First Reported Nosocomial Outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory
Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in a Pediatric Dialysis Unit
Affiliations
Results: Forty-eight cases were involved in this nosocomial outbreak. Nine contact cases developed laboratory confirmed COVID-19 infections. Two SARS-CoV-2 positive cases remained clinically asymptomatic. Eleven cases reported flu-like symptoms without positive results. Ct values were significantly lower in cases presenting typical COVID-19 symptoms, suggesting high viral shedding (p =0.007).
Conclusion: Person-to-person transmission was at the heart of a hospital outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 between healthcare workers (HCWs) and patients in the pediatric dialysis unit at the UHM. Semi quantitative real-time RT-PCR results suggest that individuals with high viral load pose a risk to spread SARS-CoV-2 in the hospital setting. Our epidemiological observation highlights the need to develop strategies to trace and monitor SARS-CoV-2 infected HCWs in order to prevent COVID-19 outbreaks in the hospital setting.
Keywords: COVID-19; exposure-based risk classification; infection control measures; nosocomial SARS-CoV-2 outbreak; super-spreader.
Results: Forty-eight cases were involved in this nosocomial outbreak. Nine contact cases developed laboratory confirmed COVID-19 infections. Two SARS-CoV-2 positive cases remained clinically asymptomatic. Eleven cases reported flu-like symptoms without positive results. Ct values were significantly lower in cases presenting typical COVID-19 symptoms, suggesting high viral shedding (p =0.007).
Conclusion: Person-to-person transmission was at the heart of a hospital outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 between healthcare workers (HCWs) and patients in the pediatric dialysis unit at the UHM. Semi quantitative real-time RT-PCR results suggest that individuals with high viral load pose a risk to spread SARS-CoV-2 in the hospital setting. Our epidemiological observation highlights the need to develop strategies to trace and monitor SARS-CoV-2 infected HCWs in order to prevent COVID-19 outbreaks in the hospital setting.
Keywords: COVID-19; exposure-based risk classification; infection control measures; nosocomial SARS-CoV-2 outbreak; super-spreader.
- DOI: 10.1093/cid/ciaa491
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