No evidence for an increased risk of herpes zoster requiring full or partial hospitalization during the first year of the COVID‐19 pandemic in Germany

Background:Patients with rheumatic diseases (RD) are at increased risk of infections, attributed to the underlying RD, comorbidities and immunosuppressive therapy, including glucocorticoids, disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs, etc. (1). While many infectious diseases can generally be prevented by vaccines, immunization rates in this specific patient population remain suboptimal (2). Despite being recognized as one of the most successful public health measures, vaccination is perceived as unsafe and unnecessary by a growing number of individuals. Lack of confidence in vaccines is now considered a threat to the success of vaccination programs (3).Objectives:To describe the main causes of non-vaccination in patients with RD.Methods:A self-questionnaire was applied to a sample of patients with RD in the rheumatology clinic of the university hospital “Dr. Jose Eleuterio Gonzalez” in Monterrey, Mexico between September and December 2019. The questionnaire evaluated demographic characteristics (age, gender, diagnosis) and the vaccination status for Influenza (last year), pneumococcal (last 5 years), Herpes zoster (ever), Human papillomavirus (any dose) and Hepatitis B (any dose). It also includes a question asking: If you didn’t receive any of the previous vaccines, what was the reason? (multiple-choice are shown in Table 2). Results are shown in frequencies and percentages.Table 2.Vaccination barriersN=82If you didn’t receive any of the previous vaccines,what was the reason? n (%)1)Did not was recommended22 (26.8)2) Lack of availability21 (25.6)3) Vaccines don’t work13 (15.8)4) Fear of adverse events8 (9.7)5) Previous adverse event3 (3.6)6) Other reason- Own decision8 (9.7)- Disinformation7 (8.5)Results:102 patients were evaluated: Mean age was 51.27 (SD 14.68) years; 84 (82.4%) were females; 71 (69.6%) had rheumatoid arthritis, 13 (12.7%) had systemic lupus erythematosus, 6 (5.8%) had other autoimmune diseases and 12 (11.8%) had osteoarthritis. The rate of vaccination for Influenza was 49 (48%), for pneumococcal 25 (24.5%), for Herpes zoster 5 (4.9%), for Human papillomavirus 9 (8.8%), for Hepatitis B 14 (13.7%) (Table 1). 82 (80.3%) patients reported some barriers in vaccination, from these: 22 (26.8%) did not get the recommendation from the rheumatologist, 21 (25.6%) did not found available the vaccine, 13 (15.8%) believes that vaccines don’t work, 8 (9.7%) had fear of adverse events, 3 (3.6%) reported previous adverse events, and 15 (18.2%) reported other reasons, that we classified as own decision 8 (9.7%) and disinformation 7 (8.5%) (Table 2).Table 1.Demographic characteristicsN= 102Age, years, mean (SD)51.27 (14.68)Female, n (%)84 (82.4)Diagnosis, n (%)-RA71 (69.6)-SLE13 (12.7)-OA12 (11.8)-Other AID6 (5.8)Conclusion:The main barriers in vaccination of rheumatic patients reported were the lack of availability of the indicated vaccines and the medical and patient disinformation. This problem must be combated to ensure the complete vaccination of rheumatic patients.References:[1]Ann Rheum Dis. 2020;79:39-52.[2]J Rheumatol. 2019;46(7):751-754[3]Hum Vaccin Immunother. 2013;9(8):1763-73.Disclosure of Interests:None declared

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Physiological Biomarkers Assessed by Low-Tech Exercise Tests Predict Complications and Overall Survival in Patients Undergoing Pneumonectomy Due to Lung Cancer

Cancers ◽

10.3390/cancers13040735 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (4) ◽

pp. 735

Author(s):

Tomasz Marjanski ◽

Damian Wnuk ◽

Robert Dziedzic ◽

Marcin Ostrowski ◽

Wioletta Sawicka ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Lung Cancer ◽

