February 19, 2021

SARS-CoV-2 Positivity on or After 9 Days Among Quarantined Student Contacts of Confirmed Cases

Category: Article Summary

Topic: Testing and Treatment

Keywords (Tags): testing

Among student contacts of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Florida between August and November 2020, a protocol requiring a negative RT-PCR test as early as day 9 of quarantine reduced the loss of instruction days compared to a conventional 14-day quarantine without testing. The number of missed days decreased by 3,649 days with the 9-day testing protocol compared with a theoretical 14-day quarantine (8,097 days vs 11,746 days). Of the 839 student contacts tested on days 9 to 14, 40 were positive for SARS-CoV-2 infection. Among the 799 students who tested negative, only 1 student became symptomatic after returning to school and received a positive test on day 14 after initially testing negative on day 9. The viral sequence identified from this participant was genetically distinct from the sequence of the case isolated from the known exposure. 

Nelson et al. (Feb 19, 2021). SARS-CoV-2 Positivity on or After 9 Days Among Quarantined Student Contacts of Confirmed Cases. JAMA. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2021.2392