IMPORTANCE As a result of low numbers of pediatric cases early in the COVID-19 pandemic, pediatric household transmission of SARS-CoV-2 remains an understudied topic.OBJECTIVE To determine whether there are differences in the odds of household transmission by younger children compared with older children. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTSThis population-based cohort study took place between June 1 and December 31, 2020, in Ontario, Canada. Private households in which the index case individual of laboratory-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection was younger than 18 years were included. Individuals were excluded if they resided in apartments missing suite information, in households with multiple index cases, or in households where the age of the index case individual was missing.EXPOSURES Age group of pediatric index cases categorized as 0 to 3, 4 to 8, 9 to 13, and 14 to 17 years. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURESHousehold transmission, defined as households where at least 1 secondary case occurred 1 to 14 days after the pediatric index case.RESULTS A total of 6280 households had pediatric index cases, and 1717 households (27.3%) experienced secondary transmission. The mean (SD) age of pediatric index case individuals was 10.7 (5.1) years and 2863 (45.6%) were female individuals. Children aged 0 to 3 years had the highest odds of transmitting SARS-CoV-2 to household contacts compared with children aged 14 to 17 years (odds ratio, 1.43; 95% CI, 1.17-1.75). This association was similarly observed in sensitivity analyses defining secondary cases as 2 to 14 days or 4 to 14 days after the index case and stratified analyses by presence of symptoms, association with a school/childcare outbreak, or school/childcare reopening. Children aged 4 to 8 years and 9 to 13 years also had increased odds of transmission (aged 4-8 years: odds ratio, 1.40; 95% CI, 1.18-1.67; aged 9-13 years: odds ratio, 1.13; 95% CI, 0.97-1.32). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCEThis study suggests that younger children may be more likely to transmit SARS-CoV-2 infection compared with older children, and the highest odds of transmission was observed for children aged 0 to 3 years. Differential infectivity of pediatric age groups has implications for infection prevention within households, as well as schools/childcare, to minimize risk of household secondary transmission. Additional population-based studies are required to establish the risk of transmission by younger pediatric index cases.

The feasibility and validity of proposed radical prostatectomy quality indicators has not been well studied. We assessed indicator availability from treating charts. We tested the convergent construct validity of a modified subset that were available from this information source by correlating them to hospital prostatectomy volume, a variable repeatedly associated with the quality of surgical care. The study population consisted of a stratified random sample of prostate cancer patients who were: (i) diagnosed between 1990 and 1998 in Ontario and (ii) treated by radical prostatectomy with curative intent within 6 months of diagnosis (n 5 645). Of the 9 candidate quality indicators assessed, 4 were missing for 25-56% of study subjects and were not analyzed further. We discuss the implications of this missing information on feasibility of their use. For blood transfusions of 3 units or greater, length of hospital stay and use of non-nerve-sparing surgical technique, worse outcomes were generally apparent with decreasing hospital volume. Acute complication rates and positive surgical margin rates did not increase with decreasing hospital volume. We were able to demonstrate convergent construct validity for 3 quality indicators. Upon further validation, this readily available information may be applied to aid providers and quality councils to more effectively identify problems and guide change in the management of early prostate cancer.

Background: Public health surveillance for previous Olympic and Paralympic Games have been described in the literature, but surveillance for regional, multisport events on a smaller scale have rarely been explored.

BACKGROUND: As a result of low numbers of pediatric cases early in the COVID-19 pandemic, pediatric household transmission of SARS-CoV-2 remains an understudied topic. This study sought to determine whether there are differences in the odds of household transmission for younger children compared to older children. METHODS: We assembled a cohort of all individuals in Ontario, Canada with laboratory-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection between June 1 and December 31, 2020. The cohort was restricted to individuals residing in private households (N=132,232 cases in 89,191 households), identified through an address matching algorithm. Analysis focused on households in which the index case was aged <18 years. Logistic regression models were fit to estimate the association between age group of pediatric index cases (0-3, 4-8, 9-13, and 14-17 years) and odds of household transmission. RESULTS: A total of 6,280 households had pediatric index cases, and 1,717 (27.3%) experienced secondary transmission. Children aged 0-3 years had the highest odds of household transmission compared to children aged 14-17 years (model adjusted for gender, month of disease onset, testing delay, and average family size: 1.43, 95% CI: 1.17-1.75). This association was similarly observed in sensitivity analyses defining secondary cases as 2-14 days or 4-14 days after the index case, and stratified analyses by presence of symptoms, association with a school/childcare outbreak, or school/childcare reopening. Children aged 4-8 years and 9-13 years also had increased odds of transmission (4-8: 1.40, 95% CI: 1.18-1.67; 9-13: 1.13, 95% CI: 0.97-1.32). CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests that younger children are more likely to transmit SARS-CoV-2 infection compared to older children, and the highest odds of transmission was observed for children aged 0-3 years. Differential infectivity of pediatric age groups has implications for infection prevention controls within households, as well as schools/childcare, to minimize risk of household secondary transmission.

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