Overall Survival ◽

High Risk ◽

Odds Ratio ◽

Cardiac Complications ◽

First Year ◽

Exercise Tests ◽

Walking Test ◽

Increased Risk ◽

Surgery Department

Due to its debilitating character pneumonectomy this is last-resort procedure. Preoperative results of the 6-min walking test (6MWT) help to identify high risk of postoperative complications and increased mortality in patients undergoing lobectomy for lung cancer. The aim of the study was to validate the value of 500 m in 6MWT as an indicator, which differentiates risk of complications in patients undergoing pneumonectomy. 125 patients who underwent pneumonectomy at Thoracic Surgery Department between 2009 and 2018. On the day preceding the surgery, patients underwent 6MWT. The patients were in median age of 63 years. The cut-off value of 500 m identified patients with increased 90-day mortality [17.9% vs. 3.5%, odds ratio (OR) 6.271, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.528–25.739], first-year mortality (30.7% vs. 11.6%, OR 3.378, 95% CI 1.310–8.709), and overall survival (p = 0.02). Patients who covered a distance ≤ 500 m had an increased risk of atrial fibrillation (35.9% vs. 16.3%, OR 2.880, 95% CI 1.207–6.870) and cardiac complications (38.4% vs. 19.8%, OR 2.537, 95% CI 1.100–5.849). Patients unable to reach 500 m in 6MWT are in a high risk of postoperative death after pneumonectomy, what may be a result of increased frequency of postoperative cardiac complications. Poor result of 6MWT is a predictor of worse overall survival.

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Risk of herpes zoster in psoriasis patients receiving systemic therapies: a nationwide population-based cohort study

Scientific Reports ◽

10.1038/s41598-021-91356-3 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Sze-Wen Ting ◽

Sze-Ya Ting ◽

Yu-Sheng Lin ◽

Ming-Shyan Lin ◽

George Kuo

Keyword(s):

Cohort Study ◽

Herpes Zoster ◽

Population Based ◽

Research Database ◽

Newly Diagnosed ◽

Increased Risk ◽

Taiwan National Health Insurance ◽

Reduced Risk ◽

Systemic Therapies

AbstractThe incidence of herpes zoster in psoriasis patients is higher than in the general population. However, the association between herpes zoster risk and different systemic therapies, especially biologic agents, remains controversial. This study investigated the association between herpes zoster risk and several systemic antipsoriasis therapies. This prospective open cohort study was conducted using retrospectively collected data from the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database. We included 92,374 patients with newly diagnosed psoriasis between January 1, 2001, and December 31, 2013. The exposure of interest was the “on-treatment” effect of systemic antipsoriasis therapies documented by each person-quarter. The outcome was the occurrence of newly diagnosed herpes zoster. During a mean follow-up of 6.8 years, 4834 (5.2%) patients were diagnosed with herpes zoster after the index date. Among the systemic antipsoriasis therapies, etanercept (hazard ratio [HR] 4.78, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.51–15.17), adalimumab (HR 5.52, 95% CI 1.72–17.71), and methotrexate plus azathioprine (HR 4.17, 95% CI 1.78–9.82) were significantly associated with an increased risk of herpes zoster. By contrast, phototherapy (HR 0.76, 95% CI 0.60–0.96) and acitretin (HR 0.39, 95% CI 0.24–0.64) were associated with a reduced risk of herpes zoster. Overall, this study identified an association of both etanercept and adalimumab with an increased risk of herpes zoster among psoriasis patients. Acitretin and phototherapy were associated with a reduced risk.

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Increased risk of herpes zoster in children with cancer

Medicine ◽

10.1097/md.0000000000004037 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 95 (30) ◽

pp. e4037 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

Hsiao-Chuan Lin ◽

Yu-Hua Chao ◽

Kang-Hsi Wu ◽

Ting-Yu Yen ◽

Yu-Lung Hsu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Herpes Zoster ◽

Children With Cancer ◽

Increased Risk

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Deep vein thrombosis after monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance and multiple myeloma

Blood ◽

10.1182/blood-2008-04-151076 ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 112 (9) ◽

pp. 3582-3586 ◽

Cited By ~ 97

Author(s):

Sigurdur Y. Kristinsson ◽

Thomas R. Fears ◽

Gloria Gridley ◽

Ingemar Turesson ◽

Ulf-Henrik Mellqvist ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Multiple Myeloma ◽

