Summary

On 11 March 2020, the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a global pandemic, and the disease now affects nearly every country and region. Caused by SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 continues nearly 18 months later to present significant challenges to health systems and public health in both hemispheres, as well as the economies of every country. The morbidity and mortality of the infection caused by SARS-CoV-2 has been significant, and various waves of disease outbreaks initially overwhelmed many hospitals and clinics and continue to do so in many countries. This influences everyone, and public health countermeasures have been dramatic in terms of their impact on employment, social systems, and mental health. This entry collection aims to gather diverse fields about COVID-19, including in epidemiology, public health, medicine, genetics, systems biology, informatics, data science, engineering, sociology, anthropology, nursing, environmental studies, statistics, and psychology.

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Entries
Topic Review
Vitamin D in Long COVID-19
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has quickly become a global pandemic. Reports from different parts of the world indicate that a significant proportion of people who have recovered from COVID-19 are suffering from various health problems collectively referred to as “long COVID-19”. Common symptoms include fatigue, shortness of breath, cough, joint pain, chest pain, muscle aches, headaches, and so on. Vitamin D is an immunomodulatory hormone with proven efficacy against various upper respiratory tract infections. Vitamin D can inhibit hyperinflammatory reactions and accelerate the healing process in the affected areas, especially in lung tissue. Moreover, vitamin D deficiency has been associated with the severity and mortality of COVID-19 cases, with a high prevalence of hypovitaminosis D found in patients with COVID-19 and acute respiratory failure. However, no evidence has been found to support a role of vitamin D supplementation in reducing symptoms of long-COVID-19. On the other hand, having a higher vitamin D level before SARS-CoV-2 infection or raising it rapidly at the first symptoms of infection can significantly reduce the risk and severity of COVID-19.
  • 2.6K
  • 29 Apr 2022
Topic Review
COVID-19 Pandemic for People with Pre-Existing Psychiatric Disorders
It seems that the impact of the first stage of the COVID-19 pandemic on psychiatric disorders was two-fold: (1) an overall effect, in which people suffering from psychiatric disorders in general experienced more psychological distress and anxiety when compared to people who had no psychiatric diagnosis, and (2) a condition-specific effect, namely in people suffering from eating disorders and obsessive compulsive disorders. Moreover, the current work highlights that there were also some external factors that were related to worsening symptoms. For instance, unemployment or experiencing work and financial difficulties can be a trigger for greater distress during the pandemic for people with mood disorders, and being alone and in social isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic may actually increase substance use and relapse rates. Further studies are needed to prospectively investigate the long-term effects of the current COVID-19 pandemic on people with (pre)-existing psychiatric conditions and on the onset or deterioration of psychiatric-related symptoms in a larger number of participants, as well as exploring the long-term effects of the current pandemic on mental health. 
  • 545
  • 29 Apr 2022
Topic Review
Consequences of COVID-19 on Health, Economy, and Tourism
This is an explanation of COVID-19 impacts on the aspects of health, economy, and tourism, focusing on Asia. The consequences and the main concerned direct and indirect stakeholders has been presented. In addition, the connection between the three aspects based on the impact of COVID-19, which still continues to intensify, and strategies to prepare for the future pandemic situations are also described.
  • 468
  • 29 Apr 2022
Topic Review
SARS-CoV-2 Vaccination: The Real Turning Point
The SARS-CoV-2 vaccine has recently emerged as the main weapon to fight the COVID-19 pandemic. The various candidate anti-SARS-CoV-2 vaccines can be grouped according to the technological platform used to their development in order to elicit a protective immune response.
  • 358
  • 02 Jun 2022
Topic Review
The Interaction of COVID-19 and Lung Cancer Treatment
SARS-CoV-2 infection has dramatically impacted the real-world management of cancer patients. Given the higher risk of a longer and more severe course of COVID-19 disease in lung cancer patients, oncological services have been profoundly reorganized. The world’s leading professional organizations provided new recommendations for the diagnosis, treatment, and follow-up of lung cancer patients during the pandemic. Telemedicine was preferred for non-urgent visits, and screening programs were temporarily suspended, leading to possible diagnostic delays and an estimated increase of cause-specific mortality. The vaccination campaign has definitively inverted this negative trend, with the administration of the booster dose prioritized in frail immune-depressed patients. The efficacy and duration of a humoral immune response in cancer patients still represents an opened question, requiring further investigation in dedicated studies.
