Compiled by veteran medical journalist Brian Owens, this roundup of some of the newest science on the COVID-19 pandemic, straight from the scientific journals, is presented by Hakai Magazine in partnership with The Tyee.
What are the risks from reopening schools?
One of the biggest questions facing governments is how, or even if, they can safely reopen schools and daycares. Making decisions, however, is complicated by the scientific information available, which can be contradictory.
One recent study in the United States, for instance, found that school closures were associated with a significant drop in the numbers of cases and deaths from COVID-19. The earlier the schools closed, the larger the effect.
But a review of several studies by researchers at McMaster University in Ontario found that children under 10 were unlikely to drive outbreaks of COVID-19 in daycares or schools. When children under 10 were infected, transmission was often traced back to adults in the community and home, even in jurisdictions where schools remained open or have since reopened.
Then again, another study found that children under five with mild or moderate COVID-19 symptoms have a higher viral load than older children and adults, suggesting that the youngest children can transmit the virus just as much as other age groups.
A U.S. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine report, however, recommends that school districts prioritize reopening with an emphasis on providing in-person instruction for students in kindergarten to Grade 5, as well as for students with special needs. The report also highlights the fact that for schools to open with effective safety measures, they’ll need more funding.
National Collaborating Centre for Methods and Tools, July 24, 2020
JAMA Pediatrics, July 30, 2020
JAMA, July 29, 2020 (summary of National Academies report)
Racial disparities go beyond income inequality
Poverty is only one reason non-white communities experience higher COVID-19 caseloads — a new study suggests race is another factor. Researchers found that even among communities with higher median incomes, predominantly non-white communities have still borne a greater disease burden. Non-white communities have almost three times the number of cases and deaths compared to majority white neighbourhoods. The researchers suggest that structural racism underlies the disparity in outcomes between white and predominantly non-white communities.
JAMA Network Open, July 28, 2020
How to get people to use contact tracing apps
The Canadian government’s contact tracing app is being rolled out across the country, but it will only be effective if a critical mass of people are willing to use it. To ensure mass acceptance, researchers in Europe have found that apps should be designed to protect users’ privacy, be user friendly, and have low battery consumption. They also found that emphasizing the benefits to society, rather than the individual, is more effective at convincing people to use the app.
European Journal of Information Systems, July 27, 2020
Prevention is cheaper than cure
Preventing the emergence of new infectious diseases like COVID-19 by protecting tropical forests would be about 500 times cheaper than fighting diseases after they emerge. Looking at existing research, scientists found that significantly reducing the transmission of new diseases from tropical forests would cost between US$22.2 and $30.7 billion each year. In contrast, they found that the COVID-19 pandemic will likely end up costing between US$8.1 and $15.8 trillion globally. The destruction of tropical forests leads to the rise of new diseases by bringing people into closer contact with wild animals.
Risk of blood clots in women
COVID-19 may increase the risk of blot cots in women who are pregnant, taking birth control with estrogen, or engaged in hormone replacement therapy. Both COVID-19 and estrogen increase the risk of blood clots, so women infected with COVID-19 may need to undergo anticoagulation therapy or discontinue their estrogen medicines.
Wearing masks means less face touching
People who wear a mask are less likely to touch their face, especially their eyes, nose and mouth, according to a study that used videos recorded in public transportation, on the street, and in parks in Asia, Europe and the United States. The researchers say that mask wearing may therefore help reduce transmission of COVID-19 both from oral droplets and from direct contact.
JAMA Network Open, July 29, 2020
Pandemic mobility varies by income
Anonymized data from mobile devices in the U.S. shows that the reduction in mobility that people experience during the pandemic is strongly influenced by income. Wealthier communities went from being the most mobile to the least mobile. People in poorer areas also became less mobile, but not as much as those from richer communities. As a result, people in poorer communities have gone from being the least mobile to the most mobile. The researchers suggest this is because lower-income communities tend to have more essential workers who cannot work from home, compared with people in more affluent areas. The results confirm that poorer people experience a double burden during a pandemic: compared with more affluent people they are likelier to have pre-existing health conditions, which make them vulnerable to COVID-19, and yet, as essential workers, they cannot practice physical distancing to protect their health.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, July 29, 2020
Health-care workers still risk infection despite PPE
Even with adequate personal protective equipment, frontline health-care workers have a three-fold increased risk of contracting COVID-19 compared to the general population. Those with inadequate protection had an even greater risk. Workers from Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds were more likely to test positive.
The Lancet Public Health, July 31, 2020
Emergency room visits plunged as COVID-19 rose
Compared with January and February, visits to U.S. hospital emergency departments in March and April dropped significantly as people stayed home because of the pandemic. At the low end, visits fell by 41.5 per cent in Colorado and by 63.5 per cent in New York. The researchers say that public health authorities need to make clear that, even during a pandemic, it’s crucial for people to continue visiting the emergency department for serious injuries and illnesses.
JAMA Internal Medicine, August 3, 2020 ![[Tyee]](/design-article.thetyee.ca/ui/img/yellowblob.png){kind=small}
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