Association of Individual Behaviors With Infection Prevention Measures and COVID-19 Development: A Japanese Cross-Sectional Study.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, people often modified their behaviors and performed individual infection control practices despite the uncertain effectiveness of these in preventing COVID-19. A cross-sectional study using a nationwide internet survey (Japan COVID-19 Society Internet Survey) was conducted from September 2022 through October 2022. The questionnaire consisted of individual-level social distancing behaviors and infection prevention measures, and COVID-19 vaccination status. A multivariate logistic regression was performed to determine factors associated with the diagnosis of COVID-19 in the last two months of the survey date. In total, 19,296 respondents were selected for the primary analysis. Of 19,296 respondents, those with COVID-19 diagnosed in the last two months were 1,909 (9.9%). Factors independently associated with a recent history of COVID-19 were meeting colleagues in person ≧ 1 per week (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 1.72). The response of "never or rarely" to the question of taking out (i.e., dining in) foods was marginally associated with a recent history of COVID-19 (aOR 1.27). Most individual, infection prevention practices and behavioral modifications during the omicron variant phase of the pandemic did not substantially impact COVID-19 prevention in the community.

Differences in the incidence of nosocomial-onset COVID-19 among hospitalized patients with exposure to SARS-CoV-2.

We evaluated the secondary COVID-19 incidence among uninfected hospitalized patients after nosocomial COVID-19 exposure. An exposure source of SARS-CoV-2 was hospitalized patients or healthcare personnel (HCP) newly diagnosed as having COVID-19. Patients exposed to a COVID-19-infected patient in a shared room more frequently developed COVID-19 than those exposed to an infected HCP.

Prevalence and trends in persistent symptoms following COVID-19 in Japan: A nationwide cross-sectional survey.

INTRODUCTION: Even during the endemic phase of the COVID-19 pandemic, the impact of persistent symptoms on patients and healthcare systems remains significant. Thus, a more comprehensive understanding of these symptoms is essential. METHODS: Using data from the Japan Society and New Tobacco Internet Survey conducted in February 2023, this cross-sectional study investigated the prevalence of, and changes in, persistent COVID-19 symptoms. RESULTS: In total, 21,108 individuals responded to the survey. Of these, 29.1 % (6143) had a history of COVID-19. Our analysis found that arm/leg/joint pain (adjusted odds ratio [aOR]: 1.17; 95 % confidence interval [95 % CI]: 1.03-1.33), back pain (aOR: 1.13; 95 % CI: 1.01-1.27), chest pain (aOR: 1.53; 95 % CI: 1.20-1.96), malaise (aOR: 1.14; 95 % CI: 1.02-1.28), loss of taste (aOR: 2.55; 95 % CI: 1.75-3.72), loss of smell (aOR: 2.33; 95 % CI: 1.67-3.26), memory impairment (aOR: 1.27; 95 % CI: 1.04-1.56), and cough (aOR: 1.72; 95 % CI: 1.38-2.13) were independently associated with a history of COVID-19 contracted more than two months but less than six months previously. Further, back pain (aOR: 1.24; 95 % CI: 1.04-1.47) and loss of taste (aOR: 2.28; 95 % CI: 1.24-4.21) showed independent association with COVID-19 contracted more than 12 months previously. CONCLUSIONS: Various symptoms were independently associated with a history of COVID-19. While most patients tend to recover within a year after contracting COVID-19, certain symptoms, such as back pain and loss of taste, persist longer than a year, underscoring public health concerns and emphasizing the need for health care services to support patients suffering from persistent symptoms.

Difference between days of therapy and days of antibiotic spectrum coverage in an inpatient antimicrobial stewardship program: Vector autoregressive models for time-series analysis.

OBJECTIVE: The days of therapy (DOT) metric, used to estimate antimicrobial consumption, has some limitations. Days of antibiotic spectrum coverage (DASC), a novel metric, overcomes these limitations. We examined the difference between these 2 metrics of inpatient intravenous antimicrobial consumption in assessing antimicrobial stewardship efficacy and antimicrobial resistance using vector autoregressive (VAR) models with time-series analysis. METHODS: Differences between DOT and DASC were investigated at a tertiary-care center over 8 years using VAR models with 3 variables in the following order: (1) the monthly proportion of prospective audit and feedback (PAF) acceptance as an index of antimicrobial stewardship efficacy; (2) monthly DOT and DASC adjusted by 1,000 days present as indices of antimicrobial consumption; and (3) the monthly incidence of 5 organisms as an index of antimicrobial resistance. RESULTS: The Granger causality test, which evaluates whether incorporating lagged variables can help predict other variables, showed that PAF activity contributed to DOT and DASC, which, in turn, contributed to the incidence of drug-resistant P. aeruginosa. Notably, only DASC helped predict the incidence of drug-resistant Enterobacterales. Another VAR analysis demonstrated that a high proportion of PAF acceptance was accompanied by decreased DASC in a given month, whereas increased DASC was accompanied by an increased incidence of drug-resistant Enterobacterales, unlike with DOT. CONCLUSIONS: The VAR models of PAF activity, antimicrobial consumption, and antimicrobial resistance suggested that DASC may more accurately reflect the impact of PAF on antimicrobial consumption and be superior to DOT for predicting the incidence of drug-resistant Enterobacterales.

The impact of carbapenem shortage and stewardship countermeasures on antimicrobial practice at a tertiary care center.

We evaluated the impact of carbapenem shortage on antimicrobial practice and patient outcome at a tertiary care center. During the shortage, hospital antimicrobial practice could be safely managed through additional antimicrobial stewardship measures including treatment guidance and mandatory preauthorization. Antimicrobial shortage may present a unique opportunity for promoting antimicrobial stewardship.

Antibiotic prescribing behavior among physicians in Asia: a multinational survey.

Objective: To evaluate antibiotic prescribing behavior (APB) among physicians with various specialties in five Asian countries. Design: Survey of antibiotics prescribing behavior in three stages (initial, on-treatment, and de-escalation stages). Methods: Participants included internists, infectious diseases (ID) specialists, hematologists, intensivists, and surgeons. Participants' characteristics, patterns of APB, and perceptions of antimicrobial stewardship were collected. A multivariate analysis was conducted to evaluate factors associated with appropriate APB. Results: There were 367 participants. The survey response rate was 82.5% (367/445). For the initial stage, different specialties had different choices for empiric treatment. For the on-treatment stage, if the patient does not respond to empiric treatment, most respondents will step up to broader-spectrum antibiotics (273/367: 74.39%). For the de-escalation stage, the rate of de-escalation was 10%-60% depending on the specialty. Most respondents would de-escalate antibiotics based on guidelines (250/367: 68.12%). De-escalation was mostly reported by ID specialists (66/106: 62.26%). Respondents who reported that they performed laboratory investigations prior to empirical antibiotic prescriptions (aOR = 2.83) were associated with appropriate use, while respondents who reported ID consultation were associated with appropriate antibiotic management for infections not responding to empiric treatment (aOR = 40.87); adherence with national guidelines (aOR = 2.57) was associated with reported successful carbapenem de-escalation. Conclusion: This study highlights the variation in practices and gaps in appropriate APB on three stages of antibiotic prescription among different specialties. Education on appropriate investigation, partnership with ID specialist, and availability and adherence with national guidelines are critical to help guide appropriate APB among different specialties.

Resurgence of human coronavirus OC43 at a long-term care facility during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic: Outbreak investigation.

The incidence of seasonal infections due to respiratory viruses other than severe acute respiratory coronavirus virus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has declined due to heightened public infection prevention measures against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). We describe an outbreak of human coronavirus OC43 infection that occurred at a long-term care facility and whose clinical features were indistinguishable from COVID-19.

Prolonged Symptoms after COVID-19 in Japan: A Nationwide Survey of the Symptoms and Their Impact on Patients' Quality of Life.

