
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, according to Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, like most of the rest of the world, European countries have been debating whether to reopen schools and how to best protect students and teachers. Public Health England conducted enhanced surveillance among schools that reopened between June 1-July 31 in order to provide better information regarding SARS-CoV-2 transmission risk in school settings. While approximately 80% of schools remained open in some capacity during the UK lockdown to support certain priority groups (eg, children of healthcare workers), the vast majority of children did not attend in-person classes. In June, the number of students attending schools increased from 475,000 to more than 1.6 million.
The researchers identified 198 total COVID-19 cases over the study period, including 121 linked to 30 different outbreaks and 67 individual cases (ie, not linked to transmission in schools). An additional 10 cases were reported as “co-primary” cases, which were detected at the same time and had a common epidemiological link (eg, to a parent). Of these cases, 70 were students, and 128 were staff members. The study found a strong correlation between COVID-19 incidence in the region and the number of outbreaks in schools. The authors concluded that schools were associated with relatively few COVID-19 outbreaks after the easing of the lockdown, and the outbreaks that did occur were more likely to involve staff members. As a result of the correlation between school-based outbreaks and community transmission, the researchers emphasized the importance of community-based risk mitigation measures (eg, mask use, physical and social distancing). While the study provides evidence that schools do not drive transmission, Dr. Shamez Ladhani, one of the study’s authors, noted that the results reflect only data that were gathered right after the lockdown ended. Class sizes were very small at the time, and school-based transmission principally affected adult staff.
While it is possible that schools are not major drivers of transmission, Dr. Hans Kluge, the WHO Regional Director for Europe, stated that there is increasing evidence of children infecting others at social gatherings and that incidence among young people is increasing. The WHO recently advised that children 12 years and older should wear a mask under the same conditions as adults in order to mitigate transmission risk. As winter approaches in the Northern Hemisphere, there are concerns that increased close contact between children and more vulnerable older adults could lead to a rise in incidence and deaths.
In Germany, schools are beginning to reopen, with the majority of students returning for in-person classes. To mitigate transmission risk, German schools are reportedly focusing on improved ventilation and cohorting students (ie, keeping classes separate). The decision to bring all students back at once hinged partly on the number of available teachers, which did not support efforts to split students into smaller groups. Interestingly, masks are required on most school grounds in Germany, but not necessarily in classrooms in order to help students concentrate.