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Topic: Public Health Policy and Practice
July 23, 2020
Consensus on Recommendations for Safe Sexual Activity during the COVID-19 Coronavirus Pandemic
A group of experts from the Spanish Association of Sexuality and Mental Health released consensus recommendations to maintain lower-risk sexual activity during the COVID-19 pandemic. Specific recommendations include returning to engaging in safe sex for those with a stable partner after quarantine is over (28 to 33 days depending age) and if all parties are asymptomatic. Abstinence is recommended for those under quarantine, those with some clinical symptoms, health professionals in contact with…
July 21, 2020
Mitigation of a COVID-19 Outbreak in a Nursing Home Through Serial Testing of Residents and Staff
Escobar et al. report on an outbreak in a Pennsylvania nursing home with 84 residents (83 male, mean age 74). The index resident tested positive after exposure to a positive employee who had not yet developed symptoms. Interventions implemented included a dedicated isolation unit, restrictions on resident travel, universal masking of residents, addition of eye shields to PPE mandated for staff, and serial testing of residents every 3-5 days. Twenty-seven residents tested…
Lessons from Mass-Testing for COVID-19 in Long Term Care Facilities for the Elderly in San Francisco
Louie et al. describe the results of surveillance, outbreak response, and control measures to prevent COVID-19 in 4 long term care facilities (LCTF) in San Francisco early in the pandemic. Facility-wide testing of asymptomatic health care workers (HCWs) and residents in these 4 facilities (n=303) found 16% of HCWs and 40% of residents were positive….
July 17, 2020
Contact Tracing during Coronavirus Disease Outbreak, South Korea, 2020
Among 59,073 contacts of 5,706 COVID-19 index cases in South Korea monitored for an average of 9.9 days after index case diagnosis, 12% of household contacts acquired COVID-19, versus 2% for non-household contacts. Probability of a contact being positive was highest for household contacts when the index case was 10-19 years old (19%); however, only 2% of index cases were in this age group. Among non-household contacts,…
July 16, 2020
Estimating the Burden of COVID-19 on Mortality Life Expectancy and Lifespan Inequality in England and Wales A Population-Level Study
[Pre-print, not peer reviewed] Using publicly–available death registration data, Aburto et al. performed a demographic analysis of all-cause mortality during the first 26 weeks of 2020 in England and Wales and estimated 53,937 excess deaths (54% male). These deaths represent a 31% increase in mortality compared to the expected level based on previous years. The investigators also found a life expectancy at…
July 15, 2020
Outbreak of COVID-19 and Interventions in One of the Largest Jails in the United States Cook County IL 2020
[Preprint, not peer-reviewed] During March 1-April 30, 907 cases of SARS-CoV-2 infection were detected among detained persons (n = 628) and staff (n = 279) in the Cook County Jail (Chicago) and there were 9 deaths. Programmatic activity and visitation stopped on March 9, and cells were converted into single occupancy beginning March 26. Universal masking was implemented for staff (April 2) and…
July 14, 2020
Investigation and Serologic Follow-Up of Contacts of Early Confirmed Case-Patient with COVID-19, United States
A contact investigation for an early confirmed COVID-19 case from Washington State identified 50 contacts, none of whom had evidence of SARS-CoV-2 infection through 6 weeks of follow-up. All contacts were monitored daily for 14 days following exposure. Eight developed symptoms but tested negative via rRT-PCR. Thirty-eight contacts underwent voluntary enhanced contact investigation, revealing varying degrees of unprotected face-to-face interactions with the case-patient. Negative rRT-PCR and serologic follow–up collected approximately 6 weeks post exposure suggest…
Development of a Semi-Structured, Multifaceted, Computer-Aided Questionnaire for Outbreak Investigation: E-Outbreak Platform
Chen et al. have developed an e-Outbreak Platform that provides a questionnaire for outbreak investigation that features disease-specific questionnaires, various types of input, and functions to utilize stored information such as report generation and knowledge graphs. Chen et al. (June 20, 2020). Development of a Semi-Structured, Multifaceted, Computer-Aided Questionnaire for Outbreak Investigation: E-Outbreak Platform. Biomedical Journal. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bj.2020.06.007
July 13, 2020
SARS-CoV-2 Antibody Prevalence in Blood in a Large School Community Subject to a Covid-19 Outbreak: A Cross-Sectional Study
Among a representative sample of students and staff from a large school in Santiago, Chile that experienced a SARS-CoV-2 outbreak in mid-March, 10% of students and 17% of staff were antibody positive by mid-May, with younger students more likely to be seropositive. Forty percent of positive students and 18% of positive staff were asymptomatic, and the most common symptoms were fever (children and adults), abdominal pain (children), and chest pain (adults). Torres et…
Guidance for Authorities and Organizers of Sports Events Planning Mass Gatherings during the Current COVID-19 Pandemic
The World Health Organization published a risk assessment tool for mass gatherings organized around three pillars: risk evaluation, risk mitigation, and risk communication. This tool is available for download as an Excel file, and includes a risk versus mitigation decision matrix to facilitate planning. Guidance for Authorities and Organizers of Sports Events Planning Mass Gatherings during the Current COVID-19…
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