Community SARS-CoV-2 Surge and Within-School Transmission.
Pediatrics
; 148(4)2021 10.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1332046
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES:
When the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic began, experts raised concerns about in-person instruction in the setting of high levels of community transmission. We describe secondary transmission of SARS-CoV-2 within North Carolina kindergarten through 12th-grade school districts during a winter surge to determine if mitigation strategies can hinder within-school transmission.METHODS:
From October 26, 2020, to February 28, 2021, 13 North Carolina school districts participating in The ABC Science Collaborative were open for in-person instruction, adhered to basic mitigation strategies, and tracked community- and school-acquired SARS-CoV-2 cases. Public health officials adjudicated each case. We combined these data with that from August 2020 to evaluate the effect of the SARS-CoV-2 winter surge on infection rates as well as weekly community- and school-acquired cases. We evaluated the number of secondary cases generated by each primary case as well as the role of athletic activities in school-acquired cases.RESULTS:
More than 100 000 students and staff from 13 school districts attended school in person; of these, 4969 community-acquired SARS-CoV-2 infections were documented by molecular testing. Through contact tracing, North Carolina local health department staff identified an additional 209 infections among >26 000 school close contacts (secondary attack rate <1%). Most within-school transmissions in high schools (75%) were linked to school-sponsored sports. School-acquired cases slightly increased during the surge; however, within-school transmission rates remained constant, from presurge to surge, with â¼1 school-acquired case for every 20 primary cases.CONCLUSIONS:
With adherence to basic mitigation strategies, within-school transmission of SARS-CoV-2 can be interrupted, even during a surge of community infections.
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Schools
/
COVID-19
Type of study:
Experimental Studies
/
Observational study
Limits:
Adolescent
/
Child
/
Child, preschool
/
Humans
Country/Region as subject:
North America
Language:
English
Year:
2021
Document Type:
Article
Similar
MEDLINE
...
LILACS
LIS