Study: Colleges can prevent 96 pc of COVID-19 infections with common measures ANI | Updated: Jan 13, 2021 17:02 IST
Washington [US], January 13 (ANI): The combined effectiveness of three COVID-prevention strategies on college campuses mask-wearing, social distancing, and routine testing are as effective in preventing coronavirus infections as the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), according to a new study.
The study was co-authored by a Case Western Reserve University researcher.
The research, published in Annals of Internal Medicine, has immediate significance as college semesters are poised to start again and as the distribution of approved vaccines lags behind goals.
Harvard Medical School researchers found that a combination of wearing masks and practicing social distancing can reduce student and faculty Covid-19 infections on college campuses by roughly 87 percent, according to a peer-reviewed study published last week.
The study, which was published on Dec. 21 in the Annals of Internal Medicine, used a dynamic microsimulation model to project the clinical and economic outcomes of different intervention strategies over the course of one semester, or 105 days.
Researchers measured outcomes by projected infections per 5,000 undergraduate students and 1,000 faculty in addition to days in isolation, test counts, test costs, costs per infection prevented, and cost per quality-adjusted life year, which incorporates health-related quality of life.
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Boston As colleges and universities consider strategies for the spring semester to keep COVID-19 cases down, a study conducted by experts in epidemic modeling may help shed light on what mitigation strategies may be most effective, both in terms of infections prevented and cost. Investigators from Brigham and Women s Hospital, Massachusetts General Hospital and Case Western Reserve University used the Clinical and Economic Analysis of COVID-19 interventions (CEACOV) model to perform their study, finding that combining a mandatory mask-wearing policy with extensive social distancing would prevent 87 percent of infections among students and faculty. Routine testing was also highly effective at preventing infections, but may be cost prohibitive for many colleges and universities. The team also reports that, even if campuses remain closed, there would likely be infections among faculty acquired from the surrounding community, as well as infections among students who return to
Date Time
Modeling Study Suggests That Mitigation Efforts Can Prevent Most COVID-19 Cases on College Campuses
Analysis examined alternative strategies, finding that mandatory mask- wearing and social distancing are very cost effective
Routine testing can prevent infections, but at higher cost
Boston As colleges and universities consider strategies for the spring semester to keep COVID-19 cases down, a study conducted by experts in epidemic modeling may help shed light on what mitigation strategies may be most effective, both in terms of infections prevented and cost. Investigators from Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Massachusetts General Hospital and Case Western Reserve University used the Clinical and Economic Analysis of COVID-19 interventions (CEACOV) model to perform their study, finding that combining a mandatory mask-wearing policy with extensive social distancing would prevent 87 percent of infections among students and faculty. Routine testing was also highly effecti