Prevalence of extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)-producing Enterobacteriaceae in wastewater: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Wastewater is considered a hotspot niche of multi-drug and pathogenic bacteria such as Enterobacteriaceae-producing extended-spectrum beta-lactamases (ESBL-E). Thus, the aim of this meta-analysis was to evaluate the prevalence of ESBL-E in different wastewater sources. Different databases (Medline, EMBASE, and Cochrane Library) were searched from inception to March 2021. Data were analyzed using random-effects modeling, and subgroup and meta-regression analyses were used to ascertain heterogeneity among the subgroups. Fifty-seven observational studies were selected, and the pooled prevalence of ESBL-E in wastewater was 24.81% (95% CI, 19.28–30.77). Escherichia coli had the highest ESBL prevalence. The blaCTX-M genes were the most prevalent in the selected studies (66.56%). The pooled prevalence of ESBL was significantly higher in reports from America (39.91%, 95% CI, 21.82–59.51) and reports studying hospital and untreated wastewaters (33.98%, 95% CI, 23.82–44.91 and 27.36%, 95% CI, 19.12–36.42). Overall, this meta-analysis showed that the prevalence of ESBL-E in wastewater is increasing over time and that hospital wastewater is the most important repository of ESBL-E. Therefore, there is a need for developing new sewage treatment systems that decrease the introduction of resistant bacteria and antibiotic residues.

Mortality in Cancer Patients With COVID-19 Who Are Admitted to an ICU or Who Have Severe COVID-19: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

PURPOSE There are scarce data to aid in prognostication of the outcome of critically ill cancer patients with COVID-19. In this systematic review and meta-analysis, we investigated the mortality of critically ill cancer patients with COVID-19. METHODS We searched online databases and manually searched for studies in English that reported on outcomes of adult cancer patients with COVID-19 admitted to an intensive care unit (ICU) or those with severe COVID-19 between December 2019 and October 2020. Risk of bias was assessed by the Modified Newcastle-Ottawa Scale. The primary outcome was all-cause mortality. We also determined the odds of death for cancer patients versus noncancer patients, as also outcomes by cancer subtypes, presence of recent anticancer therapy, and presence of one or more comorbidities. Random-effects modeling was used. RESULTS In 28 studies (1,276 patients), pooled mortality in cancer patients with COVID-19 admitted to an ICU was 60.2% (95% CI, 53.6 to 6.7; I2 = 80.27%), with four studies (7,259 patients) showing higher odds of dying in cancer versus noncancer patients (odds ratio 1.924; 95% CI, 1.596 to 2.320). In four studies (106 patients) of patients with cancer and severe COVID-19, pooled mortality was 59.4% (95% CI, –39.4 to 77.5; I2 = 72.28%); in one study, presence of hematologic malignancy was associated with significantly higher mortality compared with nonhematologic cancers (odds ratio 1.878; 95% CI, 1.171 to 3.012). Risk of bias was low. CONCLUSION Most studies were reported before the results of trials suggesting the benefit of dexamethasone and tocilizumab, potentially overestimating mortality. The observed mortality of 60% in cancer patients with COVID-19 admitted to the ICU is not prohibitively high, and admission to the ICU should be considered for selected patients (registered with PROSPERO, CRD42020207209).

Classification of True-progression after Radiotherapy of Brain Metastasis on MRI using Artificial Intelligence: a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Background Classification of true-progression from non-progression (e.g., radiation-necrosis) after stereotactic radiotherapy/radiosurgery of brain metastasis is known to be a challenging diagnostic task on conventional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). The scope and status of research using artificial intelligence (AI) on classifying true-progression is yet unknown. Methods We performed a systematic literature search of MEDLINE and EMBASE databases to identify studies that investigated the performance of AI-assisted MRI in classifying true-progression after stereotactic radiotherapy/radiosurgery of brain metastasis, published before November 11th, 2020. Pooled sensitivity and specificity were calculated using bivariate random-effects modeling. Meta-regression was performed for identification of factors contributing to the heterogeneity among the studies. We assessed the quality of the studies using Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies 2 (QUADAS-2) criteria and a modified version of the radiomics quality score (RQS). Results 7 studies were included, with a total of 485 patients and 907 tumors. The pooled sensitivity and specificity were 77% (95% CI, 70–83%) and 74% (64–82%), respectively. All 7 studies used radiomics, and none used deep learning. Several covariates including the proportion of lung cancer as the primary site, MR field strength, and radiomics segmentation slice showed a statistically significant association with the heterogeneity. Study quality was overall favorable in terms of the QUADAS-2 criteria, but not in terms of the RQS. Conclusion The diagnostic performance of AI-assisted MRI seems yet inadequate to be used reliably in clinical practice. Future studies with improved methodologies and a larger training set are needed.

Discontinuation of oral anticoagulation therapy after successful atrial fibrillation ablation: A systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective studies

Background The safety of discontinuing oral anticoagulant (OAC) therapy after atrial fibrillation (AF) ablation remains controversial. A meta-analysis was performed to assess the safety and feasibility of discontinuing OAC therapy after successful AF ablation. Methods PubMed and Embase were searched up to October 2020 for prospective cohort studies that reported the risk of thromboembolism (TE) after successful AF ablation in off-OAC and on-OAC groups. The primary outcome was the incidence of TE events. The Mantel-Haenszel method with random-effects modeling was used to calculate pooled odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Results A total of 11,148 patients (7,160 in the off-OAC group and 3,988 in the on-OAC group) from 10 studies were included to meta-analysis. No significant difference in TE between both groups was observed (OR, 0.73; 95%CI, 0.51–1.05; I2 = 0.0%). The risk of major bleeding in off-OAC group was significantly lower compared to the on-OAC group (OR, 0.18; 95%CI, 0.07–0.51; I2 = 51.7%). Conclusions Our study suggests that it may be safe to discontinue OAC therapy in patients after successful AF ablation. Additionally, an increased risk of major bleeding was observed in patients on OAC. However, the results of this meta-analysis should be interpreted with caution because of the heterogeneity among the included study designs. Large-scale and adequately powered randomized controlled trials are warranted to confirm these findings.

