August 3, 2020

Assessment of SARS-CoV-2 Screening Strategies to Permit the Safe Reopening of College Campuses in the United States

Category: Article Summary

Topic: Modeling and Prediction

• Paltiel et al. conducted a modeling study with a hypothetical cohort of 5,000 residential college students including 10 (0.2%) with undetected, asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection, and found that a symptom-based screening strategy was not sufficient to contain an outbreak in any model scenario.   
• Screening every 1, 2, and 7 days resulted in a cumulative infection of 162, 243 or 1840, respectively, assuming an Rt of 2.5 and a test with 70% sensitivity and 98% specificity. Cost-effectiveness analysis showed that screening every 2 days coupled with strict behavioral interventions to keep Rt below 2.5, would maintain a controllable number of COVID-19 infections with an estimated cost of $470 per student per semester. 

Paltiel et al. (July 31, 2020). Assessment of SARS-CoV-2 Screening Strategies to Permit the Safe Reopening of College Campuses in the United States. JAMA Network Open. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2020.16818