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The Covid-19 pandemic has caused elevated levels of stress, anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress. Health care staff work daily in an environment where they are exposed to varying degrees of agitation and anxiety. This requires perseverance and a high degree of motivation and concentration. This study aimed to meet such diverse challenges by supporting citizens and staff through Covid-19 vaccine procedures in the Spring of 2021 through the utilization of background music. A curated playlist was developed in collaboration with health care and medical staff. Observation data was collected on three days with music and on three days without music with a total of 699 citizens and 39 employees participating. Analysis of data indicated how background music in connection with vaccination may have a positive effect on citizens and staff, especially in terms of citizens’experience of waiting time, of mood, of sound environment in the vaccination hall, as well as staff experience of contact with citizens and in cooperation with colleagues. Implementing curated playlists requires professional expertise to maximize potential benefits, as background music also can have negative effects. The involvement of staff is essential in addressing ethical aspects, as they need to be fully informed about background music and its appropriate usage.

This article argues that waiting in line can exist as an integral part of a food experience. The article offers a new perspective on rethinking queueing and understanding queueing as an important part of the restaurant experience. The study provides an example of downplaying the exclusiveness of fine dining through the interpersonal queueing experience. In practical terms, the article examines the global trend of opening a food event during the COVID-19 pandemic, focusing on a specific case, draws up recommendations for restaurant design, and highlights the relevance of having different design strategies in uncertain times such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Consequently, the article contributes to the growing corpus of studies in food experience design by focusing on the overlooked aspect of waiting in line. The empirical example used is from a major ongoing study on the specular transformation of the iconic New Nordic restaurant NOMA (Copenhagen) in spring 2020 at the time of the first post-COVID-19 reopening of restaurants. This world-renowned restaurant—known for local, seasonal, foraged, vegetable-focused cuisine—was transformed into a burger joint serving only a cheeseburger and a veggie burger. Through such transformation, the eating experience was radically altered. Interviews with 20 guests about their experience show that waiting in line—rather than being an obstacle as one might imagine—became central to the overall experience for most visitors. The "waiting-in-line" experience helped 1) create more informal interpersonal exchanges between NOMA staff and guests, and 2) build up an atmosphere of anticipation and excitement, which added to the experience of eating in NOMA's garden or neighboring surroundings. The case could be understood as part of an overall trend to play with access and accessibility to food experiences on the fine dining scene.

Background: Levels of plasma SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid (N) antigen may be an important biomarker in patients with COVID-19 and enhance our understanding of the pathogenesis of COVID-19. Objective: To evaluate whether levels of plasma antigen can predict short-term clinical outcomes and identify clinical and viral factors associated with plasma antigen levels in hospitalized patients with SARS-CoV-2. Design: Cross-sectional study of baseline plasma antigen level from 2540 participants enrolled in the TICO (Therapeutics for Inpatients With COVID-19) platform trial from August 2020 to November 2021, with additional data on day 5 outcome and time to discharge. Setting: 114 centers in 10 countries. Participants: Adults hospitalized for acute SARS-CoV-2 infection with 12 days or less of symptoms. Measurements: Baseline plasma viral N antigen level was measured at a central laboratory. Delta variant status was determined from baseline nasal swabs using reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction. Associations between baseline patient characteristics and viral factors and baseline plasma antigen levels were assessed using both unadjusted and multivariable modeling. Association between elevated baseline antigen level of 1000 ng/L or greater and outcomes, including worsening of ordinal pulmonary scale at day 5 and time to hospital discharge, were evaluated using logistic regression and Fine-Gray regression models, respectively. Results: Plasma antigen was below the level of quantification in 5% of participants at enrollment, and 1000 ng/L or greater in 57%. Baseline pulmonary severity of illness was strongly associated with plasma antigen level, with mean plasma antigen level 3.10-fold higher among those requiring noninvasive ventilation or high-flow nasal cannula compared with room air (95% CI, 2.22 to 4.34). Plasma antigen level was higher in those who lacked antispike antibodies (6.42 fold; CI, 5.37 to 7.66) and in those with the Delta variant (1.73 fold; CI, 1.41 to 2.13). Additional factors associated with higher baseline antigen level included male sex, shorter time since hospital admission, decreased days of remdesivir, and renal impairment. In contrast, race, ethnicity, body mass index, and immunocompromising conditions were not associated with plasma antigen levels. Plasma antigen level of 1000 ng/L or greater was associated with a markedly higher odds of worsened pulmonary status at day 5 (odds ratio, 5.06 [CI, 3.41 to 7.50]) and longer time to hospital discharge (median, 7 vs. 4 days; subhazard ratio, 0.51 [CI, 0.45 to 0.57]), with subhazard ratios similar across all levels of baseline pulmonary severity. Limitations: Plasma samples were drawn at enrollment, not hospital presentation. No point-of-care test to measure plasma antigen is currently available. Conclusion: Elevated plasma antigen is highly associated with both severity of pulmonary illness and clinically important patient outcomes. Multiple clinical and viral factors are associated with plasma antigen level at presentation. These data support a potential role of ongoing viral replication in the pathogenesis of SARS-CoV-2 in hospitalized patients.

