Parents' perceptions and intention to vaccinate their children under 12 years of age against COVID-19: A cross sectional study in Peru / Percepciones e intención de los padres de vacunar a sus hijos menores de 12 años contra la COVID-19: Estudio transversal en Perú

Objectives: To evaluate the perceptions and intention of parents to vaccinate their children under 12 years of age. Methodology: Analytical cross-sectional study based on an online survey that collected the parents' perception on the risk of their children getting COVID-19, on the need of vaccination and on the development of adverse events related to the vaccine. We evaluated the factors associated with the intention to vaccinate through crude (cPR) and adjusted prevalence rates (aPR), with confidence interval of 95% (CI 95%) Results: 83.5% of respondents had the intention of vaccinating their children under 12 years of age. In the multivariate analysis, the factors associated with an decrease in the intention to vaccinate were to think that the vaccine is not necessary (aPR 0.65; 95% CI 0.44 ­ 0.94), that it would not protect (aPR: 0.14; 95% CI 0.03 ­ 0.63) , that it would not be safe (aPR: 0.80; 95% CI 0.70 ­ 0.92) and that it would cause long-term side effects (aPR: 0.92; 95% CI 0.85 ­ 1.00). On the other hand, living on the highlands or jungle was associated with an increase on the intention. Conclusions: In Peru, 16.5% of parents would not vaccinate their children under 12 years of age, because they perceive that the vaccine is not necessary and would not protect against COVID-19. In addition, they expressed concerns about the development of possible adverse events.

Objetivos: Evaluar las percepciones e intención de los padres de vacunar a sus hijos menores de 12 años en Perú. Metodología: Estudio transversal analítico a partir de una encuesta en línea (25 de noviembre al 6 de diciembre del 2021) para padres de niños menores de 12 años que recopiló la percepción sobre el riesgo de contagio por COVID-19 en sus hijos, sobre la necesidad de vacunación y sobre los eventos adversos relacionados con la vacuna. Evaluamos los factores asociados a la intención de vacunación mediante razones de prevalencia crudas (RPc) y ajustadas (RPa) con intervalos de confianza al 95% (IC 95%). Resultados: El 83.5% de los padres tenían la intención de vacunar a sus hijos menores de 12 años. En el análisis multivariado, los factores asociados a una disminución de la intención de vacunación fueron pensar que la vacuna no es necesaria (RPa: 0.65; IC 95% 0.44 ­ 0,94), que no protegería (RPa: 0.14; IC 95% 0.03 ­ 0.63), que no sería segura (RPa: 0.80; IC 95% 0.70 ­ 0.92) y que ocasionaría efectos negativos a largo plazo (RPa: 0.92; IC 95% 0.85 ­ 1.00). Por otro lado, residir en la Selva (RPa: 1.09; IC 95%: 1.03 ­ 1.15) o en la Sierra (RPa: 1.06; IC 95%: 1.00 ­ 1.11) se asoció a una mayor prevalencia de intención. Conclusiones: En Perú, un 16.5% de padres no vacunaría a sus hijos menores de 12 años, ya que perciben que la vacuna no es necesaria y no protegería contra la COVID-19, además de tener la preocupación de posibles eventos adversos.

Effects of Tocilizumab in COVID-19 patients: a cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Due to the lack of proven therapies, we evaluated the effects of early administration of tocilizumab for COVID-19. By inhibition of the IL-6 receptor, tocilizumab may help to mitigate the hyperinflammatory response associated with progressive respiratory failure from SARS-CoV-2. METHODS: A retrospective, observational study was conducted on hospitalized adults who received intravenous tocilizumab for COVID-19 between March 23, 2020 and April 10, 2020. RESULTS: Most patients were male (66.7%), Hispanic (63.3%) or Black (23.3%), with a median age of 54 years. Tocilizumab was administered at a median of 8 days (range 1-21) after initial symptoms and 2 days (range 0-12) after hospital admission. Within 30 days from receiving tocilizumab, 36 patients (60.0%) demonstrated clinical improvement, 9 (15.0%) died, 33 (55.0%) were discharged alive, and 18 (30.0%) remained hospitalized. Successful extubation occurred in 13 out of 29 patients (44.8%). Infectious complications occurred in 16 patients (26.7%) at a median of 10.5 days. After tocilizumab was administered, there was a slight increase in PaO2/FiO2 and an initial reduction in CRP, but this effect was not sustained beyond day 10. CONCLUSIONS: Majority of patients demonstrated clinical improvement and were successfully discharged alive from the hospital after receiving tocilizumab. We observed a rebound effect with CRP, which may suggest the need for higher or subsequent doses to adequately manage cytokine storm. Based on our findings, we believe that tocilizumab may have a role in the early treatment of COVID-19, however larger randomized controlled studies are needed to confirm this.

Subhepatic Sterile Abscess 10 Years After Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy.

We present a case of a large, sterile, subhepatic abdominal wall abscess secondary to foreign body reaction to dropped gallstones during laparoscopic cholecystectomy performed 10 years ago. Dropped gallstones are common complications of laparoscopic cholecystectomy, but they rarely result in abscess formation. When abscesses do occur, they may present a few months to a few years after surgery. It is important to recognize dropped gallstones as an etiology for subhepatic abscess in patients with history of laparoscopic cholecystectomy.