IORD – Ongoing approved projects and project outputs

Underlying haematological malignancy has previously been shown to be a major risk factor for worse outcomes from infection with SARS-CoV-2. There is concern that this same patient group may mount reduced immune responses to the COVID-19 vaccinations, and thus derive less protection from them. In the general population, with high levels of vaccination, serious adverse … Read more

Myeloma is a blood cancer that results in a weakened immune system and an increased risk of infection. Myeloma is currently incurable and the most common cause of death in patients living with myeloma, aside from the disease itself, is infection. We know that rates of respiratory infections decreased in haematology patients during shielding due … Read more

COVID-19 caused by SARS-CoV2, remains a significant cause of hospital attendance, admission and mortality. The clinical presentation of COVID-19 is variable, with most patients experiencing mild self-limiting symptoms, while others progress to respiratory failure. The use of biomarkers early in the disease course, to predict the development of severe disease, has garnered significant interest as … Read more

The ‘circadian clock’ is an endogenous 24-hour clock recognised in all biology that, along with a seasonal clock (summer/winter), impacts on how environmental challenges are handled, including the outcome of infectious diseases and vaccinations. The COVID-19 pandemic, caused by SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, is a global crisis with unprecedented challenges for public health. Vaccinations are being rolled … Read more

Using a dataset of 270 critically ill patients with COVID-19 we have identified a set of variables that predict the mortality for patients on the day of admission to the ICU. The use of this practical prediction model should affect clinical decision-making and medical management of COVID-19 patients. We can predict the chance of survival … Read more

COVID-19, caused by SARS-CoV2, is a novel biphasic disease that may be associated with significant morbidity and mortality in the second phase of illness in select groups of infected individuals. There is significant interest in testing the utility of biomarkers in the first phase of illness for identifying individuals at higher risk of deterioration who … Read more

The ‘circadian clock’ is an inbuilt 24-hour clock recognised in human biology that, along with a seasonal clock (summer/winter), impacts on how environmental challenges are handled, including influencing the outcome of infectious diseases and vaccinations (Borrmann 2020, Sengupta 2021).The COVID-19 pandemic, caused by SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, is a global crisis with unprecedented challenges for public health. … Read more

Most patients diagnosed with Covid-19 acquire their infection in the community. However, it is not known how much Covid-19 in the first wave of the pandemic was acquired in hospital. National data may be informative, but locally available data in Oxford are more detailed, potentially allowing more precise estimates of the extent of transmission and … Read more

The inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), Crohn’s disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC) affect approximately 1% of the UK population; and 25-30% of these patients are now treated with biological therapies which target the immune system to maintain remission. It has been hypothesized that these patients may be at increased risk of either clinically apparent SARS-CoV-2 … Read more

The COVID-19 pandemic started in December 2019 and quickly spread around the world. A key challenge in all healthcare settings is to identify patients with possible COVID-19 at presentation, to inform both clinical management and infection prevention and control interventions. Diagnosis relies in most cases on PCR of nose and throat swabs for the SARS-CoV-2 … Read more

Oxford University Hospitals (OUH) has conducted a large staff testing programme for Covid-19. Staff were tested using a combination of antibody and PCR tests looking for previous and current infection with the virus that causes Covid-19 (SARS-CoV-2). These results were stored in the electronic healthcare records of each staff member. Staff provided details of potential … Read more

Up to 30% of patients admitted to hospital with COVID (novel coronavirus infection) will require admission to an intensive care unit (ICU) and potentially help with breathing via a ventilator. We will develop statistical and artificial intelligence approaches to predict which patients are most likely to require admission to ICU and ventilation. These tools will … Read more