Household disinfection practices by women living in Egypt during the 2020 COVID-19 lockdown and the association of information sources and suspected bleach toxicity.

INTRODUCTION: The spread of contradictory health information was a hallmark of the early COVID-19 pandemic. Because of a limited understanding of the disease, its mode of transmission, and its pathogenicity, the public turned to easily accessible and familiar sources of information. Some of these sources included wrong or incomplete information that could increase health risks and incidents of toxicity due to improper information about the usage of disinfectants. The objective of this study was to assess the relationship between sources of information about the COVID-19 pandemic, the related household cleaning and disinfection practices among adult women living in Egypt, and the associated adverse effects of bleach toxicity during a national lockdown. METHODS: Through a self-administered online survey, 452 adult women (18 years and older) living in Egypt were recruited from 13 cities between 4 June 2022 and 4 July 2022 to answer the questionnaire. The questionnaire included (41) questions in Arabic and collected data about respondents' household cleaning and disinfection practices to prevent the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus and protect their families during the lockdown that started in Egypt in March 2020. RESULTS: The study found that 88.1% (n = 398) of participants reported increased use of disinfectants during the lockdown. Women who chose social media as their primary source of information to learn about disinfection practices reported an increased frequency of respiratory symptoms associated with bleach toxicity (correlation coefficient = 0.10, p-value = 0.03), followed by women who depended on relatives and friends as the primary source of information (correlation coefficient = 0.10, p-value = 0.02). CONCLUSION: This study showed that social media is an easily accessible, efficient and fast communication tool that can act as a primary source for individuals seeking medical information compared to other media platforms (e.g., websites, T.V., satellite channels). However, better regulations and monitoring of its content may help limit the harms caused by the misinformation and disinformation spread by these popular platforms, particularly in times of uncertainty and upheaval.

COVID-19 Response Among US Hospitals with Emerging Special Pathogen Programs.

In February 2015, the US Department of Health and Human Services developed a tiered hospital network to deliver safe and effective care to patients with Ebola virus disease (EVD) and other special pathogens. The tiered network consisted of regional special pathogen treatment centers, state- or jurisdiction-designated treatment centers, assessment hospitals able to safely isolate a patient until a diagnosis of EVD was confirmed and transfer the patient, and frontline healthcare facilities able to identify and isolate patients with EVD and facilitate transport to higher-tier facilities. The National Emerging Special Pathogens Training and Education Center (NETEC) was established in tandem to support the development of healthcare facility special pathogen management capabilities. In August 2020, 20 hospitals that previously received an onsite readiness consultation by NETEC were surveyed to assess how special pathogen programs were leveraged for COVID-19 response. All surveyed facilities indicated their programs were leveraged for COVID-19 response in at least 1 of the following ways: NETEC-sponsored resources and training, utilization of patient isolation spaces, specially trained staff, and supplies. Personal protective equipment shortages were experienced by 95% of facilities, with 80% of facilities reporting that special pathogens program personal protective equipment was used to support facility response to COVID-19 admissions. More than half of facilities (63%) reported leveraging biocontainment unit staff to provide training and education to frontline staff during initial response to COVID-19. These findings have implications for planning and investments to avoid the panic-then-forget cycle that hinders sustained preparedness for future special pathogens.

A pilot study of core body temperatures in healthcare workers wearing personal protective equipment in a high-level isolation unit.

Personal protective equipment used by healthcare workers to mitigate disease transmission risks while caring for patients with high-consequence infectious diseases can impair normal body cooling mechanisms and exacerbate physiological strain. Symptoms of heat strain (e.g., cognitive impairment, confusion, muscle cramping) are especially harmful in the high-risk environment of high-consequence infectious disease care. In this pilot study, the core body temperatures of healthcare workers were assessed using an ingestible, wireless-transmission thermometer while performing patient care tasks common to a high-level isolation unit setting in powered air purifying respirator (PAPR)-level. The objective was to determine the potential for occupational health hazard due to heat stress in an environmentally controlled unit. Maximum core temperatures of the six participants ranged from 37.4 °C (99.3 °F) to 39.9 °C (103.8°F) during the 4-hr shift; core temperatures of half (n = 3) of the participants exceeded 38.5 °C (101.3 °F), the upper core temperature limit. Future investigations are needed to identify other heat stress risks both in and outside of controlled units. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic offers unique opportunities for field-based research on risks of heat stress related to personal protective equipment in healthcare workers that can lead to both short- and long-term innovations in this field.