Dataset Information

Mitigation of SARS-CoV-2 transmission at a large public university.

ABSTRACT: In Fall 2020, universities saw extensive transmission of SARS-CoV-2 among their populations, threatening health of the university and surrounding communities, and viability of in-person instruction. Here we report a case study at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where a multimodal "SHIELD: Target, Test, and Tell" program, with other non-pharmaceutical interventions, was employed to keep classrooms and laboratories open. The program included epidemiological modeling and surveillance, fast/frequent testing using a novel low-cost and scalable saliva-based RT-qPCR assay for SARS-CoV-2 that bypasses RNA extraction, called covidSHIELD, and digital tools for communication and compliance. In Fall 2020, we performed >1,000,000 covidSHIELD tests, positivity rates remained low, we had zero COVID-19-related hospitalizations or deaths amongst our university community, and mortality in the surrounding Champaign County was reduced more than 4-fold relative to expected. This case study shows that fast/frequent testing and other interventions mitigated transmission of SARS-CoV-2 at a large public university.

SUBMITTER: Ranoa DRE

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9184485 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

Mitigation of SARS-CoV-2 transmission at a large public university.

Ranoa Diana Rose E DRE Holland Robin L RL Alnaji Fadi G FG Green Kelsie J KJ Wang Leyi L Fredrickson Richard L RL Wang Tong T Wong George N GN Uelmen Johnny J Maslov Sergei S Weiner Zachary J ZJ Tkachenko Alexei V AV Zhang Hantao H Liu Zhiru Z Ibrahim Ahmed A Patel Sanjay J SJ Paul John M JM Vance Nickolas P NP Gulick Joseph G JG Satheesan Sandeep Puthanveetil SP Galvan Isaac J IJ Miller Andrew A Grohens Joseph J Nelson Todd J TJ Stevens Mary P MP Hennessy P Mark PM Parker Robert C RC Santos Edward E Brackett Charles C Steinman Julie D JD Fenner Melvin R MR Dohrer Kirstin K DeLorenzo Michael M Wilhelm-Barr Laura L Brauer Brian R BR Best-Popescu Catherine C Durack Gary G Wetter Nathan N Kranz David M DM Breitbarth Jessica J Simpson Charlie C Pryde Julie A JA Kaler Robin N RN Harris Chris C Vance Allison C AC Silotto Jodi L JL Johnson Mark M Valera Enrique Andres EA Anton Patricia K PK Mwilambwe Lowa L Bryan Stephen P SP Stone Deborah S DS Young Danita B DB Ward Wanda E WE Lantz John J Vozenilek John A JA Bashir Rashid R Moore Jeffrey S JS Garg Mayank M Cooper Julian C JC Snyder Gillian G Lore Michelle H MH Yocum Dustin L DL Cohen Neal J NJ Novakofski Jan E JE Loots Melanie J MJ Ballard Randy L RL Band Mark M Banks Kayla M KM Barnes Joseph D JD Bentea Iuliana I Black Jessica J Busch Jeremy J Conte Abigail A Conte Madison M Curry Michael M Eardley Jennifer J Edwards April A Eggett Therese T Fleurimont Judes J Foster Delaney D Fouke Bruce W BW Gallagher Nicholas N Gastala Nicole N Genung Scott A SA Glueck Declan D Gray Brittani B Greta Andrew A Healy Robert M RM Hetrick Ashley A Holterman Arianna A AA Ismail Nahed N Jasenof Ian I Kelly Patrick P Kielbasa Aaron A Kiesel Teresa T Kindle Lorenzo M LM Lipking Rhonda L RL Manabe Yukari C YC Mayes Jade J McGuffin Reubin R McHenry Kenton G KG Mirza Agha A Moseley Jada J Mostafa Heba H HH Mumford Melody M Munoz Kathleen K Murray Arika D AD Nolan Moira M Parikh Nil A NA Pekosz Andrew A Pflugmacher Janna J Phillips Janise M JM Pitts Collin C Potter Mark C MC Quisenberry James J Rear Janelle J Robinson Matthew L ML Rosillo Edith E Rye Leslie N LN Sherwood MaryEllen M Simon Anna A Singson Jamie M JM Skadden Carly C Skelton Tina H TH Smith Charlie C Stech Mary M Thomas Ryan R Tomaszewski Matthew A MA Tyburski Erika A EA Vanwingerden Scott S Vlach Evette E Watkins Ronald S RS Watson Karriem K White Karen C KC Killeen Timothy L TL Jones Robert J RJ Cangellaris Andreas C AC Martinis Susan A SA Vaid Awais A Brooke Christopher B CB Walsh Joseph T JT Elbanna Ahmed A Sullivan William C WC Smith Rebecca L RL Goldenfeld Nigel N Fan Timothy M TM Hergenrother Paul J PJ Burke Martin D MD