  • 342
  • 29 Apr 2022
Topic Review
Flexible Working Arrangements and Turnover Intentions
The problem of employee turnover has been investigated in recent years because more and more countries and organizations are faced with the lack of an adequate labor force. The new generation of employees (Y and Z generations), contemporary political, social, and economic challenges, and the COVID-19 pandemic have raised new issues in human resource management (HRM), especially concerning turnover intentions. In such situations, companies need to create working conditions that will attract, motivate, and retain employees. One possible response is the usage of flexible working arrangements (FWAs) as a more flexible way of organizing traditional jobs and working positions; these arrangements allow employees more possibilities to maintain work–life balance.
  • 967
  • 29 Apr 2022
Topic Review
COVID-19 Fake News in Brazilian Portuguese Language
Public health interventions to counter the COVID-19 pandemic have accelerated and increased digital adoption and use of the Internet for sourcing health information. Unfortunately, there is evidence to suggest that it has also accelerated and increased the spread of false information relating to COVID-19. The consequences of misinformation, disinformation and misinterpretation of health information can interfere with attempts to curb the virus, delay or result in failure to seek or continue legitimate medical treatment and adherence to vaccination, as well as interfere with sound public health policy and attempts to disseminate public health messages. While there is a significant body of literature, datasets and tools to support countermeasures against the spread of false information online in resource-rich languages such as English and Chinese, there are few such resources to support Portuguese, and Brazilian Portuguese specifically.
  • 517
  • 29 Apr 2022
Topic Review
Vaccinology in the COVID-19 Pandemic Era
Different approaches have been used in parallel to make COVID-19 vaccines, including the use of nucleic acid-based vectors, whole virus (live-attenuated and inactivated), viral vectors (replicating and nonreplicating), adjuvant recombinant protein nanoparticles, and virus-like particles (VLPs). Among the protective antigens of SARS-CoV-2, the attention has mainly focused on the native S protein, which is able to induce potent neutralizing antibodies, even if its presentation to the immune system differs substantially between the different categories of vaccines. However, new evidence is being raised about potential roles for other, more conserved non-spike viral antigens, such as nucleocapsid (N) proteins, which might represent an innovation in the fight against emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants and a source for universal vaccines providing long-lasting immunity.
  • 509
  • 29 Apr 2022
Topic Review
Viral Vaccine Platforms
The emergence of SARS-CoV-2 variants with decreased susceptibility to the neutralizing antibody responses induced by currently available COVID-19 vaccines raises the possibility of breakthrough infections. Thus, alternative or complementary approaches are needed to develop vaccines able to induce a lasting immunological response. In the case of global public health emergencies, governmental vaccine design can benefit from a range of platform technologies, including conventional vaccines such as inactivated and live-attenuated vaccines, the innovative new class of DNA- and RNA-based vaccines and promising protein-based vaccines. Compared with conventional vaccines, molecular-based platforms may offer a more versatile tool against new emergent viruses, allowing fast, low-cost, and scalable vaccine manufacturing. Essentially, these platforms rely on the use of a system to deliver and present a new antigen (or a synthetic gene) to rapidly target an emergent pathogen. Currently, there are four different platforms used to develop viral vaccines: whole virus, nucleic acid-based, viral vectors, and protein and virus-like particles (VLPs). The choice of platform takes into account many factors, including the way the immune system responds to the specific viral infection, vaccination strategies and policies, and the best technology or approach to create the specific vaccine.
  • 544
  • 29 Apr 2022
Topic Review
Endothelial Dysfunction in COVID-19
The endothelium is considered a real organ, with its own defined structure capable of guaranteeing vascular homeostasis through several functions.
  • 361
  • 29 Apr 2022
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