In a recent study published in Emerging Infectious Diseases, researchers assessed an increase in severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infections among college students immediately after returning to college in September 2020. The students moved to their universities for the new academic term during the 2019 Coronavirus Disease Pandemic (COVID-19) in England.
Study: Effect of returning college students on COVID-19 infections in England, 2020. Image credit: BGStock72 / Shutterstock
Fund
In the United Kingdom (UK), college students move to their universities in September at the beginning of the new academic quarter, which coincided with the increase in COVID-19 cases in the country during this period. Although some universities in the United Kingdom (UK) preferred online teaching, some universities required students to be present in person. Unfortunately, immediately after the start of the new academic term, outbreaks of SARS-CoV-2 associated with universities occurred.
About the study
In the present study, researchers evaluated the increase in cases and outbreaks of COVID-19 in the return of students to their universities for the new academic quarter from September 2020 during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic.
SARS-CoV-2-positive students (patients with student cases) were identified based on contact tracking records and their attendance at the university. Patients with cases of students residing in university accommodation were identified by matching their residential addresses with national property databases. People with SARS-CoV-2 positive were asked about their activities and events within a week before the onset of symptoms of COVID-19 / test date, which included data on their attendance at educational environments.
To identify university attendees among the patients in the case, those with positive reports for SARS-CoV-2 were linked to National Health Service (NHS) test and exposure data. Contact tracking and case patient data were linked by SARS-CoV-2 positive sample number, date of birth, and NHS number.
Accommodation types were identified by matching the case patient address with the Ordnance Survey Address Base Premium database, where each address is assigned a unique property reference number (UPRN) that allows patients to be mapped. of the case in a specific area of ​​residence. Age-specific case rates between cities with universities that did not use the National Statistics Office (ONS) 2019 half-year estimates were compared. COVID-19 case rates were compared between patients with cases of students and the rest of the population, and the geographical regions with the highest number of cases were determined.
Results
Between 1 September 2020 and 31 December 2020, 1,999,180 cases of COVID-19 were reported in England, of which 53,430 (2.7%) were patients with student cases. After the start of the new academic term (in September), there has been a rapid increase in patients with student cases from 0.7% to 7.8% from September to October. The increase in COVID-19 cases was initially driven by SARS-CoV-2 cases and outbreaks in college student accommodation, most pronounced in people aged 18 to 23 (student population), and was twice as high. great in cities with universities.
In the student population, cases increased from 11 cases of COVID-19 / 100,000 individuals to 99 cases of COVID-19 / 100,000 individuals between September 1, 2020 and October 1, 2020. same period, the rate of COVID-19 cases among the remaining population of England increased from three to 13 cases of COVID-19 per 100,000 people. At the beginning of the academic quarter, between 60% and 70% of patients with student cases lived in student accommodation, which was reduced to 20% to 30% after mid-November.
The mean ages of patients with student cases and all case patients were 20 years and 37 years, respectively, and a higher proportion of women among student case patients (57% women vs. 53% men). ). Most patients with student cases were reported in Nottingham, Sheffield, Bristol, Manchester, Birmingham and Leeds. Most patients with cases of students residing in student accommodation were reported in Nottingham, Sheffield, York, Newcastle and Coventry.
Outbreaks of SARS-CoV-2 in student accommodation continued for six days compared to two days in other accommodations. Outbreaks involving students showed an upward trend, from 0.7% to 7.3% in September 2020, but decreased to 1% in December 2020. In November, an increase was observed. significant reduction in COVID-19 cases after the second period of national restrictions on university cities. ; however, rates rose in December following the lifting of restrictions.
Conclusion
In summary, the unprecedented increase in COVID-19 cases among college students after the start of their tenure, probably due to the physical and social interactions of students in enclosed spaces during the cooler week of college, was reduced by the application of national restrictions on COVID-19. The study highlights the need for strict preventive measures to reduce the transmission of SARS-CoV-2.