Background: World Health Organization (WHO) declared Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) as a pandemic in March 2020. Such widespread outbreaks are associated with adverse mental health consequences. Aims: To evaluate mental health outcomes among Egyptian healthcare workers (HCW) treating patients with confirmed or suspected Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) to direct the promotion of mental wellbeing, by screening for symptoms of anxiety, insomnia, depression and stress, and analyzing potential risk factors. Methods: This cross-sectional, hospital-based survey study collected demographic data and mental health measurements from 502 HCW dealing with COVID-19. HCW were surveyed in 20 hospitals (Fever, Chest, and Quarantine hospitals) in different parts of Egypt, in April and May 2020. Results: Among the 502 HCW surveyed; 60.0% were physicians, 16.1% were specialized nurses, and 23.9% were non-specialized nurses. About 35.3% worked in chest hospitals, 17.5% in fever hospitals, and 47.2% in quarantine hospitals. A considerable proportion of HCW had symptoms of anxiety, insomnia, depression, and stress. Females were at higher risk of experiencing symptoms of severe anxiety (odds ratio [OR], 1.85; 95% CI, 1.12–3.05; p = .016), severe depression (OR, 2.013; 95% CI, 1.17–3.4; p = .011), and severe stress (OR, 2.68; 95% CI, 1.5–4.6; p < .001). Fever hospital workers were at higher risk of severe depression (OR, 1.52; 95% CI, 1.11–2.09; p < .01), compared to Quarantine hospital workers. Conclusion: Ensuring proper mental health support for HCW is an important component of public health measures for addressing the COVID-19 epidemic and safeguarding the continuity of appropriate medical service.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has threatened global health and prompted the need for mass vaccination. We aimed to assess the efficacy and effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines to prevent mortality and reduce the risk of developing severe disease after the 1st and 2nd doses. From conception to 28 June 2021, we searched PubMed, Cochrane, EBSCO, Scopus, ProQuest, Web of Science, WHO-ICTRP, and Google Scholar. We included both observational and randomized controlled trials. The pooled vaccine efficacy and effectiveness following vaccination, as well as their 95 percent confidence intervals (CI), were estimated using the random-effects model. In total, 22 of the 21,567 screened articles were eligible for quantitative analysis. Mortality 7 and 14 days after full vaccination decreased significantly among the vaccinated group compared to the unvaccinated group (OR = 0.10, ([95% CI, 0.04–0.27], I2 = 54%) and (OR = 0.46, [95% CI, 0.35–0.61], I2 = 0%), respectively. The probability of having severe disease one or two weeks after 2nd dose decreased significantly (OR = 0.29 [95% CI, 0.19–0.46], I2 = 25%) and (OR = 0.08 [95% CI, 0.03–0.25], I2 = 74%), respectively. The incidence of infection any time after the 1st and 2nd doses diminished significantly (OR = 0.14 [95% CI, 0.07–0.4], I2 = 100%) and (OR = 0.179 [95% CI, 0.15–0.19], I2 = 98%), respectively. Also, incidence of infection one week after 2nd dose decreased significantly, (OR = 0.04, [95% CI (0.01–0.2], I2 = 100%). After meta-regression, the type of vaccine and country were the main predictors of outcome [non-mRNA type, ß = 2.99, p = 0.0001; country UK, ß = −0.75, p = 0.038; country USA, ß = 0.8, p = 0.02]. This study showed that most vaccines have comparable effectiveness, and it is purported that mass vaccination may help to end this pandemic.

