Weekly update published on MedShr: 17th May 2021
Last updated: 17th May 2021

Every effort has been made to ensure that the information contained in this article is accurate and current at time of publication, but if you notice an error please contact covid@medshr.net and we will aim to address this. Please find MedShr’s full terms of service here.

Coronavirus COVID-19 Weekly Update 17th May 2021

This update will be published weekly at 12pm (London time) on Mondays and aims to provide clinicians and the public with an overview of the latest data, guidelines, key publications and policy around COVID-19, with links to essential resources and information.

If you are a healthcare professional, please join the discussion on these latest COVID-19 cases on MedShr:

Please post any anonymous educational COVID-19 cases, images or learning points from your clinical practice on MedShr - share key knowledge and experience with a global network of healthcare professionals to help improve patient care.

Please email COVID@medshr.net if you have any data, publications or information you would like to share.

Global Impact of COVID-19 to Date

Data from WHO Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Dashboard, reported on 16th May 2021

Sources: World Health Organization, Johns Hopkins University & Medicine

COVID-19 Cumulative Global Cases

Data from WHO Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Dashboard, reported on 16th May 2021

Source: World Health Organization

Global Vaccinations Against COVID-19

Official data collated by Our World in Data - data up to 17th May 2021 at 10:10am (London time)

Source: Our World in Data

For full vaccination data, Our World in Data state: "Total number of people who received all doses prescribed by the vaccination protocol. This data is only available for countries which report the breakdown of doses administered by first and second doses."

Total UK COVID-19 Cases

As of 17th May 09:00 (GMT) - Data for 24 hour period, reported on 16-05-21

Source: Public Health England

COVID-19 in the African Region

As of 17th May 09:00 (GMT) - Data for 24 hour period, reported on 16-05-21

Source: World Health Organization

COVID-19 in the Eastern Mediterranean Region

As of 17th May 09:00 (GMT) - Data for 24 hour period, reported on 16-05-21

Source: World Health Organization

Latest COVID-19 Publications and Guidelines:

A selection of recent publications and useful clinical guidance from scientific journals

BMJ: Prophylaxis against covid-19: living systematic review and network meta-analysis 

Bartoszko JJ, Siemieniuk RAC, Kum E, et al. Prophylaxis against covid-19: living systematic review and network meta-analysis. BMJ. 2021 Apr 26;373:n949. doi: 10.1136/bmj.n949. PMID: 33903131; PMCID: PMC8073806.

Nature: High-dimensional characterization of post-acute sequalae of COVID-19 

Al-Aly Z, Xie Y, Bowe B. High-dimensional characterization of post-acute sequalae of COVID-19. Nature. 2021 Apr 22. doi: 10.1038/s41586-021-03553-9. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 33887749.

BMJ: Arterial events, venous thromboembolism, thrombocytopenia, and bleeding after vaccination with Oxford-AstraZeneca ChAdOx1-S in Denmark and Norway: population based cohort study

Pottegård A, Lund LC, Karlstad Ø, et al. Arterial events, venous thromboembolism, thrombocytopenia, and bleeding after vaccination with Oxford-AstraZeneca ChAdOx1-S in Denmark and Norway: population based cohort study. BMJ. 2021 May 5;373:n1114. doi: 10.1136/bmj.n1114. PMID: 33952445; PMCID: PMC8097496.

NEJM: Vaccine Breakthrough Infections with SARS-CoV-2 Variants

Hacisuleyman E, Hale C, Saito Y, et al. Vaccine Breakthrough Infections with SARS-CoV-2 Variants. N Engl J Med. 2021 Apr 21. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa2105000. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 33882219.

Emerging Infectious Diseases: Respiratory Viral Shedding in Healthcare Workers Reinfected with SARS-CoV-2, Brazil, 2020

Amorim MR, Souza WM, Barros ACG Jr, et al. Respiratory Viral Shedding in Healthcare Workers Reinfected with SARS-CoV-2, Brazil, 2020. Emerg Infect Dis. 2021 Apr 19;27(6). doi: 10.3201/eid2706.210558. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 33871331.

