Researchers surveyed 6,654 childcare professionals in the spring of 2020 and 2021 and found that child masking was associated with a 13% lower risk of childcare program closures in 2021. Conversely, the study found that 6-ft social distancing measures had no relation to closures. This suggests that masking may be important for enabling safe, in-person education in early childhood settings.
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In addition to describing the risks of COVID-19 infection faced by the unvaccinated, this article also presents the latest research on vaccine efficacy for those who are inoculated. It explains that all approved vaccines continue to provide strong protection for most vaccinated people against hospitalization and death but are less effective in protecting older adults, especially those with underlying medical conditions.
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Researchers studied 915 children and teenagers from July to August 2021 who were hospitalized and tested positive for COVID-19. Of those, three quarters were hospitalized for complications resulting from COVID-19. About half needed help breathing, and nearly a third were placed in intensive care. Hospitalization rates were 10 times higher among unvaccinated adolescents compared with fully vaccinated adolescents.
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A recent study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention looking at two different data sources found that children and teens who have had COVID-19 are about two times more likely to be at risk of being newly diagnosed with diabetes—including type 1, type 2, and other types of diabetes—than those who never tested positive for the virus.
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A peer-reviewed study published in Nature investigated brain changes in 785 participants aged 51-81, 401 of whom caught COVID-19. Even in mild COVID cases, participants showed worsening of executive function and brain shrinkages of 0.2-2%.
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This research summary of 11 studies reveals that early learning programs are not associated with an increased risk of COVID-19 infection when providers follow proper mitigation measures.
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While there is no definitive answer yet, a growing number of studies suggest that getting a COVID vaccine can reduce — though not eliminate — the risk of longer-term symptoms. While the evidence is not yet conclusive, it is clear that vaccines offer protection against infections and hospitalizations, which in turn decreases the chances of getting long COVID.
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While there are relatively few studies about long COVID in children, research suggests that younger people are developing long COVID in significant numbers. The UK Office for National Statistics estimates that 44,000 children ages 2–11 in the country have long COVID, as do 73,000 12–16-year-olds. However, research on long COVID in children is lacking. Studies on adults have found that the impacts of long COVID can be significant: between one-fifth and one-third of those with long COVID remain ill at least 12 weeks after a diagnosis of COVID-19, and a significant number continue to experience symptoms many months later.
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Contrary to assumptions that the Omicron variant causes milder symptoms, a new large-scale study finds that the Omicron COVID variant is as severe as previous variants after accounting for vaccination status and medical risk factors. The study linked Massachusetts’ state-level vaccination data with quality-controlled electronic health records from a large healthcare system, including 13 hospitals in the state. Findings highlight the efficacy of vaccines in protecting people from severe COVID.
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Omicron Was More Severe for Unvaccinated Children in 5-to-11 Age Group, Study Shows | New York Times
A recent study found that unvaccinated children ages 5-11 were hospitalized with COVID-19 at twice the rate of vaccinated children during the winter Omicron variant surge. Black children accounted for about a third of unvaccinated children, the largest of any racial group.
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A new study from the CDC finds that while the Pfizer vaccination did not protect as well from COVID-19 infection with the omicron variant, they continued to keep most kids aged 5 and older out of the hospital and provide good protection against more severe outcomes.
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According to a study of more than 700 people who visited a walk-up testing site in San Francisco, the widely used at-home, nasal-swab COVID-19 test can detect most people who are infected with the new Omicron variant and are carrying high levels of the virus.
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This study, which analyzed data of 2,293 children who were hospitalized due to COVID-19 from March 2020 to May 2021, found that nearly a third of hospitalized children had severe COVID-19 and 0.5% died during hospitalization. Risk factors associated with severe COVID-19 include chronic lung disease and obesity.
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This review of research on COVID-19, updated to reflect recent research on physical distancing and the authorization of vaccines for children ages 5-11, finds that implementing multilayered mitigation strategies can limit in-school transmission. However, research shows that school outbreaks can and do occur when mitigation strategies are not implemented or followed.
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A study conducted from late July to mid December 2021 found that school districts with universal masking were less likely to experience COVID-19 spreading in their schools when compared to school districts with optional masking. After accounting for school size, masked schools saw up to 87% less transmission.
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The Omicron BA.2 subvariant is 30-50% more contagious than BA.1 and is now the dominant COVID-19 strain in the US. The Omicron variant is more infectious because of its resistance to immune defenses. This article also points out that the easing of COVID restrictions has also contributed to the high transmission of the variant.
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Research finds that hospitalizations have soared to 2–4 times the rate of previous peaks for children under the age of 5, who are not eligible for the COVID vaccine. High hospitalization rates may be due to Omicron’s contagious nature and the variant’s preference for the airway passages above the lungs, which can be more easily blocked in small children.
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This regularly-updated summary emphasizes that the Delta Variant is far more contagious but that vaccines, in combination with masking, remain the best form of protection.
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This webpage includes executive summaries of the most up-to-date research involving children and COVID-19, including the top 10 epidemiological papers on transmission.
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This research synthesis summarizes findings from international studies on the health and transmission rates of early childhood and elementary-age students. These students contract the virus at lower rates and have less severe symptoms.
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This study tracked more than 23,000 students and staff in 77 schools for the first 21 weeks of school reopening in fall 2020. It found that students returning to in-person school did not drive an increased COVID-19 case rate in the community. Findings suggest that the schools' strict adherence to mitigation strategies, such as proper masking on school grounds, was effective at minimizing transmissions.
