SARS-CoV-2 Infections and Serologic Responses Among Military Personnel Deployed on the USNS COMFORT to New York City During the COVID-19 Pandemic.
Open Forum Infect Dis
; 8(2): ofaa654, 2021 Feb.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1045838
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) presents a unique challenge to United States Navy hospital ships. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection among US Navy personnel deployed on the USNS COMFORT to augment the inpatient health care capacity in New York City.METHODS:
This was a cross-sectional study conducted on USNS COMFORT crewmembers returning to Norfolk, Virginia, following deployment. Participants completed an electronic questionnaire and provided a serum sample at Day 14 post-deployment. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) results from testing of symptomatic crewmembers during deployment and Day 0 and Day 14 post-deployment screening swabs conducted on all crewmembers, per military order, were abstracted. SARS-CoV-2 infection was defined as a positive SARS-CoV-2 spike glycoprotein immunoglobulin G antibody or PCR result.RESULTS:
Of the ship's total complement of 1200 crewmembers, 450 were enrolled 432 (96.0%) completed the questionnaire and provided a serum sample. The median age of participants (interquartile range) was 30 (24-39) years, 50.8% were female, 58.6% were White, and 14.0% were Black; 80.1% had a clinical role during deployment. The cumulative prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 infection was 3.01% (13/432; 95% CI, 1.61%-5.09%). Twelve of 13 infections occurred in health care providers, and 8 of 13 were asymptomatic. The antibody profile of infected crewmembers varied by suspected timing of infection.CONCLUSIONS:
We observed a low prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 infection among USNS COMFORT crewmembers despite the inherent risk of a shipboard deployment to an area with high rates of community transmission. Our findings suggest that early infection control measures mitigated the spread of SARS-CoV-2 among crewmembers.
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Type of study:
Observational study
/
Prognostic study
/
Randomized controlled trials
Language:
English
Journal:
Open Forum Infect Dis
Year:
2021
Document Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
Ofid
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