A Prospective Study on Evaluating the Long-Term Effects of Childhood Vaccination from Birth to 13 Years Old in Kuwait

Background: To prevent infectious diseases and deaths of children, vaccinations play a crucial role in public health strategies in Kuwait. However, it remained uncertain to demonstrate the potential long-term health outcomes of vaccination, including neurodevelopmental disorders (NDD) and autism. This study aimed to evaluate the long-term health outcomes of vaccination among Kuwait children from birth to thirteen years old. Objectives: This study included the significant objectives: (1) to compare long-term health effects, including chronic and acute conditions for unvaccinated, partially vaccinated, and vaccinated children, and (2) to evaluate the association of vaccination with the neurodevelopmental disorders (NDD) and autism, and the preventable illnesses. Methods: This prospective study involved a sample of 976 children from Kuwait based on mothers’ reporting. Data collection about the vaccination status of children and various health outcomes relevant to chronic and acute illnesses was performed based on structured questionnaires through an online survey. However, participants were classified into unvaccinated (n = 40), partially vaccinated (n = 222), and fully vaccinated (n = 714). Statistical analyses, including the chi-square test, Odds Ratios (OR), 95% Confidence Interval (CI), and logistic regression, were performed using SAS (Version 9.4) to determine the associations between vaccination status and health outcomes among children. Results: The study disclosed that vaccinated children showed an increased diagnosis of chronic (allergic rhinitis, allergies, autism spectrum, eczema, neuro-developmental disorders, learning disability, ADHD, and any chronic condition) and acute (whooping cough, pneumonia, rubella, hepatitis A or B, measles, mumps, meningitis, influenza, rotavirus, cancer, chronic fatigue, Crohn’s disease, inflammatory bowel disease, conduct disorder, diabetes type 1 or 2, rheumatoid arthritis, obesity, seizures, hearing loss, polio, diphtheria, tetanus, and depression) illnesses than unvaccinated children. The fully vaccinated children showed an increased prevalence of influenza diagnosis, while partially vaccinated children were more likely to be diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis than unvaccinated children. In contrast, unvaccinated were more likely to have been diagnosed with chickenpox and encephalopathy than fully and partially vaccinated. Males with chronic and acute conditions had a lower incidence of allergies and pneumonia, respectively, whereas females had a reduced prevalence of acute illnesses, such as whooping cough, inflammatory bowel disease, and hepatitis A or B among vaccinated (n = 936;combination of partially vaccinated and fully vaccinated) children. Regarding medication use and health service applications, vaccinated children were more likely to use medications for fever, antibiotics, and allergies. In addition, they showed an increased rate of sick visits and emergency visits in the past twelve months. On the other hand, factors like age (2 - 5 years, 6 - 9 years, and 10 - 13 years), birth type (cesarian), and mother suffering during pregnancy (gestational diabetes) were significantly associated with NDD (learning disability, autism spectrum, and attention deficient hyperactivity disorder) in the adjusted analysis. In the interaction model of age and birth type, age (6 - 9 years;OR 5.3, 95% CI: 1.1, 25.3) and mother suffering (gestational diabetes;OR 2.5, 95% CI: 1.2, 5.2) during pregnancy were associated with NDD. Conclusion: The findings of this study showed that there are some cases where the infection rate is higher among the vaccinated compared to unvaccinated children, or there are no significant differences between the two groups in Kuwait. Upon controlling the factors in the interaction model, the age of 6 to 9 years and gestational diabetic mothers during pregnancy were associated with the synergistic increment of odds with NDD. These data findings are recommended to verify a larger and diverse group of samples to optimize the vaccination on health outcomes in Kuwait children.

Emergency department visits and hospital admissions in kidney transplant recipients during the COVID-19 pandemic:A hospitalbased study

BACKGROUND Several studies have demonstrated that the coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19)has affected daily living and the healthcare system.No previous study has described the consequences of COVID-19 on emergency department(ED)visits and hospital admission among kidney transplant(KT)recipients.AIM To investigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on ED visits and hospital admissions within 1 year in patients who underwent KT in Thailand.METHODS We conducted a retrospective study at a university hospital in Thailand.We reviewed the hospital records of KT patients who visited the ED during the outbreak of COVID-19(from January 2020 to December 2021).We used the previous 2 years as the control period in the analysis.We obtained baseline demographics and ED visit characteristics for each KT patient.The outcomes of interest were ED visits and ED visits leading to hospital admission within the 1^(st)year following a KT.The rate of ED visits and ED visits leading to hospital admissions between the two periods were compared using the stratified Cox proportional hazards model.RESULTS A total of 263 patients were included in this study:112 during the COVID-19 period and 151 during the control period.There were 34 and 41 ED visits after KT in the COVID-19 and control periods,respectively.The rate of first ED visit at 1 year was not significantly different in the COVID-19 period,compared with the control period[hazard ratio(HR)=1.02,95%confidence interval(CI):0.54-1.92;P=0.96].The hospital admission rate was similar between periods(HR=0.92,95%CI:0.50-1.69;P=0.78).CONCLUSION ED visits and hospital admissions within the 1st year in KT recipients were not affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.Despite these findings,we believe that communication between post-KT patients and healthcare providers is essential to highlight the importance of prompt ED visits for acute health conditions,particularly in post-KT patients.