Article Summary
March 11, 2021
COVID-19 Case Investigation and Contact Tracing in Central Washington State, June–July 2020
68% of individuals contacted by public health departments reported having “no close contacts” (with anyone), according to an evaluation of case investigations and contact tracing (CICT) in 3 health districts in central Washington State. The study included the results of interviews with individuals with COVID-19 (n = 3,572). A total of 968 individuals with COVID-19…
March 10, 2021
Racial and Ethnic Disparities in COVID-19 Incidence by Age, Sex, and Period Among Persons Aged <25 Years — 16 U.S. Jurisdictions, January 1–December 31, 2020
There were substantial racial and ethnic disparities in COVID-19 incidence among people under age 25 in the US during January-April 2020 (rate ratio range = 1.1-4.6), which generally decreased during May-December (RR range = 0.37-1.69), largely due to increased incidence among white individuals rather than a decline among racial and ethnic minority groups. The largest…
SARS-COV-2 Antibody Prevalence in Patients on Dialysis in the US in January 2021
[Pre-print, not peer-reviewed] A cross-sectional assessment of SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence among patients in the US receiving dialysis (n = 21,424) in January 2021 with the goal of estimating the seroprevalence in the general US adult population found that seroprevalence was 18.9% in the study sample, which translated to an estimated 18.7% in the US dialysis population,…
Modeling Transmission Dynamics and Effectiveness of Worker Screening Programs for SARS-CoV-2 in Pork Processing Plant
[Pre-print, not peer-reviewed] A modeling study of SARS-CoV-2 transmission and screening programs in pork processing facilities during spring 2020 found that the effectiveness of routine PCR-screening at minimizing disease spread was influenced more by testing frequency than delays in results, the initial reproduction number, or background community transmission rates. While testing every three days prevented ~25-…
Factors Linked to Severe Outcomes in Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C) in the USA: A Retrospective Surveillance Study
A retrospective surveillance study of multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C, n = 1,080 patients) found that ICU admission was more likely in patients aged 6–12 years (aOR = 1.9) and 13–20 years (aOR = 2.6) compared with patients 0–5 years, and more likely in non-Hispanic Black than non-Hispanic White patients (aOR = 1.6). Patients…
Spike Mutations in SARS-CoV-2 Variants Confer Resistance to Antibody Neutralization
[Pre-print, not peer-reviewed] A panel of 28 SARS-CoV-2 pseudoviruses bearing single or combined spike protein mutations found in the 501Y.V1, 501Y.V2, and 501Y.V3 variants tested against a panel of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) and convalescent patient plasma collected early in the pandemic showed that the 501Y.V2 variant was the most resistant against mAbs and convalescent plasma,…
Previous SARS-CoV-2 Infection Increases B.1.1.7 Cross-Neutralization by Vaccinated Individuals
[Pre-print, not peer-reviewed] Sera from individuals who had been previously infected with SARS-CoV-2 and received the vaccine showed equivalent neutralizing responses against the B.1.1.7 variant and original virus strain, while sera from vaccinated individuals with no prior infection showed reduced neutralization against B.1.1.7. Neutralizing activity was assessed against pseudoviruses bearing the spike protein from the…
SARS-CoV-2 501Y.V2 (B.1.351) Elicits Cross-Reactive Neutralizing Antibodies
[Pre-print, not peer-reviewed] Antibody responses to the 501Y.V2 SARS-CoV-2 variant in a cohort of patients hospitalized with COVID-19 in South Africa (n = 89) were found to be robust and showed high levels of cross-reactivity against the virus strain from the first wave. Furthermore, sera from patients infected with 501Y.V2 also neutralized the 501Y.V3 (P.1)…
Vaccine Effectiveness after 1st and 2nd Dose of the BNT162b2 MRNA Covid-19 Vaccine in Long-Term Care Facility Residents and Healthcare Workers – a Danish Cohort Study
[Pre-print, not peer-reviewed] A retrospective registry- and population-based observational cohort study in Denmark estimated that the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine efficacy within 7 days of receipt was 52% among long term care facility residents (LTCF, n = 39,040) and 46% among health care workers (HCW, n = 331,039), which increased to 64% and 90%, respectively, beyond 7…
Predictors of the Intention to Receive a SARS-CoV-2 Vaccine
A study of 1,054 US adults surveyed in October 2020 indicated factors associated with intention to receive a COVID-19 vaccine were greater perceptions of vulnerability to COVID-19, receipt of a flu vaccine at the time of the study, liberal political orientation, non-Black race, male gender, and a lower preference for natural versus synthetic medications. While…
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