No causal effect of school closures in Japan on the spread of COVID-19 in spring 2020.
Nat Med
; 27(12): 2111-2119, 2021 12.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1493153
ABSTRACT
Among tool kits to combat the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, school closures are one of the most frequent non-pharmaceutical interventions. However, school closures bring about substantial costs, such as learning loss. To date, studies have not reached a consensus about the effectiveness of these policies at mitigating community transmission, partly because they lack rigorous causal inference. Here we assess the causal effect of school closures in Japan on reducing the spread of COVID-19 in spring 2020. By matching each municipality with open schools to a municipality with closed schools that is the most similar in terms of potential confounders, we can estimate how many cases the municipality with open schools would have had if it had closed its schools. We do not find any evidence that school closures in Japan reduced the spread of COVID-19. Our null results suggest that policies on school closures should be reexamined given the potential negative consequences for children and parents.
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Schools
/
COVID-19
Type of study:
Experimental Studies
/
Observational study
Limits:
Adolescent
/
Child
/
Humans
Country/Region as subject:
Asia
Language:
English
Journal:
Nat Med
Journal subject:
Molecular Biology
/
Medicine
Year:
2021
Document Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
S41591-021-01571-8
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