Emergency department visits for minor illnesses among recent refugee and immigrant children
Wanigaratne S, Brandenberger J, Lu H, Stukel TA, Odugbemi T, Glazier R, Rayner J, Guttmann A. JAMA Netw Open. 2026; 9(2): e2560070.
Impact of COVID-19 on prescribing trends of direct-acting antivirals for the treatment of hepatitis C in Ontario, Canada
Introduction — Direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) are curative treatments for hepatitis C. However, initiation of these treatments requires adequate healthcare access. Coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) resulted in restrictions to healthcare services in March 2020. We examined the impact of COVID-19 on the number of individuals dispensed DAAs.
Methods — This is a cross-sectional study examining the number of individuals dispensed DAAs in Ontario, Canada, from 2018 to 2020. Time-series models determined the impact of healthcare restrictions on DAA dispensations.
Results — Healthcare restrictions resulted in a 49.3% decrease in DAA dispensations (P = 0.026).
Discussion — COVID-19-related healthcare restrictions significantly affected access to DAAs. Studies exploring the long-term effects on reduced treatment are needed.
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Citation
Konstantelos N, Shakeri A, McCormack D, Feld JJ, Gomes T, Tadrous M. Am J Gastroenterol. 2021; 116(8):1738-40. Epub 2021 Apr 28.