Surge in SARS-CoV-2 transmission in school-aged children and household contacts, England, August to October 2021.

Easing of COVID-19 restrictions in England in the summer of 2021 was followed by a sharp rise in cases among school-aged children. Weekly rates of SARS-CoV-2 infection in primary and secondary school children reached 733.3 and 1,664.7/100,000 population, respectively, by week 39 2021. A surge in household clusters with school-aged index cases was noted at the start of the school term, with secondary cases predominantly in children aged 5-15 years and adults aged 30-49 years.

Scoping exercise to develop a storybook to support children's education during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Objective: In June 2020, as COVID-19 lockdown measures were eased in the UK, this scoping exercise aimed to rapidly identify topics to cover within a children's online storybook 'My Back to School Bubble', designed to support the return to school. Methods: An email invitation was sent to 71 known contacts within networks across Public Health England, local authorities, health protection teams and contacts within the Department for Education. Following online publication of 'My Back to School Bubble', users were asked to provide informal feedback via an online survey to ask about their impressions of the story. Results: Findings from the 31 responses highlighted that children are likely to hold differing feelings regarding COVID-19, depending on their own temperament and lockdown experiences, including changes in relationships with family and friends. Following the launch of 'My Back to School Bubble' e-storybook, 21 users provided feedback via survey. Fourteen respondents (67%) indicated that the storybook was a useful tool for providing support to children, and twelve (57%) reported that the resource helped children understand their own feelings. Recommendations: Clear, accurate information about the new school environment should be provided in the context of COVID-19. It is especially important to support children with special educational needs and disabilities, including those with autism. Encouraging children to take ownership of their health and hygiene behaviours, such as handwashing, will help to normalise this and prevent the spread of infection. Lessons learnt from the development of 'My Back to School Bubble' online storybook suggest the clarity of imagery could be improved to better support children with autism. Future work should focus on longitudinal and qualitative research. This should include the long-term effects of the pandemic on children's development and education, effects on mental health and resilience, peer socialisation, and ability to cope with life-changing events.

COVID-19 in children: analysis of the first pandemic peak in England.

OBJECTIVES: To assess disease trends, testing practices, community surveillance, case-fatality and excess deaths in children as compared with adults during the first pandemic peak in England. SETTING: England. PARTICIPANTS: Children with COVID-19 between January and May 2020. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Trends in confirmed COVID-19 cases, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) positivity rates in children compared with adults; community prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 in children with acute respiratory infection (ARI) compared with adults, case-fatality rate in children with confirmed COVID-19 and excess childhood deaths compared with the previous 5 years. RESULTS: Children represented 1.1% (1,408/129,704) of SARS-CoV-2 positive cases between 16 January 2020 and 3 May 2020. In total, 540 305 people were tested for SARS-COV-2 and 129,704 (24.0%) were positive. In children aged <16 years, 35,200 tests were performed and 1408 (4.0%) were positive for SARS-CoV-2, compared to 19.1%-34.9% adults. Childhood cases increased from mid-March and peaked on 11 April before declining. Among 2,961 individuals presenting with ARI in primary care, 351 were children and 10 (2.8%) were positive compared with 9.3%-45.5% in adults. Eight children died and four (case-fatality rate, 0.3%; 95% CI 0.07% to 0.7%) were due to COVID-19. We found no evidence of excess mortality in children. CONCLUSIONS: Children accounted for a very small proportion of confirmed cases despite the large numbers of children tested. SARS-CoV-2 positivity was low even in children with ARI. Our findings provide further evidence against the role of children in infection and transmission of SARS-CoV-2.

Probable Vertical Transmission of SARS-CoV-2 Infection.

BACKGROUND: To date, although neonatal infections with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronovirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) have been described, none of these have been proven to be the result of vertical transmission of SARS-CoV-2. METHODS: We describe the probable vertical transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in a neonate born to a mother with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). RESULTS: Following cesarean section, the neonate was kept in strict isolation. Molecular tests for SARS-CoV-2 on respiratory samples, blood, and meconium were initially negative, but positive on a nasopharyngeal aspirate on the third day of life. On day 5, the neonate developed fever and coryza, which spontaneously resolved. Viral genomic analysis from the mother and neonate showed identical sequences except for 1 nucleotide. CONCLUSION: This report has important implications for infection control and clinical management of pregnant women with COVID-19 and their newborns.