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The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has raised concerns about the potential complications it may cause in pregnant women. Therefore, biomarkers that can predict the course of COVID-19 in pregnant women may be of great benefit as they would provide valuable insights into the prognosis and, thus, the management of the disease. In this context, the objective of this study is to identify the biomarkers that can predict COVID-19 progression in pregnant women, focusing on composite hemogram parameters and systemic inflammatory and spike markers. The population of this single-center prospective case-control study consisted of all consecutive pregnant women with single healthy fetuses who tested positive for COVID-19 and who were admitted to Bakirköy Dr Sadi Konuk Training and Research Hospital in Istanbul, Turkey, a COVID-19 referral hospital, between April 2020 and March 2021, with an obstetric indication, during their second or third trimester. The control group consisted of consecutive pregnant women with a single healthy fetus who were admitted to the same hospital within the same date range, had demographic and obstetric characteristics matching the patient group, but tested negative for COVID-19. The patient and control groups were compared in terms of platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), platelet-to-neutrophil ratio (PNR), and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), and systemic inflammatory and spike markers, including C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin-6 (IL-6), interleukin-10 (IL-10), cluster of differentiation 26 (CD26), and B7 homolog 4 (B7H4). There were 45 (51.1%) and 43 (48.8%) pregnant women in the patient and control groups, respectively. There was no significant difference between the groups in demographic and obstetric characteristics (P > .05). The PNR, PLR, and CRP values were significantly higher in the patient group than in the control group (P < .05). On the other hand, there was no significant difference between the groups in IL-6, IL-10, CD26, and B7H4 levels (P > .05). The findings of our study showed that specific inflammatory markers, such as CRP, PLR, and PNR, can potentially predict the course of COVID-19 in pregnant women. However, more comprehensive, well-controlled studies are needed to corroborate our study's findings and investigate other potential inflammatory markers., Competing Interests: The authors have no funding and conflicts of interest to disclose., (Copyright © 2024 the Author(s). Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc.)

Background: A cross-sectional study was performed to examine life satisfaction differences between university students from nine countries during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. A cross-national comparison of the association between life satisfaction and a set of variables was also conducted., Methods: Participants in the study were 2349 university students with a mean age of 23 years (M = 23.15, SD = 4.66). There was a predominance of women (69.26%) and individuals studying at the bachelor level (78%). The research was conducted between May and July 2020 in nine countries: Slovenia (n=209), the Czech Republic (Czechia)(n=308), Germany (n=267), Poland (n=301), Ukraine (n=310), Russia (n=285), Turkey (n=310), Israel (n=199), and Colombia (n=153). Participants completed an online survey involving measures of satisfaction with life (SWLS), exposure to COVID-19, perceived negative impact of coronavirus (PNIC) on students' well-being, general self-reported health (GSRH), physical activity (PA), and some demographics (gender, place of residence, level of study). A one-way ANOVA was used to explore cross-national differences in life satisfaction. The χ 2 independence test was performed separately in each country to examine associations between life satisfaction and other variables. Bivariate and multivariate logistic regressions were used to identify life satisfaction predictors among a set of demographic and health-related variables in each of the nine countries., Results: The level of life satisfaction varied between university students from the nine countries. The results for life satisfaction and the other variables differed between countries. Numerous associations were noted between satisfaction with life and several variables, and these showed cross-national differences. Distinct predictors of life satisfaction were observed for each country. However, poor self-rated physical health was a predictor of low life satisfaction independent of the country., Conclusions: The association between life satisfaction and subjective assessment of physical health seems to be universal, while the other variables are related to cross-cultural differences. Special public health attention should be focused on psychologically supporting people who do not feel healthy., (© 2021. The Author(s).)

