RESUMEN
Background: Smoking and vaping are linked to lung inflammation and lowered immune response. Objective: Examine the prevalence of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases, testing, symptoms, and vaccine uptake, and associations with tobacco product use. Methods: Data came from the 2021 National Health Interview Survey. The 2021 Sample Adult component included 29,482 participants with a response rate of 50.9%. We investigated COVID-19-related outcomes by tobacco product use status and reported national estimates. Multivariable regression models were performed accounting for demographics (e.g., age, sex, poverty level), serious psychological distress, disability, and chronic health conditions. Results: In our regression analyses, odds of self-reported COVID-19 infection were significantly lower for combustible tobacco product users (vs. nonusers; adjusted odds ratio [AOR = 0.73; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.62-0.85]). Combustible tobacco users also were less likely to report ever testing for COVID-19 (AOR = 0.88; 95% CI = 0.79-0.98), ever testing positive for COVID-19 (AOR = 0.66; 95% CI = 0.56-0.77), and ever receiving COVID-19 vaccine (AOR = 0.58; 95% CI = 0.51-0.66) compared with their nonuser peers. Compared to nonusers, users of any type of tobacco who contracted COVID-19 had higher odds of losing smell (AOR = 1.36; 95%CI = 1.04-1.77), which was more pronounced among exclusive e-cigarette users. The odds of receiving vaccine were lower for all current exclusive tobacco product users compared to nonusers (AORs = 0.40 to 0.70). Conclusions: Continued monitoring of tobacco product use and its association with respiratory diseases such as COVID-19 is crucial to inform public health policies and programs. In addition, efforts to promote vaccination, especially among tobacco product users, are warranted.
RESUMEN
Background: Galectins are an eleven-member class of lectins in humans that function as immune response mediators and aberrancies in their expression are commonly associated with immunological diseases. Several studies have focused on galectins as they may represent an important biomarker and a therapeutic target in the fight against COVID-19. This systematic review and meta-analysis examined the usefulness of clinical assessment of circulating galectin levels in patients with COVID-19. Methods: International databases including PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Embase were systematically used as data sources for our analyses. The random-effect model was implemented to calculate the standardized mean difference (SMD) and a 95% confidence interval (CI). Results: A total of 18 studies, comprising 2,765 individuals, were identified and used in our analyses. We found that Gal-3 is the most widely investigated galectin in COVID-19. Three studies reported significantly higher Gal-1 levels in COVID-19 patients. Meta-analysis revealed that patients with COVID-19 had statistically higher levels of Gal-3 compared with healthy controls (SMD 0.53, 95% CI 0.10 to 0.96, P=0.02). However, there was no significant difference between severe and non-severe cases (SMD 0.45, 95% CI -0.17 to 1.07, P=0.15). While one study supports lower levels of Gal-8 in COVID-19, Gal-9 was measured to be higher in patients and more severe cases. Conclusion: Our study supports Gal-3 as a valuable non-invasive biomarker for the diagnosis and/or prognosis of COVID-19. Moreover, based on the evidence provided here, more studies are needed to confirm a similar diagnostic and prognostic role for Gal-1, -8, and -9.
