Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 Testing Trends Among Persons Aged <18 Years in an Outpatient Pediatric Practice - Metropolitan Atlanta, Georgia, May-December 2020.
J Adolesc Health
; 69(1): 144-148, 2021 07.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1275415
ABSTRACT
PURPOSE:
The purpose of this study was to analyze trends in severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) testing and test positivity among persons aged <18 years in a three-site outpatient pediatric practice in Atlanta, Georgia, serving approximately 35,000 pediatric patients.METHODS:
Using electronic medical records, weekly trends in SARS-CoV-2 tests performed and the 14-day moving average of test positivity were examined, overall and by age group, during May 24-December 5, 2020.RESULTS:
Among 4,995 patients who received at least 1 SARS-CoV-2 test, 6,813 total tests were completed. Overall test positivity was 5.4% and was higher among older pediatric patients (<5 years 3.3%; 5-11 years 4.1%; 12-17 years 8.6%). The number of tests and test positivity increased after holidays and school breaks.CONCLUSIONS:
Families might benefit from communication focused on reducing SARS-CoV-2 transmission during holidays. In addition, given higher test positivity in children aged 12-17 years, tailoring public health messaging to older adolescents could help limit SARS-CoV-2 transmission risk in this population.Keywords
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
SARS-CoV-2
/
COVID-19
Type of study:
Diagnostic study
/
Prognostic study
Limits:
Adolescent
/
Child
/
Humans
Country/Region as subject:
North America
Language:
English
Journal:
J Adolesc Health
Journal subject:
Pediatrics
Year:
2021
Document Type:
Article
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