Attitudes and practices toward COVID-19 precautionary measures: A comparative study of health professionals and public.

BACKGROUND: Containment of the COVID-19 pandemic has been impaired by the denial and defiance of preventive recommendations. AIMS: We aimed to study the attitudes toward COVID-19 social measures among laypersons and healthcare professionals. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional study in the United Arab Emirates using a self-administered online questionnaire. Both healthcare workers and laypersons were actively recruited. In addition to sociodemographic variables, the questionnaire included questions on anxiety, knowledge, and defiance related to COVID-19. RESULTS: A total of 615 individuals with a mean age of 32 years (SD, 12) participated. Females comprised 69% and healthcare workers constituted 60% of the study sample. Among laypersons, over 42% reported having social gatherings at home, and 44% admitted to visiting crowded places. More than half of the respondents felt increased anxiety. Previous COVID-19 infection did not affect attitudes or anxiety levels. Knowledge about COVID-19 was higher among those who were more educated (r = .21). Healthcare workers had lower anxiety than laypersons (p = .002). COVID-19 anxiety was higher among older persons and did not decrease with more knowledge. COVID-19 defiance was higher among younger male respondents from larger households and did not correlate with knowledge. Multivariate analysis showed more defiant attitudes at younger ages. CONCLUSIONS: Anxiety-related to the COVID-19 pandemic is more common in older individuals, whereas younger persons were more likely to deny and defy prevention recommendations despite having knowledge of viral transmission. Voluntary compliance by young individuals requires an engaging communication strategy to generate more compassionate attitudes.

Methylprednisolone Treatment Versus Standard Supportive Care for Adult COVID-19 Mechanically Ventilated, Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome Patients.

A myriad of symptoms presented by severely ill mechanically ventilated COVID-19 patients has added pressure on the caregivers to explore therapeutic options. Systemic steroids have been reported to therapeutically benefit patients, with elevated inflammatory markers, during the severe acute respiratory syndrome, and the Middle East respiratory syndrome outbreak. COVID-19 disease is characterized by inflammation of the respiratory system and acute respiratory distress syndrome. Given the lack of specific treatment for COVID-19, the current study aimed to evaluate the therapeutic benefit of methylprednisolone as an add-on treatment for mechanically ventilated hospitalized COVID-19 patients with severe COVID pneumonia. Data were collected retrospectively from the electronic patient medical records, and interrater reliability was determined to limit selection bias. Descriptive and inferential statistical methods were used to analyze the data. The variables were cross-tabulated with the clinical outcome, and the chi-square test was used to determine the association between the outcomes and other independent variables. Sixty-one percent (43/70) of the COVID-19 ARDS patients received standard supportive care, and the remainder were administered, methylprednisolone (minimum 40 mg daily to a maximum 40 mg q 6 h). A 28-day all-cause mortality rate, in the methylprednisolone group, was 18% (5/27, p < 0.01) significantly lower, compared to the group receiving standard supportive care (51%, 22/43). The median number of days, for the hospital length of stay (18 days), ICU length of stay (9.5 days), and the number of days intubated (6 days) for the methylprednisolone-treated group, was significantly lower (p < 0.01) when compared with the standard supportive care group. Methylprednisolone treatment also reduced the C-reactive protein levels, compared to the standard care group on day 7. Our results strengthen the evidence for the role of steroids in reducing mortality, ICU length of stay, and ventilator days in mechanically ventilated COVID-19 patients with respiratory distress syndrome.