BACKGROUND: Ensovibep (MP0420) is a designed ankyrin repeat protein, a novel class of engineered proteins, under investigation as a treatment of SARS-CoV-2 infection. OBJECTIVE: To investigate if ensovibep, in addition to remdesivir and other standard care, improves clinical outcomes among patients hospitalized with COVID-19 compared with standard care alone. DESIGN: Double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, clinical trial. (ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT04501978). SETTING: Multinational, multicenter trial. PARTICIPANTS: Adults hospitalized with COVID-19. INTERVENTION: Intravenous ensovibep, 600 mg, or placebo. MEASUREMENTS: Ensovibep was assessed for early futility on the basis of pulmonary ordinal scores at day 5. The primary outcome was time to sustained recovery through day 90, defined as 14 consecutive days at home or place of usual residence after hospital discharge. A composite safety outcome that included death, serious adverse events, end-organ disease, and serious infections was assessed through day 90. RESULTS: An independent data and safety monitoring board recommended that enrollment be halted for early futility after 485 patients were randomly assigned and received an infusion of ensovibep (n = 247) or placebo (n = 238). The odds ratio (OR) for a more favorable pulmonary outcome in the ensovibep (vs. placebo) group at day 5 was 0.93 (95% CI, 0.67 to 1.30; P = 0.68; OR > 1 would favor ensovibep). The 90-day cumulative incidence of sustained recovery was 82% for ensovibep and 80% for placebo (subhazard ratio [sHR], 1.06 [CI, 0.88 to 1.28]; sHR > 1 would favor ensovibep). The primary composite safety outcome at day 90 occurred in 78 ensovibep participants (32%) and 70 placebo participants (29%) (HR, 1.07 [CI, 0.77 to 1.47]; HR < 1 would favor ensovibep). LIMITATION: The trial was prematurely stopped because of futility, limiting power for the primary outcome. CONCLUSION: Compared with placebo, ensovibep did not improve clinical outcomes for hospitalized participants with COVID-19 receiving standard care, including remdesivir; no safety concerns were identified. PRIMARY FUNDING SOURCE: National Institutes of Health.

The COVID-19 pandemic led to nationwide lockdowns and rigid measures of social distancing in Denmark. Such a situation provides the unique opportunity to study interruptions in training routines and scrutinise the significance of physical attendance, face-to-face interactions and collective engagement for sport and leisure-time physical activity. Drawing on Randall Collins’ micro-sociological theory of ‘Interaction Ritual Chains’, this article focuses on CrossFit–an activity, which is not only known for members’ high-intensity workouts but also for a tight-knit community. Specifically, we explored how CrossFitters in Denmark made sense of and experienced the changes of their leisure practices throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. Semi-structured interviews with 20 CrossFitters recruited from different CrossFit boxes showed that not only activity levels but also emotional energy and group solidarity dropped considerably during COVID-19 as members lacked interactions within the CrossFit boxes which had been crucial for their participation before the pandemic. Notably, new training situations, specifically online workouts, could not replace the highly successful interaction rituals in the CrossFit box, which stresses the significance of face-to-face interactions for continuous leisure-time physical activity. In so doing, this article contributes to discussions about whether online workouts and digitally mediated communities can complement or replace physical training.

The past two years have been dominated by COVID-19, the treatment of this virus, vaccination, and complications due to infection. Not all effects of the virus have yet been described. We present a case report in which the patient suffered from Stevens-Johnson syndrome caused by COVID-19. The patient was treated with prednisolone and recovered within a few days. Since SARS-CoV-2 is a fairly new virus it is important to have knowledge about the different outcomes and distinguish these from outcomes caused by other reasons. This could in the long term improve the treatment.