Article Summary
March 15, 2021
Modeling the Use of SARS-CoV-2 Vaccination to Safely Relax Non-Pharmaceutical Interventions
[Pre-print, not peer-reviewed] A transmission model suggested that non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) may be safely relaxed in the US 2-9 months after the initial vaccine rollout, and that vaccinated individuals can begin to relax NPIs sooner than unvaccinated individuals, reducing deaths and peak health system burden. If a vaccination rate of 3 million doses/day were achieved,…
Association of Acute Symptoms of COVID-19 and Symptoms of Depression in Adults
Over 3,900 people with prior COVID-19 completed an internet survey between May 2020 and January 2021, with more than half (51.4%) meeting screening criteria for having moderate or greater symptoms of major depression. Depressive symptoms were less likely among older people (aOR by decade = 0.76), women (aOR = 0.72), and those with less severe…
Comparison of Clinical Characteristics and Disease Outcome of COVID-19 and Seasonal Influenza
Compared to patients with seasonal influenza treated in hospital settings, patients with COVID-19 tended to be younger (median age 59 vs 66), had fewer comorbidities at baseline with a lower Charlson Comorbidity Index (mean 3.0 vs 4.0), had a longer duration of hospitalization (mean 25.9 vs 17.2 days), more frequently needed oxygen therapy (61% vs 40%) and…
An Observational Cohort Study on the Incidence of SARS-CoV-2 Infection and B.1.1.7 Variant Infection in Healthcare Workers by Antibody and Vaccination Status
[Pre-print, not peer-reviewed] A longitudinal cohort study of healthcare workers (HCWs) in England showed that both natural infection and vaccination (two doses of Pfizer/BioNTech or Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine) provided more than 85% protection against symptomatic and asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection, including with the B.1.1.7 variant. No HCWs who had received both doses had symptomatic infection, and incidence…
COVID-19 Vaccine Second-Dose Completion and Interval Between First and Second Doses Among Vaccinated Persons — United States, December 14, 2020-February 14, 2021
Vaccination data reported to CDC indicate that among people who received the first dose of either the Moderna or Pfizer/BioNTech vaccines as of February 14, 2021, and for whom enough time had elapsed to receive the second dose, 88.0% had completed the series and 8.6% had not received the second dose. Among all people who…
Age Cohorts Stratified According to Age-Distributions of COVID-19 Morbidity Statistics Identify Uniquely Age-Dependent CD3 + CD8 + T-Cell Lymphocytopenia in COVID-19 Patients without Comorbidities on Admission
SARS-CoV-2 infection was associated with age-dependent reductions in CD8+ T cell count in a retrospective study of 447 individuals stratified by five age-group cohorts spanning ages 2 to 79. CD4+ T cell, B cell, and natural killer cell counts did not differ between age strata. Plasma C-reactive protein concentrations increased with age. Jin et al. (Mar…
A Rapid Review of COVID-19 Vaccine Prioritization in the U.S. Alignment between Federal Guidance and State Practice
[Pre-print, not peer-reviewed] A study assessing variability in vaccine priority groups between state and federal guidance found that while state plans largely prioritized healthcare workers and residents of long-term care facilities (consistent with federal guidelines), essential workers were often excluded from state priority plans. Of 37 states that included frontline essential workers, 12 assigned them…
Effectiveness of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine Among Residents of Two Skilled Nursing Facilities Experiencing COVID-19 Outbreaks — Connecticut, December 2020–February 2021
Partial vaccination with the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine (from >14 days after dose 1 through 7 days after dose 2) was found to be to 63% effective against SARS-CoV-2 infection among residents of two skilled nursing facilities in Connecticut that experienced outbreaks from December 2020 – February 2021. Vaccine efficacy was similar (60%) when residents with…
Specific Allelic Discrimination of N501Y and Other SARS-CoV-2 Mutations by DdPCR Detects B.1.1.7 Lineage in Washington State
[Pre-print, not peer-reviewed] A research team in Washington State described detection of the first cases of the B.1.1.7 SARS-CoV-2 variant in the state using a novel droplet reverse transcriptase digital-PCR (RT-ddPCR) assay that detects four mutations associated with the B.1.1.7 lineage. All four targets were detected in two specimens, and follow-up sequencing revealed 10 mutations…
A Follow-up Study Shows That Recovered Patients with Re-Positive PCR Test in Wuhan May Not Be Infectious
A follow-up study analyzing data from 20,280 COVID-19 patients from multiple centers in Wuhan, China who received a positive PCR result between December 2019 and August 2020 found that 2,466 (12.2%) patients tested positive again (2,238 of were asymptomatic) after being discharged from the hospital. None of the 4,079 close contacts of patients who tested…
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