcare ; organization & administration ; User-Computer Interface ; Workload

The safety and effectiveness of medical devices are directly related to human health. Therefore, how to improve the accreditation validity of medical devices testing laboratory has been the focus of attention from every corner of society. With respect to the characteristics of medical devices testing laboratory, this paper represented the existing issues during the accreditation and evaluation of testing laboratory, put forward some improvement suggestions on how to improve the validity of testing laboratory evaluation based on the practical experience.
Accreditation ; Device Approval ; Laboratories ; organization & administration ; standards

It's a effective way to promote the quality of the laboratory in hospital by passing the ISO15189.This paper introduces the changes made in rebuilding the LIS according to the certified documents of the ISO15189.
Accreditation ; Hospital Information Systems ; organization & administration ; Laboratories, Hospital ; organization & administration ; Quality Control

The whole process of standards management is analyzed based on such two aspects as effective version of standard and the proper application to find out the key points and control methods. By controlling the key points, medical device test lab can be ensured to use the updated effective version standards properly and provide accurate results and reports.
Equipment and Supplies ; standards ; Laboratories ; organization & administration ; Quality Control

Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; China ; Humans ; Laboratories ; organization & administration ; Measles ; prevention & control ; Measles Vaccine ; administration & dosage

This paper introduces the purpose, integration profile of workflow, integration profile of content of IHE Laboratory Technical Framework and the dependency on IT Infrastructure Technical Framework. And the domestic situation of LIS and HIS integration is analyzed briefly too.
Computer Communication Networks ; Hospital Information Systems ; Humans ; Laboratories, Hospital ; organization & administration ; Software ; Systems Integration ; User-Computer Interface