BACKGROUND: Clinical details of long COVID are still not well understood because of potential confounding with a wide range of pre-existing comorbidities. METHODS: The present study used datasets from a nationwide, cross-sectional, online survey. We determined which prolonged symptoms were more likely to be associated with post-COVID condition after adjusting for a wide range of comorbidities and baseline characteristics. This study also used the EuroQol 5 Dimension 5 Level (EQ-5D-5L) and Somatic Symptom Scale-8 to assess health-related quality of life (QOL) and somatic symptoms in individuals with a previous history of COVID-19, defined as the diagnosis of COVID-19 made at least 2 months prior to the online survey. RESULTS: In total, 19,784 respondents were included for analysis; of these, 2397 (12.1%) had a previous history of COVID-19. The absolute difference of adjusted prevalence of symptoms attributed to prolonged symptoms after COVID-19 ranged from -0.4% to +2.0%. Headache (adjusted odds ratio [aOR]: 1.22; 95% confidence interval [95% CI]:1.07-1.39), chest discomfort (aOR:1.34, 95% CI:1.01-1.77), dysgeusia (aOR: 2.05, 95% CI: 1.39-3.04), and dysosmia (aOR: 1.96, 95% CI: 1.35-2.84) were independently associated with a previous history of COVID-19. Individuals with a previous history of COVID-19 had lower health-related QOL scores. CONCLUSIONS: After adjusting for potential comorbidities and confounders, clinical symptoms, such as headache, chest discomfort, dysgeusia, and dysosmia, were found to be independently associated with a previous history of COVID-19, which was diagnosed 2 or more months previously. These protracted symptoms might have impacted QOL and the overall somatic symptom burden in subjects with a previous history of COVID-19.

Promotion of antimicrobial stewardship following issuance of the antimicrobial resistance national action plan in Japan: A systematic review of 2016-2020.

BACKGROUND: Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) represents a global threat with the potential to cause a significant healthcare burden. In 2016, the Japanese Government issued the national action plan (NAP) for AMR. Since issuance of this plan, several studies on antimicrobial stewardship programmes (ASPs) have been published in Japan. This systematic review was undertaken to elucidate the current state of ASPs and the impact of the NAP. METHODS: Medline (PubMed) and EMBASE were searched for studies published between January 2016 and the end of September 2021. The Risk of Bias in Non-Randomized Studies of Intervention tool was used to assess the risk of bias in interventional studies, and the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale was used to assess the quality of cohort, case-control and cross-sectional studies. RESULTS: Eighty studies, including 30 (37.5%) interventional studies, 15 (18.8%) database-oriented studies and nine (11.3%) analytical studies (one case-control study, six cohort studies and two cross-sectional studies), were included. All of the interventional studies were before-after trials, and interrupted time series analysis was commonly used to assess changes in antimicrobial consumption per intervention. Five database-related studies demonstrated decreasing antimicrobial consumption after issuance of the NAP. CONCLUSION: Several ASP studies were published after issuance of the NAP, suggesting that the latter promoted research into ASPs. A few database-related studies showed a positive impact of the NAP on antimicrobial consumption. However, more high-quality studies, especially interventional studies using an appropriate methodology and standardized data collection, are needed.

Discontinuation of admission screening for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and the impact on in-hospital clusters of COVID-19: Experience at a tertiary-care center.

We evaluated the impact of discontinuing universal preadmission screening for severe acute respiratory coronavirus virus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) on the occurrence of nosocomial clusters of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) during the SARS-CoV-2 o (omicron) variant period. No increasing trend in nosocomial clusters was observed during community-based surges before and after discontinuation. This finding supports the safety of the practice change.

Post-COVID health-related quality of life and somatic symptoms: A national survey in Japan.

