Impact of Personal Cooling on Performance, Comfort and Heat Strain of Healthcare Workers in PPE, a Study From West Africa.

Background: Personal protective equipment (PPE) is an essential component of safely treating suspected or confirmed SARS-CoV-2 patients. PPE acts as a barrier to heat loss, therefore increasing the risk of thermal strain which may impact on cognitive function. Healthcare workers (HCWs) need to be able to prioritize and execute complex tasks effectively to ensure patient safety. This study evaluated pre-cooling and per-cooling methods on thermal strain, thermal comfort and cognitive function during simulated emergency management of an acutely unwell patient. Methods: This randomized controlled crossover trial was run at the Clinical Services Department of the Medical Research Unit The Gambia. Each participant attended two sessions (Cool and Control) in standard PPE. Cool involved pre-cooling with an ice slurry ingestion and per-cooling by wearing an ice-vest external to PPE. Results: Twelve participants completed both sessions. There was a significant increase in tympanic temperature in Control sessions at both 1 and 2 h in PPE (p = 0.01). No significant increase was seen during Cool. Effect estimate of Cool was -0.2°C (95% CI -0.43; 0.01, p = 0.06) post 1 h and -0.28°C (95% CI -0.57; 0.02, p = 0.06) post 2 h on tympanic temperature. Cool improved thermal comfort (p < 0.001), thermal sensation (p < 0.001), and thirst (p = 0.04). No difference on cognitive function was demonstrated using multilevel modeling. Discussion: Thermal strain in HCWs wearing PPE can be safely reduced using pre- and per-cooling methods external to PPE.

Xanthogranulomatous pyelonephritis caused by fusobacterium nucleatum. Case report and review of literature.

Xanthogranulomatous pyelonephritisis (XGP) is a rare and aggressive form of chronic urinary tract infection. The most common microorganism is Proteus but other microorganisms have been described in the literature. In this article, we describe a sixty-year-old male who presented with urosepsis and sever thrombocytopenia secondary to Fusobacterium nucleatum urinary tract infection which led to poorly functioning XGP. The rarity of the microorganism and the devastating clinical course encourages us to report it as anaerobes don't usually cause UTI but unusual microorganism should be suspected if the clinical course is atypical or if urinary tract abnormalities are present.