“COVID-19: What is social distancing? - News-Medical.Net” plus 1 more

COVID-19: What is social distancing? - News-Medical.Net

Posted: 30 Mar 2020 08:08 PM PDT

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a novel coronavirus, akin to previous infections such as severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) in 2002 and the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus disease (MERS-CoV) in 2012.

The causative agent of COVID-19, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), causes a respiratory illness with pneumonia-like symptoms. Those who develop a severe illness may have acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and multiorgan failure.

SARS-CoV-2 has affected several countries across the globe, prompting governments to impose social distancing measures to slow the spread of infection.

Image Credit: EamesBot / Shutterstock

What is social distancing?

Social distancing or physical distancing is a set of non-pharmaceutical methods or interventions to prevent the spread of an infectious disease. It involves maintaining a physical distance between people and decreasing the number of times people meet each other.

In the current COVID-19 pandemic, public health officials in many countries have applied social distancing measures to help reduce the rapid spread of the coronavirus. When social distancing is combined with heightened personal hygiene, community-acquired infections decrease. Further, these measures help protect vulnerable populations against the deadly disease. It also helps reduce the impact of the pandemic on essential and life-saving health services.

Social distancing is a part of a method called "flattening the curve," which involves preventing the sudden spike of coronavirus cases in communities and countries affected by the virus. Flattening the curve refers to community isolation measures to keep the number of daily cases at a manageable level to prevent healthcare and medical services and resources from being overwhelmed.

Image Credit: CDC

How to implement social distancing?

To implement social distancing, health officials and governments have canceled events, cruises, festivals, gatherings, weddings, and parties. These measures help stop or slow down the spread of the disease, allowing health care systems to more readily provide care for patients over time.

In some instances, workplaces and schools may also be shut down. In many countries affected by the novel coronavirus, companies are advised to provide work from home schemes for their employees.

Why is social distancing important?

In previous pandemics and outbreaks, health experts have noted that disease spread often followed large crowds and public gatherings, such as festivals and conferences. Further to that, the highest infection rates were often seen in school children, since they are regularly exposed to more people.

[embedded content]

There is evidence from previous pandemics, such as the 1918 flu pandemic, and the 2014 Ebola outbreak, that social distancing can effectively limit the spread of infectious diseases. Since the novel coronavirus can be transmitted by droplets from the noses and mouths of infected people when they cough or sneeze, staying away from other people or avoiding staying in close distance with infected people when help reduce the risk of infection.

In the novel coronavirus pandemic, health experts recommend that social distancing measures can help reduce the spread of the virus. For instance, in Wuhan City in China, where the virus first emerged, the lockdown and social distancing measures helped reduce infection rates and ultimately 'flatten the curve.' Many countries have followed this step, implementing social distancing measures early, while others had a late implementation, leading to higher infection rates.

The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends social distancing as maintaining at least 1 meter or 3 feet distance between oneself and anyone else. Also, it advises those who have fever, cough, or difficulty breathing to seek medical advice. People should also stay home when they feel unwell to prevent others from contracting the infection.

In theory, the steps are simple to curb this global pandemic. It is crucial to understand why people are asked or required to self-quarantine, self-isolate, and practice social distancing. If health officials request people to stay in their homes, everyone should abide. When a person disobeys the precautions and tests positive for COVID-19, there is a high chance they can transmit the virus to other people.

How does coronavirus affect kids, babies and pregnancies? - ABC News

Posted: 24 Mar 2020 09:32 AM PDT

We've heard a lot about how COVID-19 is worst in elderly people and those with pre-existing medical conditions, but what about kids, babies and pregnancies?

The short answer is that youngsters tend to have a much lower risk of severe illness or dying from the new coronavirus, which is reassuring.

"Children will undoubtedly get infected but the probability that they will come to serious grief from this seems very low," said Peter Collignon, professor of infectious diseases at the Australian National University medical school.

Here's what we know about the risk to kids, infants, and pregnant mothers and their babies.