BACKGROUND: The characteristics and risk factors of post-COVID-19 condition affecting health-related quality of life and the symptom burden are unclear. METHODS: The present, cross-sectional study used the JASTIS (Japan Society and New Tobacco Internet Survey) database. EQ-5D-5L and Somatic Symptom Scale-8 were used to assess health-related quality of life and somatic symptoms, respectively. The participants were classified into a no-COVID-19, COVID-19 not requiring oxygen therapy or COVID-19 requiring oxygen therapy group. First, the entire cohort was analyzed. Then, sensitivity analysis was performed after excluding patients in the no-COVID-19 group with a history of close contact with individuals known to have the disease. FINDINGS: In total, 30130 individuals (mean age: 47.8; females: 51.2%), including 539 and 805 with COVID-19 requiring and not requiring oxygen therapy, respectively, participated. The analysis of the entire cohort as well as the sensitivity analysis demonstrated that individuals with a history of COVID-19 had significantly lower EQ-5D-5L and significantly higher SSS-8 scores than those with no COVID-19 history. The group requiring oxygen therapy was associated with significantly lower EQ-5D-5L and higher SSS-8 scores than the group not requiring oxygen therapy. Propensity-score matching confirmed these results. Furthermore, two or more COVID-19 vaccinations were independently associated with high EQ-5D-5L and low SSS-8 scores (P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The participants with a COVID-19 history, especially those with severe disease, had a significantly higher somatic symptom burden. Analysis after adjusting for potential confounders found that their quality-of-life was also severely affected. Vaccination is crucial to addressing these symptoms, especially in high-risk patients.

Post-sign-off events in infectious disease consultation and the incidence of nonadherence to infectious disease recommendations in the post-sign-off period: A retrospective cohort study.

Objective: Infectious diseases (ID) consultation has contributed to improving outcomes in hospitalized patients. However, the timing of signing off on ID consultation varies, depending on the consulting ID physician. We studied the descriptive epidemiology of treatment-related adverse events (ADEs) occurring after the ID physician has signed off on consultation and the epidemiology and predictors of nonadherence to ID recommendations in the post-sign-off period. Methods: This retrospective cohort study was conducted at a Japanese tertiary-care center. All patients who received ID consultation between January and December 2019 and treatment recommendations for a confirmed or suspected infectious disease were included. The incidence of any treatment-related ADE after signing off, nonadherence to the final ID recommendations, and factors associated with nonadherence to the ID recommendations were identified. Results: In total, 367 patients receiving ID consultation were included. The incidence of post-sign-off events during index hospitalization was 59 (16.1%) of 367, with antimicrobial-associated ADEs accounting for 26 events (44.1%) and HAIs accounting for 13 events (22.0%). After excluding patients who discontinued treatment, nonadherence to ID recommendations was identified in 55 (15.7%) of 351 patients. Newly acquired HAIs during the index hospitalization after signing off on ID consultation was an independent risk factor for nonadherence to ID recommendations (adjusted odds ratio, 3.78; 95% confidence interval, 1.14-12.52). Conclusions: Post-sign-off events were common and led to nonadherence to ID recommendations during the post-sign-off period. Because this nonadherence occurs for various reasons, patients may require continued attention after signing off to ensure their safety.

Changes in intravenous and oral antimicrobial prescriptions during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic: an experience at a tertiary-care center.

Antimicrobial use during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic at a tertiary-care center was analyzed using interrupted time-series analysis. Among intravenous antimicrobials, the use of azithromycin and third-generation cephalosporins significantly decreased during the current pandemic. Similarly, the use of oral antimicrobials, including azithromycin and fluoroquinolones, also decreased.

Prevalence and characteristics of antibiotic prescription for acute COVID-19 patients in Japan.

COVID-19 is a viral infection and does not require antibiotics. The study aimed to elucidate a prescribing pattern of antibiotics for COVID-19. A nationwide cross-sectional study was conducted in Japan. The Diagnosis and Procedure Combinations (DPC) data was used to collect information, covering 25% of all acute care hospitals in the country. In 140,439 COVID-19 patients, 18,550 (13.21%) patients received antibiotics. Antibiotics were prescribed more often in inpatients (10,809 out of 66,912, 16.15%) than outpatients (7741 out of 73,527, 10.53%) (p < 0.001). Outpatient prescription was significantly associated with older patients (odds ratio [OR], 4.66; 95% confidence interval [CI] 4.41-4.93) and a greater Charlson index (OR with one-point index increase, 1.22; 95% CI 1.21-1.23). Inpatient prescription was significantly associated with older patients (OR 2.10; 95% CI 2.01-2.21), male gender (OR 1.12, 95% CI 1.07-1.18), a greater Charlson index (OR with one-point increase, 1.06; 95% CI 1.05-1.07), requirement of oxygen therapy (OR 3.44; 95% CI 3.28-3.60) and mechanical ventilation (OR 15.09; 95% CI 13.60-16.74). The most frequently prescribed antibiotic among outpatients was cefazolin, while that among inpatients was ceftriaxone. Antibiotic prescription is relatively low for acute COVID-19 in Japan. Antibiotic prescription was associated with older age, multi-morbidity, severe disease, and winter season.

Peutz-Jeghers Syndrome.

This case report describes multiple dark-brown 1- to 2-mm hyperpigmented macules on the lips, nose, and conjunctivae.

Epidemiology and Factors Associated With Discharging Patients After Blood Culture Collection in the Emergency Department: A Case-Control Study in Japan.

Background: Some patients receive the diagnosis of bloodstream infection (BSI) after discharge from the emergency room (ER). Because the safety of discharging patients after a blood culture collection is unknown, the present study aimed to investigate the prevalence, outcomes, and factors associated with BSI diagnosed after ER discharge. Methods: This monocentric, case-control study compared patients who received a BSI diagnosis after ER discharge with those who were admitted for BSI. Factors associated with ER discharge after a blood culture collection were identified using multivariate logistic regression analysis. Results: Between January 2014 and December 2020, 5.5% (142/2575) of patients with BSI visiting the ER were initially discharged. This occurred more commonly during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic in 2020. On multivariate analysis, factors independently associated with the discharge of patients with BSI were the absence of hypotension (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 15.71 [95% confidence interval {CI}, 3.45-71.63]), absence of altered mental status in the ER (aOR, 8.99 [95% CI, 3.49-23.14]), unknown origin at ER discharge (aOR, 4.60 [95% CI, 2.43-8.72]), and low C-reactive protein (aOR, 3.60 [95% CI, 2.19-5.93]). No difference in 28-day mortality was observed between the groups. Conclusions: BSI is occasionally diagnosed after ER discharge. The prevalence of BSI diagnosed after ER discharge may have increased during the COVID-19 pandemic. Normal vital signs, unknown origin at ER discharge, and low C-reactive protein were important considerations leading to the discharge of these patients.

Promoting coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination among healthcare personnel: A multifaceted intervention at a tertiary-care center in Japan.

OBJECTIVE: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine may hold the key to ending the pandemic, but vaccine hesitancy is hindering the vaccination of healthcare personnel (HCP). We examined their perceptions of the COVID-19 vaccine and implemented an intervention to increase vaccination uptake. DESIGN: Before-and-after trial. PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING: Healthcare personnel at a 790-bed tertiary-care center in Tokyo, Japan. INTERVENTIONS: A prevaccination questionnaire was administered to HCP to examine their perceptions of the COVID-19 vaccine. A multifaceted intervention was then implemented involving (1) distribution of informational leaflets to all HCP, (2) hospital-wide announcements encouraging vaccination, (3) a mandatory lecture, (4) an educational session about the vaccine for pregnant or breastfeeding HCP, and (5) allergy testing for HCP at risk of allergic reactions to the vaccine. A postvaccination survey was also performed. RESULTS: Of 1,575 HCP eligible for enrollment, 1,224 (77.7%) responded to the questionnaire, 533 (43.5%) expressed willingness to be vaccinated, 593 (48.4%) were uncertain, and 98 (8.0%) expressed unwillingness to be vaccinated. The latter 2 groups were concerned about the vaccine's safety rather than its efficacy. After the intervention, the overall vaccination rate reached 89.7% (1,413 of 1,575), and 88.9% (614 of 691) of the prevaccination survey respondents answered "unwilling" to or "unsure" about eventually receiving a vaccination. In the postvaccination questionnaire, factors contributing to increased COVID-19 vaccination included information and endorsement of vaccination at the medical center (274 of 1,037, 26.4%). CONCLUSIONS: This multifaceted intervention increased COVID-19 vaccinations among HCP at a Japanese hospital. Frequent support and provision of information were crucial for increasing the vaccination rate and may be applicable to the general population as well.