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This study concludes that a rapid-testing program (Test to Play + Test to Stay) in Utah high schools helped to keep schools open and allowed extracurricular activities to continue, resulting in over 100,000 instructional days saved across the state.
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In this study of over 50,000 U.S. child care programs, there was no association between exposure to child care and COVID-19. Findings should be interpreted within the context of the mitigation strategies—including small group sizes, cohorting, frequent handwashing and disinfection, symptom screening, and social distancing.
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Most COVID-19 deaths occur among adults; however, a tragic consequence of adult deaths is the loss of parents and other adult caregivers among children. This study, which examines data from April 1, 2020, through June 30, 2021, offers state-specific findings, disaggregated by race and ethnicity, for COVID-2019–associated orphanhood. It found that more than 140,000 children in the United States experienced the death of a parent or grandparent caregiver. The risk of such loss was 1.1 to 4.5 times higher among children of racial and ethnic minority groups compared with non-Hispanic white children.
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This article synthesizes several studies to emphasize that there is little evidence of schools contributing to increased community transmission. The authors recommend restricting indoor dining and indoor sports when cases are high in order to reduce community spread and keep schools open.
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This brief compiles information on health and safety guidelines—focusing on attendance, social distancing, hygiene, and cleaning—employed by five countries (China, Denmark, Norway, Singapore, and Taiwan) when they reopened schools in spring 2020.
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This survey study of more than 500,000 U.S. households finds that after schools implemented seven or more mitigation strategies, there was no longer a relationship between attending school and contracting COVID-19.
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This study of 335 schools in 6 states found that pooled PCR (nose swab) routine testing reduced in-school transmission as long as schools had considerable support, including detailed operational guidance, resources, and community buy-in.
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After studying 11 North Carolina school districts (100,000 students/staff) over 9 weeks of in-person instruction, researchers found that within-school infections were extremely rare. There were no instances of child-to-adult transmission from August 15 to October 23, 2020.
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This national survey of parents suggests that vaccine uptake among 12-17 year olds may have slowed and shows that a third of parents plan to wait and see before vaccinating their 5-11 year olds. Parents cite vaccine safety and potential side effects as key concerns, and parents of color were more likely to say they faced barriers to vaccine access. Parents receiving vaccine information from their schools were more likely to say their children had been vaccinated.
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This article, which is frequently updated, provides the latest information on vaccination rates by state, race, and ethnicity.
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This study of Georgia elementary schools in November and December 2020 finds lower incidence of COVID-19 in schools that made ventilation improvements and in schools that required staff to wear masks.
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This FAQ states that individuals who have been infected with COVID-19 should still sign up for the vaccine, as re-infection is possible. It also makes clear that the vaccine cannot make individuals sick or alter their DNA.
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This in-depth case study documents COVID-19 cases that occurred among Marin County, California, elementary school students and their contacts following exposure to an unvaccinated infected teacher. The case highlights the importance of mitigation best practices, including masking and vaccination.
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This CDC study documents breakthrough infections among a cluster of fully vaccinated adults in Massachusetts attending Fourth of July festivities. Of those who had breakthrough infections, four (1.2%) were hospitalized; two of the four had underlying medical conditions.
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This peer-reviewed article explains how to establish a school-based vaccination clinic, complete with a sample layout and a list of potential obstacles to consider.
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This study of 85 San Francisco community learning hubs, which were established to facilitate remote learning during building closures, found that multiple mitigation policies prevented most COVID-19 infection.
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This press release describes findings from a rapid testing program conducted across more than 200 California schools. The study found that 90% of surveyed parents felt more confident about the safety of in-person learning when schools had a rapid COVID-19 testing program in place.
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This research reveals that across two high school wrestling tournaments in Florida, a majority of athletes tested positive for COVID-19, resulting in transmission from students to families and in one death.
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This study, conducted from December 2020 through January 2021 in an Atlanta, GA, school district, found that indoor sports carried the highest risk of spreading COVID-19, followed by staff meetings or lunches. It also found that staff were more likely than students to contract COVID-19 in school.
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This study of 7,173 campers and staff members who attended nine different overnight camps around the United States found that with high vaccination coverage and frequent testing, including prearrival screening, there were only nine confirmed cases of COVID-19 and no secondary infections. Each camp also implemented stable cohorts, masking, physical distancing, and hand hygiene.
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In modeling the risk–benefit trade-off for vaccinating kids under age 12, researchers at the Food and Drug Administration found that the number of COVID-19 cases prevented by vaccination vastly exceeds the number of myocarditis cases. The model suggests that COVID-19 vaccination will prevent one death per million vaccinated kids; no deaths from myocarditis are expected.
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This article highlights strategies used by other countries, including underwriting the costs of testing, tracing, and physical distancing as well as opening gradually, beginning with elementary grades. Where these investments have not occurred, schools have had to close due to outbreaks.
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This press release summarizes a Kentucky study's findings that unvaccinated individuals who previously had COVID-19 were twice as likely to contract the disease a second time compared to those who were vaccinated.
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This study finds that 40% of surveyed Black families and more than 25% of Latino/a families have expressed hesitation about sending their children back to school in the fall, significantly higher proportions than White families. The authors conclude that schools need to continue communicating and consistently reaching out to families about local school safety precautions, virus caseloads, and vaccination rates among teachers and students.
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This article emphasizes that the long-term risks to children from the vaccine are far lower than the risks associated with COVID-19 infection.
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