Dataset Information

SARS-CoV-2 transmissions in students and teachers: seroprevalence follow-up study in a German secondary school in November and December 2020.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

To quantify the number of undetected SARS-CoV-2 infections in educational settings.

Design

Serial SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence study before and during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Setting

Secondary school in Dresden, Germany.

Participants

Grade 8-12 students and their teachers were invited to participate in serial blood sampling and SARS-CoV-2 IgG antibody assessment.

Main outcome measure

Seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in study population.

Results

247 students and 55 teachers participated in the initial study visit and 197 students and 40 teachers completed follow-up. Seroprevalence increased from 1.7% (0.3-3.3) to 6.8% (3.8-10.1) during the study period mirroring the increase of officially reported SARS-CoV-2 infections during this time. The ratio of undetected to detected SARS-CoV-2 infections ranged from 0.25 to 0.33.

Conclusions

We could not find evidence of relevant silent, asymptomatic spread of SARS-CoV-2 in schools neither in a low prevalence setting nor during the second wave of the pandemic, making it unlikely that educational settings play a crucial role in driving the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic.

Trial registration number

DRKS00022455.

SUBMITTER: Armann JP

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7992381 | biostudies-literature | 2021

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

SARS-CoV-2 transmissions in students and teachers: seroprevalence follow-up study in a German secondary school in November and December 2020.

Armann Jakob Peter JP Kirsten Carolin C Galow Lukas L Kahre Elisabeth E Haag Luise L Dalpke Alexander A Lück Christian C Berner Reinhard R

BMJ paediatrics open 20210324 1

<h4>Objective</h4>To quantify the number of undetected SARS-CoV-2 infections in educational settings.<h4>Design</h4>Serial SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence study before and during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.<h4>Setting</h4>Secondary school in Dresden, Germany.<h4>Participants</h4>Grade 8-12 students and their teachers were invited to participate in serial blood sampling and SARS-CoV-2 IgG antibody assessment.<h4>Main outcome measure</h4>Seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in study pop ...[more]

PMID: 34192197

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Project description:During September to December 2021, school mask policies to mitigate SARS-CoV-2 transmission varied throughout the US. We compared infection-induced seroprevalence estimates and estimated seroconversion among children residing in areas with and without school mask requirements. We estimated infection-induced seroprevalence among children in three age groups (5-17, 5-11, and 12-17 years) in areas with and without school district mask requirements for two time points: September 1-30, 2021 and December 15, 2021 to January 14, 2022. Robust Poisson regression models estimated population seroconversion over the semester among initially seronegative children. Permutation tests assessed for significant differences in the estimated population seroconversion due to incident infections by school district mask policy. Residing in an area with no school mask requirement was associated with higher infection-induced seroprevalence among children aged 5-17 years (adjusted prevalence ratio [aPR] = 1.18, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.10, 1.26), and those aged 5-11 years (aPR) = 1.21, 95% CI: 1.10, 1.32) and those aged 12-17 years (aPR = 1.16, 95% CI: 1.07, 1.26), compared with areas requiring masks in school. Estimated population seroconversion during the semester was also significantly higher among children in districts without mask policies than those with school mask requirements among all age groups (5-17 years: 23.7% vs 18.1%, P < 0.001; 5-11 years: 6.4% vs 4.5%, P = 0.002;12-17 years: 27.2% vs 21.0%, P < 0.001). During the U.S. Fall 2021 semester, areas with school mask requirements had lower infection-induced seroprevalence and an estimated lower proportion of seroconversion due to incident infection among school-aged children compared with areas without school mask requirements; causality cannot necessarily be inferred from these associations.ImportanceDuring the U.S. Fall 2021 school semester, the estimated proportion of previously uninfected school-aged children who experienced a first infection with SARS-CoV-2 was lower in areas where public school district policies required masks for all staff and students compared with areas where the school districts had no mask requirements. Because children are more likely than adults to experience asymptomatic or mild SARS-CoV-2 infections, the presence of infection-induced antibodies is a more accurate measure of infection history than clinical testing. The proportion of children with these antibodies (i.e., seroprevalence) can improve our understanding of SARS-CoV-2 by detecting more infections and eliminating potential bias due to local testing and reporting practices. Enhanced robustness of surveillance for respiratory infections in children, including records of mitigation policies in communities and schools, as well as seroprevalence data, would establish a better evidence base for policy decisions and response measures during future respiratory outbreaks.

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Dataset Information

SARS-CoV-2 transmissions in students and teachers: seroprevalence follow-up study in a German secondary school in November and December 2020.

Objective

Design

Setting

Participants

Main outcome measure

Results

Conclusions

Trial registration number

Publications

SARS-CoV-2 transmissions in students and teachers: seroprevalence follow-up study in a German secondary school in November and December 2020.

Similar Datasets

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