1887
  1. Home
  2. Eurosurveillance
  3. Volume 25, Issue 13, 02/Apr/2020
  4. Article
Review Open Access
Like 0
Download

Abstract

Background

Emergency school closures are often used as public health interventions during infectious disease outbreaks to minimise the spread of infection. However, if children continue mixing with others outside the home during closures, the effect of these measures may be limited.

Aim

This review aimed to summarise existing literature on children’s activities and contacts made outside the home during unplanned school closures.

Methods

In February 2020, we searched four databases, MEDLINE, PsycInfo, Embase and Web of Science, from inception to 5 February 2020 for papers published in English or Italian in peer-reviewed journals reporting on primary research exploring children’s social activities during unplanned school closures. Main findings were extracted.

Results

A total of 3,343 citations were screened and 19 included in the review. Activities and social contacts appeared to decrease during closures, but contact remained common. All studies reported children leaving the home or being cared for by non-household members. There was some evidence that older child age (two studies) and parental disagreement (two studies) with closure were predictive of children leaving the home, and mixed evidence regarding the relationship between infection status and such. Parental agreement with closure was generally high, but some disagreed because of perceived low risk of infection and issues regarding childcare and financial impact.

Conclusion

Evidence suggests that many children continue to leave home and mix with others during school closures despite public health recommendations to avoid social contact. This review of behaviour during unplanned school closures could be used to improve infectious disease modelling.

© Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Loading

Article metrics loading...

/content/10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2020.25.13.2000188
2020-04-02
2024-04-19
http://instance.metastore.ingenta.com/content/10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2020.25.13.2000188
Loading
Loading full text...

Full text loading...

/deliver/fulltext/eurosurveillance/25/13/eurosurv-25-13-5.html?itemId=/content/10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2020.25.13.2000188&mimeType=html&fmt=ahah