The student population has been highly vulnerable to the risk of mental health deterioration during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. This study aimed to reveal the prevalence and predictors of mental health among students in Poland, Slovenia, Czechia, Ukraine, Russia, Germany, Turkey, Israel, and Colombia in a socioeconomic context during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study was conducted among 2349 students (69% women) from May-July 2020. Data were collected by means of the Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD-7), Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-8), Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10), Gender Inequality Index (GII), Standard & Poor's Global Ratings, the Oxford COVID-19 Government Response Tracker (OxCGRT), and a sociodemographic survey. Descriptive statistics and Bayesian multilevel skew-normal regression analyses were conducted. The prevalence of high stress, depression, and generalized anxiety symptoms in the total sample was 61.30%, 40.3%, and 30%, respectively. The multilevel Bayesian model showed that female sex was a credible predictor of PSS-10, GAD-7, and PHQ-8 scores. In addition, place of residence (town) and educational level (first-cycle studies) were risk factors for the PHQ-8. This study showed that mental health issues are alarming in the student population. Regular psychological support should be provided to students by universities., (© 2021. The Author(s).)

Students have been highly vulnerable to mental health issues during the COVID-19 pandemic, and researchers have shown that perceived stress and mental health problems have increased during the pandemic. The aim of this study was to reveal the prevalence of perceived stress and mental health among students during the pandemic and to explore predictors of stress levels. A cross-sectional study was conducted on a sample of 358 undergraduates from 14 universities in Turkey, including 200 female students (56%). The measurements used in the study were the Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-item (GAD-7) scale, Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-8), Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS), Perception of COVID Impact on Student Well-Being (CI), Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10), Physical Activity Scale (PA), and a sociodemographic survey. Students reported high perceived stress, mild generalized anxiety, and low satisfaction with life. More than half of the students met the diagnostic criteria of GAD (52%) and depression (63%). Female and physically inactive students had higher PSS-10 levels. A hierarchical linear regression model showed that after controlling for gender and negative CI, anxiety and physical inactivity significantly predicted high perceived stress. The study shows that students' mental health during the pandemic is at high risk.

Vilmant&edot; Kumpikait&edot;-Vali&umacr;nien&edot;,1 Imran Aslan,2 Jurga Duobien&edot;,1 Ewa Gli&nacute;ska,3 Victor Anandkumar4 1School of Economics and Business, Kaunas University of Technology, Kaunas, Lithuania; 2Faculty of Health Sciences, Bingöl University, Bingöl, Turkey; 3Faculty of Engineering Management, Bialystok University of Technology, Bialystok, Poland; 4School of Management, Pondicherry University, Pondicherry, IndiaCorrespondence: Vilmant&edot; Kumpikait&edot;-Vali&umacr;nien&#x0117School of Economics and Business, Kaunas University of Technology, Gedimino g. 50-211, Kaunas, LT-44249, LithuaniaTel +370 611 21952Email vilmante.kumpikaite@ktu.ltPurpose: This paper aims to reveal the influence of digital competence on perceived stress, burnout and well-being among students studying online during the COVID-19 lockdown in the spring of 2020 and to compare this influence on the basis of studies conducted in four countries.Methods: An exploratory study was conducted in Poland, Lithuania, Turkey and India using a cross-sectional research design. A total of 1097 respondents took part in the survey. Well-being was measured by the World Health Organization (WHO) Well-being Index, stress was evaluated using a psychological stress measure (PSM-9) instrument, burnout was evaluated using the Copenhagen Burnout inventory, and digital competence was measured by the Digital Competency Profiler (DCP).Results: The results revealed that social and informational dimensions of digital competencies had a positive influence on dealing with stress or burnout and improved well-being of students studying online during the COVID-19 lockdown. Moreover, the analysis on a country level highlighted that with regard to dealing with stress and burnout, the epistemological dimension of digital competence was the most important for Lithuanians and Indians, the informational dimension for Polish students and the social dimension for Turkish students.Conclusion: The findings support the importance of digital competence on perceived stress, burnout and well-being among students studying online during the COVID-19 lockdown and propose deeper research directions on this phenomenon.Keywords: digital competence, online learning, stress, burnout, well-being, COVID-19