No SARS‐CoV‐2 carriage observed in children attending daycare centers during the intial weeks of the epidemic in Belgium

Desmet, Stefanie; Ekinci, Esra; Wouters, Ine; Decru, Bram; Beuselinck, Kurt; Malhotra-Kumar, Surbhi; Theeten, Heidi

doi:10.1002/jmv.26689

Cited by 15 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 33 publications

(52 reference statements)

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“…Despite a regional 7-day incidence of 20 to 152 cases per 100 000 population, the frequency of SARS-CoV-2 infections found in DCCs was very low and comparable to other studies. 18 , 19 , 24 , 25 , 26 , 27 During our study, introduction of SARS-CoV-2 into DCCs occurred mainly via adult index cases. This observation supports early vaccination of CCWs, as has been prioritized in many countries including Germany.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 75%

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Feasibility of SARS-CoV-2 Surveillance Testing Among Children and Childcare Workers at German Day Care Centers

Förster¹,

Streng

Rudolph

et al. 2022

JAMA Netw Open

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IMPORTANCEClosure of day care centers has been implemented globally to contain the COVID-19 pandemic but has negative effects on children's health and psychosocial well-being. OBJECTIVE To investigate the feasibility of surveillance among children and childcare workers and to model the efficacy of surveillance on viral spread prevention. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS This nonrandomized controlled trial was conducted at 9 day care centers in Wuerzburg, Germany, from October 2020 to March 2021. Participants included children attending day care, childcare workers, and household members. Participating day care centers were assigned to different surveillance modules in a nonrandomized feasibility study. A mathematical model for SARS-CoV-2 spread in day care centers was developed to identify optimal surveillance. INTERVENTIONS Modules 1, 2, and 3 involved continuous surveillance of asymptomatic children and childcare workers by SARS-CoV-2 polymerase chain reaction testing of either midturbinate nasal swabs twice weekly (module 1) or once weekly (module 2) or self-sampled saliva samples twice weekly (module 3). Module 4 involved symptom-based, on-demand testing of children, childcare workers, and their household members by oropharyngeal swabs. All participants underwent SARS-CoV-2 antibody status testing before and after the sampling period. Questionnaires on attitudes and perception of the pandemic were administered in weeks 1, 6, and 12. Mathematical modeling was used to estimate SARS-CoV-2 spread in day care centers. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES The primary outcomes were acceptance of the respective surveillance protocols (feasibility study) and the estimated number of secondary infections (mathematical modeling). RESULTS Of 954 eligible individuals (772 children and 182 childcare workers), 592 (62%), including 442 children (median [IQR] age, 3 [2-4] years; 214 [48.6%] female) and 150 childcare workers (median [IQR] age, 29 [25-44] years; 129 [90.8%] female) participated in the surveillance. In total, 4755 tests for SARS-CoV-2 detected 2 infections (1 childcare worker and 1 adult household member). Acceptance for continuous surveillance was highest for biweekly saliva testing (150 of 221 eligible individuals [67.9%; 95% CI, 61.5%-73.7%]) compared with biweekly (51 of 117 individuals [43.6%; 95% CI, 35.0%-52.6%]) and weekly (44 of 128 individuals [34.4%; 95% CI, 26.7%-43.0%]) midturbinate swabbing (P < .001). Dropout rates were higher for midturbinate swabbing (biweekly, 11 of 62 participants [18%]; once weekly, 11 of 55 participants [20%]) than for saliva testing (6 of 156 (continued) Key Points Question Is continuous SARS-CoV-2 testing accepted by children, parents, and childcare workers and can it prevent viral spreading in day care centers? Findings In this nonrandomized controlled trial, surveillance testing for SARS-CoV-2 among 954 eligible individuals was well accepted by children, parents, and childcare workers if saliva sampling at home was used. Mathematical modeling based on study and literature data iden...

