Chest x-ray (CXR) can play a role in diagnosing patients with suspected severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection, but only few small-scale studies are available. We assessed the diagnostic performance of CXR in consecutive patients presenting at the emergency room at the Policlinico San Donato, Milan, Italy from February 24 to April 8, 2020 for suspected SARS-CoV-2 infection. The results of CXR were classified as positive or negative according to the original prospective radiologic reports. To overcome the limitations of reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) swab, especially oscillating sensitivity, we added the information obtained from phone calls to discharged patients with negative initial RT-PCR. Thus, we included 535 patients with concomitant CXR and RT-PCR on admission (aged 65±17 y; 340 males, 195 females), resulting in 408 RT-PCR positive and 127 negative patients at the composite reference standard. Original CXR reports showed an 89.0% sensitivity (95% confidence intervals [CI], 85.5%-91.8%), 60.6% specificity (95% CI, 51.6%-69.2%), 87.9% positive predictive value (95% CI, 84.4%-90.9%), and 63.1% negative predictive value (95% CI, 53.9%-71.7%). The adoption of CXR alongside RT-PCR to triage patients with suspected SARS-CoV-2 infection could foster a safe and efficient workflow, counteracting possible false negative RT-PCR results.

Background Tocilizumab blocks pro-inflammatory activity of interleukin-6 (IL-6), involved in pathogenesis of pneumonia the most frequent cause of death in COVID-19 patients. Methods A multicenter, single-arm, hypothesis-driven trial was planned, according to a phase 2 design, to study the effect of tocilizumab on lethality rates at 14 and 30 days (co-primary endpoints, a priori expected rates being 20 and 35%, respectively). A further prospective cohort of patients, consecutively enrolled after the first cohort was accomplished, was used as a secondary validation dataset. The two cohorts were evaluated jointly in an exploratory multivariable logistic regression model to assess prognostic variables on survival. Results In the primary intention-to-treat (ITT) phase 2 population, 180/301 (59.8%) subjects received tocilizumab, and 67 deaths were observed overall. Lethality rates were equal to 18.4% (97.5% CI: 13.6–24.0, P = 0.52) and 22.4% (97.5% CI: 17.2–28.3, P < 0.001) at 14 and 30 days, respectively. Lethality rates were lower in the validation dataset, that included 920 patients. No signal of specific drug toxicity was reported. In the exploratory multivariable logistic regression analysis, older age and lower PaO2/FiO2 ratio negatively affected survival, while the concurrent use of steroids was associated with greater survival. A statistically significant interaction was found between tocilizumab and respiratory support, suggesting that tocilizumab might be more effective in patients not requiring mechanical respiratory support at baseline. Conclusions Tocilizumab reduced lethality rate at 30 days compared with null hypothesis, without significant toxicity. Possibly, this effect could be limited to patients not requiring mechanical respiratory support at baseline. Registration EudraCT (2020-001110-38); clinicaltrials.gov (NCT04317092).

The aim of this study was to highlight the increasing chance of Western physicians encountering patients (both immigrants and expatriates/travelers) seeking help for loiasis. Methods: We describe three cases of imported loiasis observed at two hospitals in Italy and France, and present a review of all previously published cases in the medical literature in the last 25 years . The search was performed using PubMed and Scopus databases using the terms ''Loa loa'' AND ''loiasis''. Results: We reviewed 101 cases of imported loiasis of which 61 (60.4%) were reported from Europe and 31 (30.7%) from the USA. Seventy-five percent of infestations were acquired in three countries: Cameroon, Nigeria, and Gabon. Overall, peripheral blood microfilariae were detected in 61.4% of patients, eosinophilia in 82.1%, eye worm migration in 53.5%, and Calabar swellings in 41.6%. However, Calabar swellings and eosinophilia were more common among expatriates/travelers, whereas African immigrants were more likely to have microfilaremia. Eye worm migration was observed in a similar proportion in the two groups. Only 35 patients (including the three described here) underwent clinical follow-up for a median period of 10.5 months (range 1-84 months); clinical relapse occurred in three of these patients and persistence or reappearance of blood microfilaria in another two. Conclusions: Due to increasing travel and the migration of people from the endemic countries of West Africa to Europe and the USA, we speculate on the possible emergence of loiasis. Western physicians should be aware of the typical (eye worm migration and Calabar swellings) as well as unusual clinical presentations.

FE is difficult to diagnose but generally associated with healthcare infections. The optimal treatment is poorly characterised, and international collaborative studies are urgently needed to evaluate newer antifungal agents.