A systematic review and meta-analysis of obesity and COVID-19 outcomes

Some studies report that obesity is associated with more severe symptoms following SARS-CoV-2 infection and worse COVID-19 outcomes, however many other studies have not reproduced these findings. Therefore, it is uncertain whether obesity is in fact associated with worse COVID-19 outcomes compared to non-obese individuals. We conducted a systematic search of PubMed (including MEDLINE) and Google Scholar on May 18, 2020 to identify published studies on COVID-19 outcomes in non-obese and obese patients, covering studies published during the first 6 months of the pandemic. Meta-analyses with random effects modeling was used to determine unadjusted odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for various COVID-19 outcomes in obese versus non-obese patients. By quantitative analyses of 22 studies from 7 countries in North America, Europe, and Asia, we found that obesity is associated with an increased likelihood of presenting with more severe COVID-19 symptoms (OR 3.03, 95% CI 1.45–6.28, P = 0.003; 4 studies, n = 974), developing acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS; OR 2.89, 95% CI 1.14–7.34, P = 0.025; 2 studies, n = 96), requiring hospitalization (OR 1.68, 95% CI 1.14–1.59, P < 0.001; 4 studies, n = 6611), being admitted to an intensive care unit (ICU; OR 1.35, 95% CI 1.15–1.65, P = 0.001; 9 studies, n = 5298), and undergoing invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV; OR 1.76, 95% CI 1.29–2.40, P < 0.001; 7 studies, n = 1558) compared to non-obese patients. However, obese patients had similar likelihoods of death from COVID-19 as non-obese patients (OR 0.96, 95% CI 0.74–1.25, P = 0.750; 9 studies, n = 20,597). Collectively, these data from the first 6 months of the pandemic suggested that obesity is associated with a more severe COVID-19 disease course but may not be associated with increased mortality.

Anosmia/Hyposmia is a Good Predictor of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Infection: A Meta-Analysis

Introduction The number of positive cases and deaths from the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is still increasing. The early detection of the disease is very important. Olfactory dysfunction has been reported as the main symptom in part of the patients. Objective To analyze the potential usefulness of anosmia or hyposmia in the detection of the COVID-19 infection. Data Synthesis We systematically searched the PubMed Central database using specific keywords related to our aims until July 31st, 2020. All articles published on COVID-19 and anosmia or hyposmia were retrieved. A statistical analysis was performed using the Review Manager (RevMan, Cochrane, London, UK) software, version 5.4. A total of 10 studies involving 21,638 patients were included in the present analysis. The meta-analysis showed that anosmia or hyposmia is significantly associated with positive COVID-19 infections (risk ratio [RR]: 4.56; 95% confidence interval [95%CI]: 3.32–6.24; p < 0.00001; I2 = 78%, random-effects modeling). Conclusion The presence of anosmia or hyposmia is a good predictor of positive COVID-19 infections. Patients with onset of anosmia or hyposmia should take the test or undergo screening for the possibility of COVID-19 infection.

Abstract 204: Association Between Presence of Advanced Airway and Hyperventilation During Pediatric Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation: A Report from the VIPER Collaborative

Background: Hyperventilation is common during pediatric CPR and has known deleterious hemodynamic consequences. It is not known whether the presence of an advanced airway (AA) is independently associated with hyperventilation. Objective: To determine the independent association between the presence of an AA and hyperventilation during pediatric CPR in a collaborative of pediatric emergency departments using video review during resuscitations. Methods/Design: We present a report from the Videography in Pediatric Emergency Resuscitation (VIPER) Collaborative, a prospective review database. All events where CPR was performed and manual ventilations could be counted for at least 30 seconds were eligible for inclusion. Ventilation rates were counted and expressed in segments corresponding to individual CPR providers (‘compressor segments') and extrapolated to breaths per minute (bpm) where applicable. Hyperventilation was defined as a rate greater than 12 bpm, in accordance with American Heart Association recommendations. Ventilation rates were compared between CPR segments with a natural airway (bag-valve mask device; NA) versus an advanced airway (endotracheal tube or supraglottic airway; AA). Univariate analysis was done by two sided t-testing. Repeated measures logistic regression with random effects modeling (patient as intercept) was performed to determine the independent association of the presence of an AA with hyperventilation. Results/Discussion: 595 compressor segments in 67 CPR events were analyzed. Twenty-six patients underwent intubation and had segments with both NA and AA analyzed. Across all patients, 402/595 (68%) of segments occurred with an AA. Ventilation rates were significantly higher in patients with an AA compared with NA (14 + 10 bpm vs. 24 + 17 bpm, p < 0.001). By multivariate analysis, the presence of an advanced airway was independently associated with hyperventilation (AOR 12.2, 95% CI 5.0 - 30.3) during pediatric CPR. Future studies should examine methods of limiting manual hyperventilation during pediatric CPR, as well as the impact of ventilation rates on patient outcomes.