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 75%

“…18,19,[24][25][26][27] During our study, introduction of SARS-CoV-2 into DCCs JAMA Network Open | Infectious Diseases SARS…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Feasibility of SARS-CoV-2 Surveillance Testing Among Children and Childcare Workers at German Day Care Centers

Förster¹,

Streng

Rudolph

et al. 2022

JAMA Netw Open

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…The study found no significant differences in SARS-CoV-2 RNA loads between children and adults [ 72 ]. At the same time, another report could not prove SARS-CoV-2 carriage in children attending daycare centres during the initial weeks of the epidemic in Belgium [ 73 ]. Uncertainty over the viral load and secondary attack rate in children prompted views that dramatic public health measures like school closures were not evidence-based, leading to a heated debate over the issue [ 74 - 77 ].…”

Section: Viral Load In Children and Young Peoplementioning

confidence: 99%

The COVID-19 pandemic in children and young people during 2020-2021: Learning about clinical presentation, patterns of spread, viral load, diagnosis and treatment

et al. 2021

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“…We identified 21 studies that reported data on SARS-CoV-2 infections in diverse educational settings, from kindergartens and daycares to primary and high schools (eTable 1 in the Supplement), [12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29] involving more than 120,000 subjects. Fifteen studies were from Europe, 12,13,[15][16][17][19][20][21][22][23][24]27,29,30 five from US, 16,18,25,26,28 one from Israel. 14 Overall, studies documented SARS-CoV-2 positivity rates from the beginning of the pandemic in March 2020 until May 2021, including periods of low and high community transmission.…”

Section: Sars-cov-2 Positivity Rates In Educational Settings (Screening Studies)mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Fifteen studies reported SARS-CoV-2 point prevalence in a total of 112,131 subjects, [12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][30][31][32] including one study providing data collected during two rounds of testing within the COVID-19 Schools Infection Survey. 23 A total of 326 coronavirus infections were detected.…”

Section: Sars-cov-2 Positivity Rates In Educational Settings (Screening Studies)mentioning

confidence: 99%

SARS-CoV-2 circulation in the school setting: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Martinoli

Vecchia

Raimondi

et al. 2021

Preprint

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Background. The contribution of children to viral spread in schools is still under debate. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of studies to investigate SARS-CoV-2 transmission in the school setting. Methods: Literature searches from April, 2021 and repeated on May, 15th 2021 yielded a total of 1088 publications: screening, contact tracing and seroprevalence studies. MOOSE guidelines were followed and data analyzed using random-effects models. Results: From screening studies involving more than 120,000 subjects, we estimated 0.31% (95% Confidence Interval [CI] 0.05-0.81%) SARS-CoV-2 point prevalence in schools. Contact tracing studies, involving a total of 112,622 contacts of children and adults, showed that onward viral transmission was limited (2.54%; 95%CI 0.76-5.31). Young index cases were found to be 74% significantly less likely than adults to favor viral spread (Odds Ratio [OR]=0.26; 95%CI 0.11-0.63) and were less susceptible to infection (OR=0.60; 95% CI 0.25-1.47). Finally, from seroprevalence studies, with a total of 17,879 subjects involved, we estimated that children are 43% significantly less likely than adults to test positive for antibodies (OR=0.57; 95%CI: 0.49-0.68). In conclusion, testing all subjects in schools, independently of symptoms, students less likely than adults favor viral spread and SARS-CoV-2 circulation in schools was found to be limited.

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No SARS‐CoV‐2 carriage observed in children attending daycare centers during the intial weeks of the epidemic in Belgium

Cited by 15 publications

References 33 publications

Feasibility of SARS-CoV-2 Surveillance Testing Among Children and Childcare Workers at German Day Care Centers

Feasibility of SARS-CoV-2 Surveillance Testing Among Children and Childcare Workers at German Day Care Centers

The COVID-19 pandemic in children and young people during 2020-2021: Learning about clinical presentation, patterns of spread, viral load, diagnosis and treatment

SARS-CoV-2 circulation in the school setting: A systematic review and meta-analysis

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