Seven days in medicine: 13-19 January 2021
BMJ 2021; 372 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.n154 (Published 21 January 2021) Cite this as: BMJ 2021;372:n154
Covid-19
Skin rash is present in 17% of positive covid cases
Researchers from King’s College, London compiled a catalogue of images of the most common skin manifestations of covid‐19 (https://covidskinsigns.com) after finding an association between skin rashes and a positive swab test result (odds ratio 1.67 (95% confidence interval 1.41 to 1.96)), from data on 336 847 UK users of the Covid Symptom Study app. Reporting in the British Journal of Dermatology,1 they also found that among 11 546 survey respondents 17% of SARS‐CoV‐2‐positive cases reported skin rashes as the first presentation and 21% as the only covid‐19 clinical sign.
Many intensive care staff in England report PTSD
Nearly half of 700 intensive care and anaesthetic staff surveyed in six English hospitals last June and July reported symptoms consistent with a probable diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), severe depression, anxiety, or problem drinking. The preprint, from researchers at King’s College, London, also reported that 13.4% of respondents had had thoughts that they would be better off dead or of hurting themselves. The BMA’s mental health lead, Andrew Molodynski, said that a supportive workplace culture and high quality wellbeing support were vital. (Full story doi:10.1136/bmj.n108)
Trials of convalescent plasma are needed
An observational study published in the New England Journal of Medicine found that convalescent plasma seemed to be most beneficial in patients who received transfusions containing high …
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