Key result
Public health and social measures and school vacations were associated with a 13% and 2-7% reduction in HFMD transmissibility, respectively, and reduced the attack rate by an average of 1.10%.
Why the study?
School-based measures are considered a viable intervention during HFMD epidemics, but the association of nationwide public health and social measures on HFMD transmissibility and attack rate needed exploration.
Do public health and social measures reduce the transmissibility and attack rate of hand-foot-mouth disease?
Observational
Do public health and social measures reduce the transmissibility and attack rate of hand-foot-mouth disease?
Public health and social measures, including school vacations, are associated with reduced transmissibility and attack rates of hand-foot-mouth disease.
School based-measures such as school closure and school holidays have been considered a viable intervention during the hand-foot-mouth disease (HFMD) epidemic. The aim of this study was to explore the association of nationwide public health and social measures (PHSMs) including planned school vacation on the transmissibility and attack rate of the HFMD epidemic in South Korea. In this study, we used Korean national surveillance data on HFMD from 2014 to 2019 to estimate the temporal changes in HFMD transmissibility (instantaneous reproductive number, Rt). Furthermore, to assess the changes in the HFMD attack rate, we used a stochastic transmission model to simulate the HFMD epidemic with no school vacation and nationwide PHSMs in 2015 South Korea. We found that school vacations and 2015 PHSMs were associated with the reduced Rt by 2–7 % and 13 %, respectively. Model projections indicated school vacations and 2015 PHSMs were associated with reduced HFMD attack rate by an average of 1.10 % (range: 0.38–1.51 %). PHSMs likely have a larger association with reduced HFMD transmissibility than school-based measures alone (i.e. school vacations). Preventive measures targeting preschoolers could be considered as potential options for reducing the future burden of HFMD.
No takes yet. Share an insight, caveat, or question.
Ryu et al. (2023) conducted an observational in Hand-foot-mouth disease (HFMD). Public health and social measures (PHSMs) and school vacations vs. No school vacation and no PHSMs was evaluated on HFMD transmissibility (instantaneous reproductive number, Rt) and attack rate (13% reduction in Rt (PHSMs); 1.10% reduction in attack rate). Public health and social measures and school vacations were associated with a 13% and 2-7% reduction in HFMD transmissibility, respectively, and reduced the attack rate by an average of 1.10%.
Synapse has enriched 5 closely related papers on similar clinical questions. Consider them for comparative context: