Prolonged SARS-CoV-2 RNA Shedding from Therapy Cat after Cluster Outbreak in Retirement Home.

We report a therapy cat in a nursing home in Germany infected with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 during a cluster outbreak in the home residents. Although we confirmed prolonged presence of virus RNA in the asymptomatic cat, genome sequencing showed no further role of the cat in human infections on site.

[SARS-CoV-2 Infections and Clinical Consequences in a Cohort of Solid Organ Transplant Recipients during the first Wave in Germany - a Single Centre Survey and a Case Report]. / SARS-CoV-2-Infektionen und klinische Konsequenzen bei organtransplantierten Patienten im Rahmen der ersten Ansteckungswelle in Deutschland - eine monozentrische Umfrage und ein Fallbericht.

BACKGROUND: The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has caused an unprecedented global health crisis, with exceptionally high mortality rates in high-risk groups of affected patients. It is alarming that a steadily increasing number of clinical reports on outcomes of COVID-19 in solid organ transplant (SOT) recipients suggests a detrimental impact linked to high overall mortality. However, systematic data on SARS-CoV-2 infections in SOT recipients in Germany are still scarce. MATERIAL AND METHODS: We conducted a survey on SARS-CoV-2 infection status among 387 SOT recipients treated at our centre during the past 5 years - located in a severely affected region in Germany. The survey was sent out two months after the first SARS CoV-2 outbreak in our region had resulted in government-imposed lockdown measures. RESULTS: An incidence rate of 0.4% SARS-CoV-2-positive SOT recipients was determined in our cohort, in line with reported local infection rates in the general population at this time. However, the only SARS CoV-2 infection known to us within this group of patients led to severe morbidity - resulting in prolonged mechanical ventilation, hospitalisation > 60 days and finally in irreversible loss of graft function. CONCLUSION: Our data demonstrate that SOT recipients are at equal risk for SARS-CoV-2 infections when compared to the general population, while SARS-CoV-2 infections in SOT recipients seem to be associated with deleterious clinical consequences.

Results of WICOVIR Gargle Pool PCR Testing in German Schools Based on the First 100,000 Tests.

Background: Opening schools and keeping children safe from SARS-CoV-2 infections at the same time is urgently needed to protect children from direct and indirect consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. To achieve this goal, a safe, efficient, and cost-effective SARS-CoV-2 testing system for schools in addition to standard hygiene measures is necessary. Methods: We implemented the screening WICOVIR concept for schools in the southeast of Germany, which is based on gargling at home, pooling of samples in schools, and assessment of SARS-CoV-2 by pool rRT-PCR, performed decentralized in numerous participating laboratories. Depooling was performed if pools were positive, and results were transmitted with software specifically developed for the project within a day. Here, we report the results after the first 13 weeks in the project. Findings: We developed and implemented the proof-of-concept test system within a pilot phase of 7 weeks based on almost 17,000 participants. After 6 weeks in the main phase of the project, we performed >100,000 tests in total, analyzed in 7,896 pools, identifying 19 cases in >100 participating schools. On average, positive children showed an individual CT value of 31 when identified in the pools. Up to 30 samples were pooled (mean 13) in general, based on school classes and attached school staff. All three participating laboratories detected positive samples reliably with their previously established rRT-PCR standard protocols. When self-administered antigen tests were performed concomitantly in positive cases, only one of these eight tests was positive, and when antigen tests performed after positive pool rRT-PCR results were already known were included, 3 out of 11 truly positive tests were also identified by antigen testing. After 3 weeks of repetitive WICOVIR testing twice weekly, the detection rate of positive children in that cohort decreased significantly from 0.042 to 0.012 (p = 0.008). Interpretation: Repeated gargle pool rRT-PCR testing can be implemented quickly in schools. It is an effective, valid, and well-received test system for schools, superior to antigen tests in sensitivity, acceptance, and costs.