Retrospective cohort study of COVID-19 among children in Fulton County, Georgia, March 2020-June 2021.
BMJ Paediatr Open
; 5(1)2021 12.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-35471855
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE:
To describe case rates, testing rates and percent positivity of COVID-19 among children aged 0-18 years by school-age grouping.DESIGN:
We abstracted data from Georgia's State Electronic Notifiable Disease Surveillance System on all 10 437 laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 cases among children aged 0-18 years during 30 March 2020 to 6 June 2021. We examined case rates, testing rates and percent positivity by school-aged groupings, namely preschool (0-4 years), elementary school (5-10 years), middle school (11-13 years), and high school (14-18 years) and compared these data among school-aged children with those in the adult population (19 years and older).SETTING:
Fulton County, Georgia. MAIN OUTCOMEMEASURES:
COVID-19 case rates, testing rates and percent positivity.RESULTS:
Over time, the proportion of paediatric cases rose substantially from 1.1% (April 2020) to 21.6% (April 2021) of all cases in the county. Age-specific case rates and test rates were consistently highest among high-school aged children. Test positivity was similar across school-age groups, with periods of higher positivity among high-school aged children.CONCLUSIONS:
Low COVID-19 testing rates among children, especially early in the pandemic, likely underestimated the true burden of disease in this age group. Despite children having lower measured incidence of COVID-19, we found when broader community incidence increased, incidence also increased among all paediatric age groups. As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to evolve, it remains critical to continue learning about the incidence and transmissibility of COVID-19 in children.Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
COVID-19
Tipo de estudo:
Diagnostic_studies
/
Etiology_studies
/
Observational_studies
Limite:
Adult
/
Child
/
Child, preschool
/
Humans
País/Região como assunto:
America do norte
Idioma:
En
Ano de publicação:
2021
Tipo de documento:
Article