COVID-19 Associated Pulmonary Aspergillosis: A Case Series.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has been a worldwide pandemic with several problems, one of which is the lack of definitive treatment. COVID-19-associated pulmonary aspergillosis (CAPA), the presence of invasive pulmonary aspergillosis (IPA) in COVID-19 patients, is one of the concerning secondary infections associated with higher mortality and worse clinical outcomes. Diagnosing CAPA may be challenging due to the possible absence of classic host factors and clinical symptoms or obscured radiological findings. We described two CAPA cases, which were suspected due to persistent respiratory failure despite standard treatment of COVID-19 with additional therapies and antimicrobial agents for secondary infections, eventually diagnosed with serum galactomannan testing. Clinical conditions of both patients improved significantly after the administration of voriconazole. This case series emphasizes the importance of being aware of clinical suspicions indicating CAPA followed by galactomannan testing as a relatively fast, noninvasive test for its diagnosis, which leads to appropriate antifungal treatment.

The full phase space dynamics of a magnetically levitated electromagnetic vibration harvester.

We consider the motion of an electromagnetic vibrational energy harvester (EMVEH) as function of the initial position and velocity and show that this displays a classical chaotic dynamical behavior. The EMVEH considered consists of three coaxial cylindrical permanent magnets and two coaxial coils. The polarities of the three magnets are chosen in such a way that the central magnet floats, with its lateral motion being prevented by enclosion in a hollow plastic tube. The motion of the floating magnet, caused by e.g. environmental vibrations, induces a current in the coils allowing electrical energy to be harvested. We analyze the behavior of the system using a numerical model employing experimentally verified expressions of the force between the magnets and the damping force between the floating magnet and the coils. We map out the phase space of the motion of the system with and without gravity, and show that this displays a fractal-like behavior and that certain driving frequencies and initial conditions allow a large power to be harvested, and that more stable states than two exists. Finally, we show that at leasts fifth order polynomial approximation is necessary to approximate the magnet-magnet force and correctly predict the system behavior.

Effectiveness of Convalescent Plasma Therapy in Treating COVID-19: an Evidence-based Case Report.

BACKGROUND: Convalescent plasma is a potentially beneficial, tolerable, and available additional treatment option for COVID-19. This study aims to evaluate whether the administration of convalescent plasma therapy leads to improved clinical outcomes in COVID-19 patients compared to standard medical therapy. METHODS: We conducted a search of Pubmed, Cochrane, and EBSCO for studies assessing the clinical question using inclusion and exclusion criteria. Selected studies were critically appraised, and the results were summarized. RESULTS: A meta-analysis of 10 randomized clinical trials (RCTs), an RCT, a case-control clinical study were selected and assessed. Only the case-control clinical study showed that convalescent plasma administration improved the clinical outcomes of patients with COVID-19, including all-cause mortality, hospital length of stay, and the need for mechanical ventilation. On the contrary, the other two studies of a higher level of evidence showed no significant clinical outcome improvement with convalescent plasma therapy. CONCLUSION: The effectiveness of convalescent plasma therapy in improving clinical outcomes of patients with COVID-19 was still inconclusive due to several study limitations and other possible causes.