Scientific Reports (Nature): Repurposing potential of posaconazole and grazoprevir as inhibitors of SARS-CoV-2 helicase 

Abidi SH, Almansour NM, Amerzhanov D, et al. Repurposing potential of posaconazole and grazoprevir as inhibitors of SARS-CoV-2 helicase. Sci Rep. 2021 May 13;11(1):10290. doi: 10.1038/s41598-021-89724-0. PMID: 33986405.

J Transl Med: Influence of COVID-19 on lifestyle behaviors in the Middle East and North Africa Region: a survey of 5896 individuals

Abouzid M, El-Sherif DM, Eltewacy NK, et al. Influence of COVID-19 on lifestyle behaviors in the Middle East and North Africa Region: a survey of 5896 individuals. J Transl Med. 2021 Mar 30;19(1):129. doi: 10.1186/s12967-021-02767-9. PMID: 33785043; PMCID: PMC8008335.

Nature Communications: Leveraging community mortality indicators to infer COVID-19 mortality and transmission dynamics in Damascus, Syria 

Watson OJ, Alhaffar M, Mehchy Z, et al. Leveraging community mortality indicators to infer COVID-19 mortality and transmission dynamics in Damascus, Syria. Nat Commun. 2021 Apr 22;12(1):2394. doi: 10.1038/s41467-021-22474-9. PMID: 33888698.

Educational Resources:

WHO: COVID-19 Course Series

"Real-time training during global emergencies is critical for effective preparedness and response. The COVID-19 channel provides learning resources for health professionals, decision-makers and the public for the outbreak of coronavirus disease (COVID-19)." (WHO 2020)

WHO: Vaccine Series

Johns Hopkins University: Understanding the COVID-19 Pandemic

BMJ Best Practice: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) - clinical decision support tool

Elsevier: COVID-19 Health Education resource center, including the Health Education Faculty Hub

NEJM: Covid-19 Vaccine Resource Center

BMJ: A living WHO guideline on drugs to prevent covid-19

BMJ: Severe covid-19 pneumonia: pathogenesis and clinical management

BMJ: Remote Consultations

Nature Podcast: Coronapod: The variant blamed for India's catastrophic second wave (14th May 2021)

MedShr Open: COVID-19 Articles

The COVID-19 Hub on MedShr Open includes a selection of articles covering a range of topics related to COVID-19, ranging from emerging therapies, long-term effects of COVID-19, and considering the effects of the pandemic on other essential healthcare services.

Global Health Data for COVID-19

Global.health - a Data Science Initiative - open public health COVID-19 dataset to advance the response to infectious diseases

The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME)

Research related to COVID-19

Below is a list of links to organisations who are making great efforts to categorise, evaluate and summarise the vast catalogue of COVID-19 research. If you discover any other great resources please feel free to share these in the comments section below.

Global research on coronavirus disease (COVID-19) - WHO Global research database and links to further research catalogues

LitCovid - a curated literature hub for tracking up-to-date scientific information about COVID-19

Public Health Emergency COVID-19 Initiative - PubMed Central

COVID-19 Science Updates - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Treatment Guidelines - National Institutes of Health

ClinicalTrials.gov - COVID-19 clinical trials

Finding the evidence: Coronavirus – Knowledge & Library Services - Public Health England

Coronavirus (COVID-19) - Cochrane resources and news - Cochrane

India COVID-19 Crisis Support Group

A new group has been launched as part of MedShr's COVID-19 education programme in response to the current challenges in India. The group is intended to be a dedicated place for all healthcare professionals to share information and resources, and discuss how to manage increasingly unwell patients with limited resources, as well as giving access to international experts in COVID-19.

Weekly Update by MedShr Open Editorial Team