tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
BMJ
. 2020 Jun 10;369:m2195.
doi: 10.1136/bmj.m2195.
Use of Personal Protective Equipment Against Coronavirus Disease 2019 by Healthcare Professionals in Wuhan, China: Cross Sectional Study
Min Liu[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Shou-Zhen Cheng[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Ke-Wei Xu[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Yang Yang[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Qing-Tang Zhu[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Hui Zhang[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Da-Ya Yang[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Shu-Yuan Cheng[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Han Xiao[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Ji-Wen Wang[SUP] 2 [/SUP], He-Rui Yao[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Yu-Tian Cong[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Yu-Qi Zhou[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Sui Peng[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Ming Kuang[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Fan-Fan Hou[SUP] 5 [/SUP], K K Cheng[SUP] 6 [/SUP], Hai-Peng Xiao[SUP] 4 [/SUP]
Affiliations
Abstract
Objective: To examine the protective effects of appropriate personal protective equipment for frontline healthcare professionals who provided care for patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (covid-19).
Design: Cross sectional study.
Setting: Four hospitals in Wuhan, China.
Participants: 420 healthcare professionals (116 doctors and 304 nurses) who were deployed to Wuhan by two affiliated hospitals of Sun Yat-sen University and Nanfang Hospital of Southern Medical University for 6-8 weeks from 24 January to 7 April 2020. These study participants were provided with appropriate personal protective equipment to deliver healthcare to patients admitted to hospital with covid-19 and were involved in aerosol generating procedures. 77 healthcare professionals with no exposure history to covid-19 and 80 patients who had recovered from covid-19 were recruited to verify the accuracy of antibody testing.
Main outcome measures: Covid-19 related symptoms (fever, cough, and dyspnoea) and evidence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection, defined as a positive test for virus specific nucleic acids in nasopharyngeal swabs, or a positive test for IgM or IgG antibodies in the serum samples.
Results: The average age of study participants was 35.8 years and 68.1% (286/420) were women. These study participants worked 4-6 hour shifts for an average of 5.4 days a week; they worked an average of 16.2 hours each week in intensive care units. All 420 study participants had direct contact with patients with covid-19 and performed at least one aerosol generating procedure. During the deployment period in Wuhan, none of the study participants reported covid-19 related symptoms. When the participants returned home, they all tested negative for SARS-CoV-2 specific nucleic acids and IgM or IgG antibodies (95% confidence interval 0.0 to 0.7%).
Conclusion: Before a safe and effective vaccine becomes available, healthcare professionals remain susceptible to covid-19. Despite being at high risk of exposure, study participants were appropriately protected and did not contract infection or develop protective immunity against SARS-CoV-2. Healthcare systems must give priority to the procurement and distribution of personal protective equipment, and provide adequate training to healthcare professionals in its use.
. 2020 Jun 10;369:m2195.
doi: 10.1136/bmj.m2195.
Use of Personal Protective Equipment Against Coronavirus Disease 2019 by Healthcare Professionals in Wuhan, China: Cross Sectional Study
Min Liu[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Shou-Zhen Cheng[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Ke-Wei Xu[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Yang Yang[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Qing-Tang Zhu[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Hui Zhang[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Da-Ya Yang[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Shu-Yuan Cheng[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Han Xiao[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Ji-Wen Wang[SUP] 2 [/SUP], He-Rui Yao[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Yu-Tian Cong[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Yu-Qi Zhou[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Sui Peng[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Ming Kuang[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Fan-Fan Hou[SUP] 5 [/SUP], K K Cheng[SUP] 6 [/SUP], Hai-Peng Xiao[SUP] 4 [/SUP]
Affiliations
- PMID: 32522737
- DOI: 10.1136/bmj.m2195
Abstract
Objective: To examine the protective effects of appropriate personal protective equipment for frontline healthcare professionals who provided care for patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (covid-19).
Design: Cross sectional study.
Setting: Four hospitals in Wuhan, China.
Participants: 420 healthcare professionals (116 doctors and 304 nurses) who were deployed to Wuhan by two affiliated hospitals of Sun Yat-sen University and Nanfang Hospital of Southern Medical University for 6-8 weeks from 24 January to 7 April 2020. These study participants were provided with appropriate personal protective equipment to deliver healthcare to patients admitted to hospital with covid-19 and were involved in aerosol generating procedures. 77 healthcare professionals with no exposure history to covid-19 and 80 patients who had recovered from covid-19 were recruited to verify the accuracy of antibody testing.
Main outcome measures: Covid-19 related symptoms (fever, cough, and dyspnoea) and evidence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection, defined as a positive test for virus specific nucleic acids in nasopharyngeal swabs, or a positive test for IgM or IgG antibodies in the serum samples.
Results: The average age of study participants was 35.8 years and 68.1% (286/420) were women. These study participants worked 4-6 hour shifts for an average of 5.4 days a week; they worked an average of 16.2 hours each week in intensive care units. All 420 study participants had direct contact with patients with covid-19 and performed at least one aerosol generating procedure. During the deployment period in Wuhan, none of the study participants reported covid-19 related symptoms. When the participants returned home, they all tested negative for SARS-CoV-2 specific nucleic acids and IgM or IgG antibodies (95% confidence interval 0.0 to 0.7%).
Conclusion: Before a safe and effective vaccine becomes available, healthcare professionals remain susceptible to covid-19. Despite being at high risk of exposure, study participants were appropriately protected and did not contract infection or develop protective immunity against SARS-CoV-2. Healthcare systems must give priority to the procurement and distribution of personal protective equipment, and provide adequate training to healthcare professionals in its use.