Objective: The presented meta-analysis (MA) aims at identifying the vaccine safety and immunogenicity in published trials about SARS-CoV-2 vaccines. Methods: All relevant publications were systematically searched and collected from different databases (Embase, Scopus, EBSCO, MEDLINE central/PubMed, Science Direct, Cochrane Central Register for Clinical Trials (CENTRAL), Clinical Trials.gov, WHO International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP), COVID Trial, COVID Inato, Web of Science, ProQuest Thesis, ProQuest Coronavirus Database, SAGE Thesis, Google Scholar, Research Square, and Medxriv) up to January 10, 2021. The pooled vaccine safety and immunogenicity following vaccination in phase 1 and 2 vaccine clinical trials, as well as their 95% confidence intervals (CI), were estimated using the random-effects model. Results: The predefined inclusion criteria were met in 22 out of 8592 articles. The proportion of anti-severe acute respiratory distress coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) antibody responses after 7 days among 72 vaccinated persons included in 1 study was 81% (95% CI: 70-89), after 14 days among 888 vaccinated persons included in 6 studies was 80% (95% CI: 58-92), after 28 days among 1589 vaccinated persons included in 6 studies was 63% (95% CI: 59-67), after 42 days among 478 vaccinated persons included in 5 studies was 93% (95% CI: 80-98), and after 56 days among 432 vaccinated persons included in 2 studies was 93% (95% CI: 83-97). Meta regression explains more than 80% of this heterogeneity, where the main predictors were; the inactivated vaccine type (β = 2.027, P = 0.0007), measurement of antibodies at week 1 (β = −4.327, P < 0.0001) and at week 3 of the first dose (β = −2.02, P = 0.0025). Furthermore, the pooled proportion adverse effects 7 days after vaccination was 0.01 (0.08-0.14) for fever, headache 0.23 (0.19-0.27), fatigue 0.10 (0.07-0.13), and 0.18 (0.14-0.23) for muscle pain. Conclusion: Immunogenicity following vaccination ranged from 63% to 93% depending on the time at which the antibody levels were measured.

BackgroundAssessment of the quality of life (QoL) among healthcare workers (HCWs) is vital for better healthcare and is an essential indicator for competent health service delivery. Since the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic strike, the frontline position of HCWs subjected them to tremendous mental and psychological burden with a high risk of virus acquisition.AimThis study evaluated the QoL and its influencing factors among HCWs residing in the Arab countries.MethodsThis was a cross-sectional study using a self-administered online questionnaire based on the World Health Organization QoL-BREF instrument with additional questions related to COVID-19. The study was conducted in three different languages (Arabic, English, and French) across 19 Arab countries between February 22 and March 24, 2022.ResultsA total of 3,170 HCWs were included in the survey. The majority were females (75.3%), aged 18–40 years (76.4%), urban residents (90.4%), married (54.5%), and were living in middle-income countries (72.0%). The mean scores of general health and general QoL were 3.7 ± 1.0 and 3.7 ± 0.9, respectively. Those who attained average physical, psychological, social, and environmental QoL were 40.8, 15.4, 26.2, and 22.3%, respectively. The income per capita and country income affected the mean scores of all QoL domains. Previous COVID-19 infection, having relatives who died of COVID-19, and being vaccinated against COVID-19 significantly affected the mean scores of different domains.ConclusionA large proportion of the Arab HCWs evaluated in this study had an overall poor QoL. More attention should be directed to this vulnerable group to ensure their productivity and service provision.

OBJECTIVE Health care workers_ the first line army in the current pandemic_ are the most vulnerable group for COVID-19 infection. Vaccination of health care workers is strongly recommended to salvage our army. However, more research is needed to determine the safest and most effective vaccine. In our study, we assessed the safety and effectiveness of the first approved vaccine in Egypt_ the Sinopharm vaccine. DESIGN, SETTING: An ambispective cohort study was conducted in fifteen triage and isolation hospitals, from the 1st of March till the end of September 2021. Participants are either fully vaccinated or unvaccinated. OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: Efficacy outcome to assess vaccine effectiveness, severity outcome to assess incidence rate of hospitalized cases (severe to critically ill) or the COVID-19 related mortality, in addition to the safety of the vaccine. INTERPRETATION: From the selected hospitals, we included 1228 of 1364 interviewed healthcare workers. Vaccine effectiveness was 67% to protect against symptomatic PCR confirmed cases and 46% for total COVID-19 infection after adjusting hazard ratio. Incidence rate ratios of vaccinated to unvaccinated group were 0.39 (95%CI, 0.24–0.65) for PCR confirmed symptomatic case, 0.63 (95%CI, 0.46–0.86) for total COVID-19 infection, 0.45 (95% CI, 0.15–1.31) for hospitalization, 0.71 (95% CI, 0.07– 6.39) for mechanical ventilation and only one COVID-19 death among unvaccinated group. Most adverse events are mild and well-tolerated. Pregnant and lactating vaccinated mothers did not report any sentinel adverse events. CONCLUSION Sinopharm was effective in protecting health care workers from the highly transmissible COVID-19 infection when the predominant Delta variant was ambient.