Children and COVID-19

Kids (including teens) have the lowest risk of dying from COVID-19 out of all age groups, and have lower rates of illness at the more severe end of the spectrum.

They also don't seem to be getting infected at as high a rate as we might have expected, Dr Collignon said.

Usually with respiratory viruses children tend to get more unwell and they are more often responsible for transmitting the illness, but this does not appear to be the case with COVID-19, said Chris Blyth, a paediatric infection specialist from the University of Western Australia and the Telethon Kids Institute.

"We are seeing lower numbers of children infected compared to what we'd normally see with other respiratory viruses," he said.

"The question is — is that because they're not being infected but they're so mildly symptomatic they're not getting disease? We don't know the answer to that at this stage."

A study that looked at 1,391 children who were close contacts of confirmed COVID-19 cases in China found only 12 per cent of them had infections.

"It's not that children aren't being infected, but they're being infected at a much lower rate than higher age groups," Professor Collignon said.

He said studies were showing children tend to have relatively mild symptoms - but it was rare for them to have no symptoms at all.

"Perversely, that's reassuring. There's not a lot of asymptomatic spread in children as far as we know now."

None of this is to say that COVID-19 doesn't hit a small number of children severely.

Three children in the study Professor Collignon referred to required intensive care, but all had other health conditions.

Another study of more than 2,000 children with confirmed or suspected COVID-19 in China found a small proportion in each age group had severe or critical forms of the disease. This could involve symptoms such as low oxygen levels or respiratory failure.

A commentary in the same journal, Pediatrics, noted that for other infections with other coronaviruses (that is, not the new coronavirus SARS-CoV-2) being younger, having underlying lung conditions, and being immunocompromised are all linked with more severe disease in children.

Babies and toddlers

Infants are also at fairly low risk from COVID-19, but not quite as low as older children.

Toddlers, especially those under the age of 1, had a higher risk of having a severe or critical form of the disease, according to the Pediatrics paper.

Professor Collignon said babies tended to be at higher risk from most infections.

"In general, the younger the child the higher the risk," he said.

"If you're under the age of 1, you're at more of a risk of most diseases because you haven't developed any immunity yet."

But he said he hadn't seen any really convincing data that they were more at risk.

"There's a lot we don't know. I don't want to sound like we've got all the answers," he said.

"But my presumption at the moment [based on the evidence] is that babies don't appear to be at a very high risk."

Q+A: Coronavirus testing criteria slammed

Pregnant women and their babies

Changes to the immune system during pregnancy mean pregnant women are often considered to be at higher than average risk from infections.

"But again, there's not really good evidence, as far as I can see, that pregnant women are at higher risk than women the same age," Professor Collignon said.

Pregnant woman wearing a jumper and holding tummy — Unlike with some other diseases, pregnant women don't seem to be at greater risk from COVID-19 than the rest of the population.(Unsplash)

According to the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists:

Pregnant women don't seem to become more severely unwell from COVID-19 than the general population
Infection doesn't seem to increase the risk of miscarriage
There is no evidence the virus can pass from pregnant mother to baby
There is no evidence the virus will cause abnormalities in an unborn baby
Caesarean section or induction of labour does not seem necessary to reduce the risk of transmission from mother to child
Some babies born to women with symptoms of COVID-19 in China were born prematurely, but it's unclear whether this was due to the virus or doctors' decisions
Newborn babies and infants don't seem to be at increased risk of complications
COVID-19 does not seem to pass from mother to child through breastmilk, so breastfeeding is still encouraged, although women with the virus should be extra careful with hygiene and consider wearing a face mask while feeding

Professor Collignon urged people to follow the public health advice around social distancing, cleanliness and staying away from sick people.

He also stressed that, while concern about kids, babies and pregnancies around the new virus was understandable, the highest risk was older people.

"Maybe instead of isolating children we should be isolating people over the age of 70," Professor Collingon said.

"Don't have people visiting who are sick, even your grandchildren, and even if they're not, avoid close contact."

Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome