April 27, 2021

Comparison of COVID-19 Incidence Rates Before and After School Reopening in Israel

Category: Article Summary

Topic: Transmission

Keywords (Tags): children, schools testing, transmission

• An analysis of SARS-CoV incidence and the rate of test positivity in Israel suggests that children age 0-9 years of age did not have substantially elevated rates of SARS-CoV-2 infection during school attendance. Compared to the period before school reopening, after school reopened in September 2020 there was a 10% increase in SARS-CoV-2 incidence and a 23% decline in test positivity in this age group. Larger increases in incidence and test positivity were observed in other age groups, with up to 3.2-fold higher incidence for those aged 40-59 years. Similar patterns were observed during a second period of school reopening in November 2020 following a country-wide lockdown.

Somekh et al. (Apr 26, 2021). Comparison of COVID-19 Incidence Rates Before and After School Reopening in Israel. JAMA Network Open. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2021.7105