Nature communications 20220609 1

In Fall 2020, universities saw extensive transmission of SARS-CoV-2 among their populations, threatening health of the university and surrounding communities, and viability of in-person instruction. Here we report a case study at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where a multimodal "SHIELD: Target, Test, and Tell" program, with other non-pharmaceutical interventions, was employed to keep classrooms and laboratories open. The program included epidemiological modeling and surveillanc ...[more]

PMID: 35680861

Similar Datasets

Project description:ImportanceSARS-CoV-2, the causative agent of COVID-19, has displayed person-to-person transmission in a variety of indoor situations. This potential for robust transmission has posed significant challenges and concerns for day-to-day activities of colleges and universities where indoor learning is a focus for students, faculty, and staff.ObjectiveTo assess whether in-class instruction without any physical distancing, but with other public health mitigation strategies, is a risk for driving SARS-CoV-2 transmission.Design, setting, and participantsThis cohort study examined the evidence for SARS-CoV-2 transmission on a large urban US university campus using contact tracing, class attendance, and whole genome sequencing during the 2021 fall semester. Eligible participants were on-campus and off-campus individuals involved in campus activities. Data were analyzed between September and December 2021.ExposuresParticipation in class and work activities on a campus with mandated vaccination and indoor masking but that was otherwise fully open without physical distancing during a time of ongoing transmission of SARS-CoV-2, both at the university and in the surrounding counties.Main outcomes and measuresLikelihood of in-class infection was assessed by measuring the genetic distance between all potential in-class transmission pairings using polymerase chain reaction testing.ResultsMore than 600 000 polymerase chain reaction tests were conducted throughout the semester, with 896 tests (0.1%) showing detectable SARS-CoV-2; there were over 850 cases of SARS-CoV-2 infection identified through weekly surveillance testing of all students and faculty on campus during the fall 2021 semester. The rolling mean average of positive tests ranged between 4 and 27 daily cases. Of more than 140 000 in-person class events and a total student population of 33 000 between graduate and undergraduate students, only 9 instances of potential in-class transmission were identified, accounting for 0.0045% of all classroom meetings.Conclusions and relevanceIn this cohort study, the data suggested that under robust transmission abatement strategies, in-class instruction was not an appreciable source of disease transmission.

Project description:Public transport environments are thought to play a key role in the spread of SARS-CoV-2 worldwide. Indeed, high crowding indexes (i.e. high numbers of people relative to the vehicle size), inadequate clean air supply, and frequent extended exposure durations make transport environments potential hotspots for transmission of respiratory infections. During the COVID-19 pandemic, generic mitigation measures (e.g. physical distancing) have been applied without also considering the airborne transmission route. This is due to the lack of quantified data about airborne contagion risk in transport environments. In this study, we apply a novel combination of close proximity and room-scale risk assessment approaches for people sharing public transport environments to predict their contagion risk due to SARS-CoV-2 respiratory infection. In particular, the individual infection risk of susceptible subjects and the transmissibility of SARS-CoV-2 (expressed through the reproduction number) are evaluated for two types of buses, differing in terms of exposure time and crowding index: urban and long-distance buses. Infection risk and reproduction number are calculated for different scenarios as a function of the ventilation rates (both measured and estimated according to standards), crowding indexes, and travel times. The results show that for urban buses, the close proximity contribution significantly affects the maximum occupancy to maintain a reproductive number of <1. In particular, full occupancy of the bus would be permitted only for an infected subject breathing, whereas for an infected subject speaking, masking would be required. For long-distance buses, full occupancy of the bus can be maintained only if specific mitigation solutions are simultaneously applied. For example, for an infected person speaking for 1 h, appropriate filtration of the recirculated air and simultaneous use of FFP2 masks would permit full occupancy of the bus for a period of almost 8 h. Otherwise, a high percentage of immunized persons (>80%) would be needed.

Dataset Information

Mitigation of SARS-CoV-2 transmission at a large public university.

Publications

Mitigation of SARS-CoV-2 transmission at a large public university.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

Tweets