Article Summary
March 15, 2021
Limits of Lockdown Characterising Essential Contacts during Strict Physical Distancing
[Pre-print, not peer-reviewed] During the first lockdown in the UK, essential healthcare workers had 4.5 times as many contacts as non-essential workers (IRR = 4.4), while essential workers in other sectors like teaching and the police force had nearly three times as many contacts (IRR = 2.8), according to a study of participants in a…
Household SARS-CoV-2 Transmission and Children: A Network Prospective Study
A study of SARS-CoV-2 household transmission in Spain found that while viral transmission was common among household members (62.3%), among the 1,040 children under age 16 included in the study, more than 70% (756) of cases were acquired from an adult, whereas only 7.7% (80) were index cases. Almost half (47.2%) were asymptomatic, 10.8% had…
Transmission of SARS-CoV-2 Infection among Children in Summer Schools Applying Stringent Control Measures in Barcelona, Spain
A study of SARS-CoV-2 transmission among children and staff in summer schools in Spain during July 2020 found that the transmission rate under strict prevention measures was lower in school-like facilities than the general population. The authors compared transmission rates using a normalized effective reproduction number that accounted for the time spent in each setting….
Day Camp in the Time of COVID-19: What Went Right?
[Pre-print, not peer-reviewed] A survey of summer day camp directors (n = 23) in the metropolitan New York area conducted in September 2020 regarding their camps’ COVID-19 policies during the summer of 2020 found that common infection prevention policies included COVID-19 screening at entry, placing camp attendees in cohorts, maximizing outdoor activities, mandating mask use…
March 12, 2021
Differences in COVID-19-Related Testing and Healthcare Utilization by Race and Ethnicity in the Veterans Health Administration
SARS-CoV-2 testing rates (4%) and positivity rates (12%) among Black veterans and Hispanic veterans (5% and 12%, respectively) were higher compared to white veterans (3% and 6%) according to a retrospective cohort study of all US veterans who were active users of the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) services. 252,702 veterans were tested (3%) for SARS-CoV-2…
Notes from the Field: Opioid Overdose Deaths Before, During, and After an 11-Week COVID-19 Stay-at-Home Order — Cook County, Illinois, January 1, 2018–October 6, 2020
A total of 3,843 deaths due to opioid overdose were identified in an analysis of data from Cook County, Illinois between January 2018 and October 2020, with the weekly count of deaths ranging from 12 to 52 deaths per week. Despite a stable weekly mean of 22.6 deaths per week prior to December 2019, mean…
Experiences of Latinx Individuals Hospitalized for COVID-19 A Qualitative Study
A qualitative study among Latinx adults who survived COVID-19 about their experiences before, during, and after hospitalization identified multiple themes with public health implications. Common themes identified were the prevalence of COVID-19 misinformation, COVID-19 as compounding socioeconomic disadvantages and a reluctance to seek medical care. Participants risked infection because of the need to work and…
The Association of COVID-19 Risk Perception, County Death Rates, and Voluntary Health Behaviors among U.S. Adult Population
Analysis of an online survey (n=672 participants) across multiple US states found that participants living in counties with high COVID-19 death rates (>17 deaths per 100,000) had a higher risk perception compared to participants living in counties with a low county death rates (≤5 deaths per 100,000). No difference was observed in overall COVID-19 risk…
COVID-19 Associated Pulmonary Aspergillosis in Mechanically Ventilated Patients
Among patients with COVID-19 who were receiving mechanical ventilation (n=396), patients with COVID-19 associated pulmonary aspergillosis (CAPA) had higher odds of worse disease outcome, required longer time to improvement and had an increased hazard of advancing disease severity compared to those without CAPA. Although there were no differences in mortality, patients with CAPA required significantly…
Prevention of COVID-19 among older adults receiving pneumococcal conjugate vaccine suggests interactions between Streptococcus pneumoniae and SARS-CoV-2 in the respiratory tract
Receipt of the 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13) was associated with lower incidence of any COVID-19 diagnosis, COVID-19 hospitalization, and fatal COVID-19 hospitalization after accounting for potential sources of confounding, according to a cohort study of 531,033 US adults aged ≥65 years. Lewnard et al. (Mar 9, 2021). Prevention of COVID-19 among older adults receiving pneumococcal…
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