Rationale: Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is an ongoing pandemic, in which obesity, hypertension, and diabetes have been linked to poor outcomes. Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is associated with these conditions and may influence the prognosis of adults with COVID-19. Objectives: To determine the effect of OSA on clinical outcomes in patients with COVID-19. Methods: The current prospective observational study was conducted in three hospitals in Istanbul, Turkey from March 10 to June 22, 2020. The participants were categorized as high-risk or low-risk OSA according to the Berlin questionnaire that was administered in the out-patient clinic, in hospital, or shortly after discharge from hospital blinded to the clinical outcomes. A modified high-risk (mHR)–OSA score based on the snoring patterns (intensity and/or frequency), breathing pauses, and morning/daytime sleepiness, without taking obesity and hypertension into account, were used in the regression models. Results: The primary outcome was the clinical improvement defined as a decline of two categories from admission on a 7-category ordinal scale that ranges from 1 (discharged with normal activity) to 7 (death) on Days 7, 14, 21, and 28, respectively. Secondary outcomes included clinical worsening (an increase of 1 category), need for hospitalization, supplemental oxygen, and intensive care. In total, 320 eligible patients (median [interquartile range] age, 53.2 [41.3–63.0] yr; 45.9% female) were enrolled. In all, 121 (37.8%) were categorized as known (n = 3) or high-risk OSA (n = 118). According to the modified scoring, 70 (21.9%) had mHR-OSA. Among 242 patients requiring hospitalization, clinical improvement within 2 weeks occurred in 75.4% of the mHR-OSA group compared with 88.4% of the modified low-risk–OSA group (P = 0.014). In multivariate regression analyses, mHR-OSA (adjusted odds ratio [OR], 0.42; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.19–0.92) and male sex (OR, 0.39; 95% CI, 0.17–0.86) predicted the delayed clinical improvement. In the entire study population (n = 320), including the nonhospitalized patients, mHR-OSA was associated with clinical worsening (adjusted hazard ratio, 1.55; 95% CI, 1.00–2.39) and with the need for supplemental oxygen (OR, 1.95; 95% CI, 1.06–3.59). Snoring patterns, especially louder snoring, significantly predicted delayed clinical improvement, worsening, need for hospitalization, supplemental oxygen, and intensive care. Conclusions: Adults with mHR-OSA in our COVID-19 cohort had poorer clinical outcomes than those with modified low-risk OSA independent of age, sex, and comorbidities. Clinical trial registered with www.clinicaltrials.gov (NCT04363333).

Background: The consumption of sweetened beverages is associated with increased risk of metabolic syndrome, cardiovascular disease, and type 2 diabetes mellitus. Objective: We hypothesized that the metabolic effects of fructose in sugary beverages might be modulated by the speed of ingestion in addition to the overall amount. Design: Thirty healthy subjects free of any disease and medication were recruited into two groups. After overnight fasting, subjects in group 1 drank 500 mL of apple juice over an hour by drinking 125 mL every 15 min, while subjects in group 2 drank 500 mL of apple juice over 5 min. Blood samples were collected at time zero and 15, 30, 60, and 120 min after ingestion to be analyzed for serum glucose, insulin, homeostatic model assessment (HOMA-IR) score, fibroblast growth factor 21, copeptin, osmolarity, sodium, blood urea nitrogen (BUN), lactate, uric acid, and phosphate levels. Results: Serum glucose, insulin, HOMA-IR, fibroblast growth factor 21, copeptin, osmolarity, sodium, BUN, and lactate levels increased following apple juice ingestion. The increases were greater in the fast-drinking group, which were more significant after 15 min and 30 min compared to baseline. The changes in uric acid were not statistically different between the groups. Phosphate levels significantly increased only in the fast-drinking group. Conclusion: Fast ingestion of 100% apple juice causes a significantly greater metabolic response, which may be associated with negative long-term outcomes. Our findings suggest that the rate of ingestion must be considered when evaluating the metabolic impacts of sweetened beverage consumption.

Background: Although chronic urticaria (CU) is a common and primarily affects females, there is little data on how pregnancy interacts with the disease.Objective: To analyse the treatment use by CU patients before, during and after pregnancy as well as outcomes of pregnancy.Methods: PREG‐CU is an international, multicentre study of the Urticaria Centers of Reference and Excellence network. Data were collected via a 47‐item‐questionnaire completed by CU patients who became pregnant during their disease course.Results: Questionnaires from 288 CU patients from 13 countries were analysed. During pregnancy, most patients (60%) used urticaria medication including standard‐dose second generation H1‐antihistamines (35.1%), first generation H1‐antihistamines (7.6%), high‐dose second‐generation H1‐antihistamines (5.6%) and omalizumab (5.6%). The preterm birth rate was 10.2%; rates were similar between patients who did and did not receive treatment during pregnancy (11.6% vs. 8.7%, respectively). Emergency referrals for CU and twin birth were risk factors for preterm birth. The caesarean delivery rate was 51.3%. More than 90% of new‐borns were healthy at birth. There was no link between any patient or disease characteristics or treatments and medical problems at birth.Conclusion: Most CU patients used treatment during pregnancy especially second‐generation antihistamines which seem to be safe during pregnancy regardless of the trimester. The rates of preterm births and medical problems of new‐borns in CU patients were similar to population norms and not linked to treatment used during pregnancy. Emergency referrals for CU increased the risk of preterm birth and emphasize the importance of sufficient treatment to keep urticaria under control during pregnancy.

Background Acute kidney injury (AKI) in COVID-19 patients is associated with poor prognosis. However, the incidence, risk factors and potential outcomes of AKI in hospitalized patients are not well studied. Materials and methods This is a retrospective cohort study conducted in two major university hospitals. Electronic health records of the patients, 18 years or older, hospitalized between 13 April and 1 June 2020 with confirmed COVID-19 were reviewed. We described the incidence and the risk factors for AKI development in COVID-19 patients. Furthermore, we investigated the effects of AKI on the length of hospital and intensive care unit (ICU) stay, the admission rates to ICU, the percentage of patients with cytokine storm and in-hospital mortality rate. Results Among 770 hospitalized patients included in this study, 92 (11.9%) patients developed AKI. The length of hospitalized days (16 vs 9.9, p < 0.001) and days spent in the hospital until ICU admission (3.5 vs. 2.5, p = 0.003) were higher in the AKI group compared to patients without AKI. In addition, ICU admission rates were also significantly higher in patients with AKI (63% vs. 20.7%, p < 0.001). The percentage of patients with AKI who developed cytokine storm was significantly higher than patients without AKI (25.9% vs. 14%, p = 0.009). Furthermore, the in-hospital mortality rate was significantly higher in patients with AKI (47.2% vs. 4.7%, p < 0.001). Conclusions AKI is common in hospitalized COVID-19 patients. Furthermore, we show that AKI increases the admission rates to ICU and in-hospital mortality. Our findings suggest that AKI should be effectively managed to prevent the adverse outcomes in COVID-19 patients.

Hepatocellular carcinoma,epidemiology,risk factors,prognostic factors,screening,Turkey