Monoclonal Gammopathy ◽

First Year ◽

Small Hospital ◽

Entire Study ◽

Crude Incidence ◽

Vein Thrombosis ◽

Increased Risk ◽

Underlying Mechanisms ◽

Undetermined Significance

Patients with multiple myeloma (MM) have an increased risk of deep venous thrombosis (DVT), particularly when treated with immunomodulatory drugs. Recently, 2 small hospital-based studies observed persons with the MM precursor condition, monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS), to be at increased risk of developing DVT. Among 4 196 197 veterans hospitalized at least once at US Veterans Affairs hospitals, we identified a total of 2374 cases of MGUS, and 39 272 persons were diagnosed with DVT (crude incidence 0.9 per 1000 person-years). A total of 31 and 151 DVTs occurred among MGUS and MM patients, respectively (crude incidence 3.1 and 8.7 per 1000 person-years, respectively; P < .01). Compared with the entire study population, the relative risk (RR) of DVT after a diagnosis of MGUS and MM was 3.3 (95% confidence interval [CI], 2.3-4.7) and 9.2 (95% CI, 7.9-10.8), respectively. The most prominent excess risk of DVT was found during the first year after diagnosis of MGUS (RR = 8.4; 95% CI, 5.7-12.2) and MM (RR = 11.6; 95% CI, 9.2-14.5). Among 229 MGUS cases (9.5%) that progressed to MM, only one person had a DVT diagnosis before transformation. Our findings suggest the operation of shared underlying mechanisms causing coagulation abnormalities among patients with MGUS and MM.

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Association between Diabetes Mellitus and the Risk of Herpes Zoster: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism ◽

10.1210/clinem/dgab675 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Chun-Ta Huang ◽

Chi-Yu Lee ◽

Heng-You Sung ◽

Shu-Jung Liu ◽

Po-Chih Liang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Diabetes Mellitus ◽

Cardiovascular Disease ◽

Herpes Zoster ◽

Relative Risk ◽

General Population ◽

Confidence Interval ◽

Varicella Vaccination ◽

Cochrane Central Register ◽

Case Control Studies ◽

Increased Risk

Abstract Context Individuals with diabetes mellitus (DM) are susceptible to various infections. Objective We estimated the risk of herpes zoster (HZ) among individuals with DM compared to individuals in the general population. Data Sources We searched the PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trails, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature and PerioPath databases from their inception to January 30, 2021 for studies on the risk of HZ in individuals with DM. Study Selection Two authors independently screened all articles identified. Data Extraction The same two authors independently extracted the data. Four case-control studies and 12 cohort studies were included. Data Synthesis Meta-analyses were performed using fixed and mixed-effects models. In the pooled analysis, individuals with DM had a higher risk of developing HZ (pooled relative risk: 1.38, 95% confidence interval: 1.21–1.57) than individuals in the general population. The results were consistent in subgroup analyses stratified by type of diabetes, age, and study design. In individuals with DM, cardiovascular disease had an additive effect on increasing the risk of HZ (pooled relative risk: 1.19, 95% confidence interval: 1.11–1.28). There was a linear dose-response association between age and the risk of HZ in individuals with DM. Conclusion Individuals with DM have an increased risk of HZ compared to the general population. Varicella vaccination should be provided to individuals with DM regardless of their age, prioritizing older adults and those with cardiovascular disease. Varicella vaccination policies for individuals with DM should be updated based on the evidence.

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Increased Risk of Malaria During the First Year of Life in Small-for-Gestational-Age Infants: A Longitudinal Study in Benin

The Journal of Infectious Diseases ◽

10.1093/infdis/jiy699 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 219 (10) ◽

pp. 1642-1651 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Gino Agbota ◽

Manfred Accrombessi ◽

Gilles Cottrell ◽

Yves Martin-Prével ◽

Jacqueline Milet ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Longitudinal Study ◽

Gestational Age ◽

Small For Gestational Age ◽

First Year ◽

Increased Risk ◽

First Year Of Life

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Early Probiotic Supplementation and the Risk of Celiac Disease in Children at Genetic Risk

