Study ensures school closures are second most effective measure to reduce infections – Telam

Statistical research published in the Scientific Journal Nature ensures that the closure of educational institutions is in second place, with 73% contributing to the reduction of R, that is, the number that indicates how many people an infected person can infect. Coronavirus, Health sources in Buenos Aires reported this Thursday.

The study, which was conducted in 79 territories and was subsequently validated with external data from 226 countries, aimed to rank the effectiveness of non-pharmaceutical intervention measures (NPIs) used by governments to stop drug abuse. spread of the virus.

According to the Ministry of Health of Buenos Aires, Thursday, in this study, more than six thousand implemented measures were analyzed, among which travel restrictions, social distancing, individual protection measures, self-isolation , school closures and ban on events.

The most effective measures

The study concluded that an appropriate combination of NPIs is needed to slow the spread of the virus: “The least disruptive and inexpensive measures can be as effective as the most intrusive and drastic (eg, a nationwide lockdown)” , but it always depends on the local context as well as on the time of its adoption.

Regarding the most effective measures, the text indicates that 6 categories were found which show the greatest impact on R t: “they are manifested by small cancellations of meetings (83%, Δ R t between −0.22 and – 0.35), the closure of educational institutions (73%, Δ R t between −0.15 and −0.21) and border restrictions (56%, Δ R t between −0.057 and –0.23 ) ”.

They also include INP which aim to increase medical and public health capacities (greater availability of personal protective equipment (PPE): 51%, Δ R t −0.062 to −0.13), individual movement restrictions ( 42%, Δ R t −0.08 to −0.13) and national lockdown (including stay at home order in US states) (25%, Δ R t −0.008 to −0.14) “, Says the study.

The most effective measures that have been observed are those which “include curfews, lockdowns and the closure of closed and regulated places”“

In conclusion, the most effective measures that have been observed are those which “include curfews, confinements and the closure of confined and small places where people congregate in greater or lesser numbers for an extended period”.

“That is to say cancellations of small meetings (closure of shops, restaurants, meetings of 50 people or less, compulsory home work) and closure of educational establishments,” says one of the province.

Schools

With regard to schools, the work explains that previous studies do not attribute the effect of the spread of the virus, but that current evidence indicates that the closure of schools in the United States has reduced the incidence of Covid- 19 and 60% mortality.

Likewise, in South Korea, adolescents between the ages of 10 and 19 have been identified as the people most likely to spread the virus, earlier than adults and children at home.

The study questions the fact that there must be “a balance between drastic measures and those with less impact to avoid harmful consequences, because less drastic measures can also promote better public compliance. “.

Finally, the study recommends that governments first consider the least restrictive NPI, adapted to the local context, and that in the event that the number of infections increases (or increases for the second time, as in our country), before choosing the most intrusive options.