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Aim: The COVID-19 pandemic presents serious threats to global public health and the world economy. Therefore, the rapid escalation of the number of cases has led to national government and global interventions. This study aimed to assess the effect of school closures on the COVID-19 pandemic and epidemic trajectories in selected countries., Subject and Methods: Information on the number of cases and population in each country were taken from official government reports. Dates of educational institutions closure were taken from the UNESCO database. Statistical analyses were performed using Statistica. We summarized the data graphically and descriptively., Results: Most of the European countries closed schools in the period of 11-20 of March 2020. However, there was a big difference in the phase of the epidemic on the day of closure. The data indicate that there was a strong correlation between the day of educational facilities closure and the incidence rate in the following days (16th, 30th, and 60th days since the 100th confirmed case in each country). Early closure of schools in analyzed countries is statistically significantly correlated with lower incidence rates further on during the different phases of the epidemic. Thereby closure of schools with delay is statistically significantly correlated with a higher incidence rate in the following days., Conclusion: The available data suggest that school closures can potentially reduce transmission during the pandemic, although more research is needed on the effectiveness of these practices., Competing Interests: Conflict of interestThe authors declare that they have no conflict of interest., (© The Author(s) 2020.)

The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of nationwide lockdown during the Novel Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on an average volume of alcohol consumption and drinking patterns. A survey was conducted with a random sample of 4072 people. The authors found a significant influence of the pandemic period on alcohol consumption compared to the pre-pandemic period. The vast majority of respondents reduced the frequency of consumption of all types of alcohol. However, when the population was divided into subgroups, this differentiation demonstrated that particular groups are more vulnerable to alcohol misuse. Higher frequency of alcohol consumption during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown was most often found in the group of men, people aged 18-24 years, inhabitants of big cities, and remote workers. Besides, significant differences were observed in subpopulations concerning different types of alcohol. Results emphasized the importance of monitoring and implementation of actions aimed at reducing the potential psychosocial impact of COVID-19, including alcohol-related disorders.

COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the importance of laboratory diagnostics to reduce the spread of SARSCoV-2 and to treat patients with severe coronaviral disease. The situation required a rapid development of molecular and serological tests to enable mass screening, testing of high-risk groups, and establishing epidemiological data. Knowledge of diagnostic methods is continuously evolving, so it is crucial to understand the nature of the tests and to be able to interpret their results. This review discusses the current literature on diagnostic methods, prognostic markers, diagnostic recommendations, choice of the appropriate test, type of biological material, and interpretation of results depending on test sensitivity and disease duration. Also, the percentage of positive results in the selected countries at two distant time points of the epidemic was analyzed. Further development of diagnostic techniques and incorporation of new technologies can provide more accurate and faster tools for control the epidemic.