Nutrients ◽

10.3390/nu11081790 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 11 (8) ◽

pp. 1790 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

Ulla Uusitalo ◽

Carin Andren Aronsson ◽

Xiang Liu ◽

Kalle Kurppa ◽

Jimin Yang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Celiac Disease ◽

Dietary Supplements ◽

Genetic Risk ◽

First Year ◽

Event Analysis ◽

Time To Event ◽

Probiotic Supplementation ◽

Increased Risk ◽

Regulatory Effects ◽

First Year Of Life

Probiotics are linked to positive regulatory effects on the immune system. The aim of the study was to examine the association between the exposure of probiotics via dietary supplements or via infant formula by the age of 1 year and the development of celiac disease autoimmunity (CDA) and celiac disease among a cohort of 6520 genetically susceptible children. Use of probiotics during the first year of life was reported by 1460 children. Time-to-event analysis was used to examine the associations. Overall exposure of probiotics during the first year of life was not associated with either CDA (n = 1212) (HR 1.15; 95%CI 0.99, 1.35; p = 0.07) or celiac disease (n = 455) (HR 1.11; 95%CI 0.86, 1.43; p = 0.43) when adjusting for known risk factors. Intake of probiotic dietary supplements, however, was associated with a slightly increased risk of CDA (HR 1.18; 95%CI 1.00, 1.40; p = 0.043) compared to children who did not get probiotics. It was concluded that the overall exposure of probiotics during the first year of life was not associated with CDA or celiac disease in children at genetic risk.

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Herpes Zoster with Cutaneous Dissemination in a Patient 21 Years after Splenectomy for Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura

Journal of Cutaneous Medicine and Surgery ◽

10.1177/120347541201600518 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 16 (5) ◽

pp. 368-371 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Rachel A. Moquete ◽

Barry Hartman ◽

Richard D. Granstein

Keyword(s):

Herpes Zoster ◽

Herpes Simplex ◽

Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura ◽

Good Health ◽

Immunocompetent Patient ◽

Thrombocytopenic Purpura ◽

Virus Family ◽

Varicella Zoster ◽

Increased Risk ◽

History Of

Background: Varicella-zoster virus is a member of the herpes virus family that causes varicella during a primary infection and herpes zoster (HZ) when reactivated. Patients who are immunocompromised often have atypical presentations of HZ and experience complications such as multidermal involvement and dissemination. Objective: We report a case of disseminated HZ in an immunocompetent patient with a history of splenectomy for idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP). Our 46-year-old female patient presented with a painful vesiculopapular dermatomal rash with approximately 80 other lesions diffusely spread over her body. She was in good health but had a splenectomy for ITP 21 years earlier and a history of recurrent herpes labialis. The latter led to the tentative diagnosis of a widespread herpes simplex infection. However, laboratory results confirmed a diagnosis of disseminated herpes zoster. A workup of the patient's immune status did not reveal any abnormalities other than the patient's previously noted splenectomy. Conclusions: This case adds to the two reports of patients developing cutaneous disseminated HZ several years after splenectomy. Our case serves as a reminder that patients with a history of splenectomy appear to be at increased risk for cutaneous dissemination of HZ. Renseignements de base: Le virus varicelle-zona est un virus de la famille des Herpesviridae qui cause la varicelle durant une primo-infection, et l'herpès zoster (zona) (HZ) en cas de réactivation. Les patients qui sont immunocompromis ont souvent des présentations atypiques de HZ et affichent des complications telles que la participation et la dissémination multicutanées. Objectif: Nous exposons un cas de zona disséminé chez un patient immunocompétent ayant subi une splénectomie pour traiter un purpura thrombocytopénique idiopathique (PTI). Notre patiente âgée de 46 ans présentait une éruption vésiculo-papuleuse douloureuse localisée dans une zone dermatome avec environ 80 autres lésions diffuses réparties sur son corps. Elle était en bonne santé mais avait subi une splénectomie pour traiter un PTI 21 ans plus tôt et présentait des antécédents d'épisodes récurrents d'herpès labial. Ce dernier a abouti 'a un diagnostic provisoire d'une infection généralisée par le virus herpès simplex. Cependant, les résultats des analyses de laboratoire ont confirmé un diagnostic d'herpès zoster (zona) disséminé. Une investigation de l'état immunitaire de la patiente n'a pas révélé d'anomalies autres que la splénectomie que la patiente a subie antérieurement. Conclusions: Ce cas vient s'ajouter aux deux cas de patients signalés qui ont développé un HZ disséminé plusieurs années après avoir subi une splénectomie. Notre cas sert à rappeler que les patients présentant des antécédents de splénectomie semblent être exposés à un risque accru de dissémination cutanée sous forme de HZ.

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