Article Summary
September 29, 2020
Recent Increase in COVID-19 Cases Reported Among Adults Aged 18–22 Years — United States, May 31–September 5, 2020
During August 2–September 5, 2020, weekly COVID-19 cases among young people ages 18–22 increased 55% nationally, with the largest regional increases in the Northeast (144%) and Midwest (123%). Increases in cases were not solely due to increased testing. The incidence in all other age groups declined during the same period. When examined by race and…
Multiple COVID-19 Clusters on a University Campus — North Carolina, August 2020
Within 2 weeks of opening the campus to students (Aug 3 – Aug 25), a North Carolina university experienced 670 COVID-19 cases. Preliminary investigations suggest student gatherings and congregate living settings, both on and off campus, likely contributed to the rapid spread of COVID-19 on campus. The authors state that measures to reduce transmission on…
Strong Impact of Closing Schools Closing Bars and Wearing Masks during the Covid-19 Pandemic Results from a Simple and Revealing Analysis
[Pre-print, not peer-reviewed] Segmented regression applied to COVID-19 and SARS-CoV-2 case counts in a number of US states was used to estimate the impact of the closures of schools, restaurants and bars, general lockdown orders, and masking mandates. The authors estimate that school closings reduced SARS-CoV-2 infection rates by half, while lockdowns reduced transmission rates…
COVID-19 Seroprevalence Surveys and Antibody Decline – A Note of Caution on Antibody Decline
[Pre-print, not peer-reviewed] Despite ongoing COVID-19 activity in Ontario, the prevalence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies did not change substantially (range 0.4% – 1.4% positive) between five surveys conducted from March to August 2020. Bolotin et al. analyzed residual clinical specimens and found that the geometric mean concentration of antibodies among the positive samples declined between June…
Excess Risk of COVID-19 to University Populations Resulting from In-Person Sporting Events
[Pre-print, not peer-reviewed] A modeling study using a stochastic compartmental model showed that in-person sporting events on college campuses could increase COVID-19 cases among the campus community. Even when COVID-19 cases were controlled both on-campus and among the larger population from which visitors to campus were drawn, such events presented a risk to the community….
Changes in Adult Alcohol Use and Consequences During the COVID-19 Pandemic in the US
The COVID-19 pandemic was associated with an increase in alcohol consumption among US adults. Survey data from the RAND Corporation American Life Panel show that on average, 3 out of 4 adults consumed alcohol 1 additional day per month in 2020 than they did in 2019. For women, there was also a 41% increase from…
Clinical Epidemiology of Hospitalized Patients with COVID-19 in Japan: Report of the COVID-19 REGISTRY JAPAN
An observational study of patients hospitalized with COVID-19 in Japan (n=2,638) found a lower prevalence of comorbidities and a trend toward lower mortality compared to inpatient studies from other countries. Among the study participants, the most common comorbidities were hypertension (15%) and diabetes without complications (14%). In addition, there were twice as many individuals with…
Viral Presence and Immunopathology in Patients with Lethal COVID-19: A Prospective Autopsy Cohort Study
An autopsy study among 21 patients who died of COVID-19 showed widespread systemic inflammation in the lungs, heart, kidney, liver, and brain, with a continued presence of inflammatory neutrophils cells even several weeks into the disease course. The lung was the organ with the most abundant SARS-CoV-2, and extensive inflammation was detected in the brain….
Exploring the Demographics and Clinical Characteristics Related to the Expression of Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme 2, a Receptor of SARS-CoV-2
An analysis of ACE2 expression among 229 individuals indicated that participants who were female (OR=2.3), had hypertension (OR=1.3), had a cardiocerebrovascular disease (OR=1.3), had cancer (OR=1.7), or who were over 60 years old (OR=3.1) had higher levels of ACE2 expression, which is one of the cellular entry receptors for SARS-CoV-2. The authors suggest that persons…
Safety and Immunogenicity of SARS-CoV-2 MRNA-1273 Vaccine in Older Adults
A phase 1, dose escalation trial of a messenger RNA vaccine against SARS-CoV-2 conducted among adults ages 56-70 (n=20) and ages 71 or older (n=20) reported generating antibody response with mild to moderate adverse events. Serum neutralizing activity was detected in all participants and was similar in magnitude to responses previously reported among participants between…
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