References

  1. National Health Service (NHS) England. Health experts say “super-spreader” children should get flu vaccination to protect grandparents at Christmas. 27 Nov 2017. [Access 12 Feb 2020]. Available from: https://www.england.nhs.uk/2017/11/super-spreader-children-should-get-flu-vaccination-to-protect-grandparents-at-christmas/
  2. World Health Organization (WHO). Reducing transmission of pandemic (H1N1) 2009 in school settings. Sep 2009. [Accessed 9 Feb 2020]. Available from: https://www.who.int/csr/resources/publications/reducing_transmission_h1n1_2009.pdf
  3. Munasinghe L, Asai Y, Nishiura H. Quantifying heterogeneous contact patterns in Japan: a social contact survey. Theor Biol Med Model. 2019;16(1):6.  https://doi.org/10.1186/s12976-019-0102-8  PMID: 30890153 
  4. Eames KT, Tilston NL, Edmunds WJ. The impact of school holidays on the social mixing patterns of school children. Epidemics. 2011;3(2):103-8.  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epidem.2011.03.003  PMID: 21624781 
  5. Eames KT, Tilston NL, Brooks-Pollock E, Edmunds WJ. Measured dynamic social contact patterns explain the spread of H1N1v influenza. PLOS Comput Biol. 2012;8(3):e1002425.  https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1002425  PMID: 22412366 
  6. Cauchemez S, Valleron AJ, Boëlle PY, Flahault A, Ferguson NM. Estimating the impact of school closure on influenza transmission from Sentinel data. Nature. 2008;452(7188):750-4.  https://doi.org/10.1038/nature06732  PMID: 18401408 
  7. Hens N, Ayele GM, Goeyvaerts N, Aerts M, Mossong J, Edmunds JW, et al. Estimating the impact of school closure on social mixing behaviour and the transmission of close contact infections in eight European countries. BMC Infect Dis. 2009;9(1):187.  https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2334-9-187  PMID: 19943919 
  8. Wheeler CC, Erhart LM, Jehn ML. Effect of school closure on the incidence of influenza among school-age children in Arizona. Public Health Rep. 2010;125(6):851-9.  https://doi.org/10.1177/003335491012500612  PMID: 21121230 
  9. Heymann A, Chodick G, Reichman B, Kokia E, Laufer J. Influence of school closure on the incidence of viral respiratory diseases among children and on health care utilization. Pediatr Infect Dis J. 2004;23(7):675-7.  https://doi.org/10.1097/01.inf.0000128778.54105.06  PMID: 15247610 
  10. Cauchemez S, Ferguson NM, Wachtel C, Tegnell A, Saour G, Duncan B, et al. Closure of schools during an influenza pandemic. Lancet Infect Dis. 2009;9(8):473-81.  https://doi.org/10.1016/S1473-3099(09)70176-8  PMID: 19628172 
  11. Rashid H, Ridda I, King C, Begun M, Tekin H, Wood JG, et al. Evidence compendium and advice on social distancing and other related measures for response to an influenza pandemic. Paediatr Respir Rev. 2015;16(2):119-26. PMID: 24630149 
  12. Halloran ME, Ferguson NM, Eubank S, Longini IM Jr, Cummings DAT, Lewis B, et al. Modeling targeted layered containment of an influenza pandemic in the United States. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 2008;105(12):4639-44.  https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0706849105  PMID: 18332436 
  13. Germann TC, Kadau K, Longini IM Jr, Macken CA. Mitigation strategies for pandemic influenza in the United States. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 2006;103(15):5935-40.  https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0601266103  PMID: 16585506 
  14. Braunack-Mayer A, Tooher R, Collins JE, Street JM, Marshall H. Understanding the school community’s response to school closures during the H1N1 2009 influenza pandemic. BMC Public Health. 2013;13(1):344.  https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2458-13-344  PMID: 23587175 
  15. Osterholm MT. How to vaccinate 30,000 people in three days: realities of outbreak management. Public Health Rep. 2001;116(Suppl 2):74-8.  https://doi.org/10.1016/S0033-3549(04)50147-4  PMID: 11880677 
  16. Moher D, Liberati A, Tetzlaff J, Altman DGPRISMA Group. Preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses: the PRISMA statement. PLoS Med. 2009;6(7):e1000097.  https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.1000097  PMID: 19621072 
  17. Jackson C, Mangtani P, Vynnycky E, Fielding K, Kitching A, Mohamed H, et al. School closures and student contact patterns. Emerg Infect Dis. 2011;17(2):245-7.  https://doi.org/10.3201/eid1702.100458  PMID: 21291596 
  18. Litvinova M, Liu QH, Kulikov ES, Ajelli M. Reactive school closure weakens the network of social interactions and reduces the spread of influenza. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 2019;116(27):13174-81.  https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1821298116  PMID: 31209042 
  19. Miller JC, Danon L, O’Hagan JJ, Goldstein E, Lajous M, Lipsitch M. Student behavior during a school closure caused by pandemic influenza A/H1N1. PLoS One. 2010;5(5):e10425.  https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0010425  PMID: 20463960 
  20. Effler PV, Carcione D, Giele C, Dowse GK, Goggin L, Mak DB. Household responses to pandemic (H1N1) 2009-related school closures, Perth, Western Australia. Emerg Infect Dis. 2010;16(2):205-11.  https://doi.org/10.3201/eid1602.091372  PMID: 20113548 
  21. Epson EE, Zheteyeva YA, Rainey JJ, Gao H, Shi J, Uzicanin A, et al. Evaluation of an unplanned school closure in a Colorado school district: implications for pandemic influenza preparedness. Disaster Med Public Health Prep. 2015;9(1):4-8.  https://doi.org/10.1017/dmp.2015.3  PMID: 25739043 
  22. van Gemert C, McBryde ES, Bergeri I, Sacks-Davis R, Vally H, Spelman T, et al. Description of social contacts among student cases of pandemic influenza during the containment phase, Melbourne, Australia, 2009. Western Pac Surveill Response J. 2018;9(5) Suppl 1;27-34. PMID: 31832251 
  23. Johnson AJ, Moore ZS, Edelson PJ, Kinnane L, Davies M, Shay DK, et al. Household responses to school closure resulting from outbreak of influenza B, North Carolina. Emerg Infect Dis. 2008;14(7):1024-30.  https://doi.org/10.3201/eid1407.080096  PMID: 18598620 
  24. Gift TL, Palekar RS, Sodha SV, Kent CK, Fagan RP, Archer WR, et al. Household effects of school closure during pandemic (H1N1) 2009, Pennsylvania, USA. Emerg Infect Dis. 2010;16(8):1315-7.  https://doi.org/10.3201/eid1608.091827  PMID: 20678335 
  25. Borse RH, Behravesh CB, Dumanovsky T, Zucker JR, Swerdlow D, Edelson P, et al. Closing schools in response to the 2009 pandemic influenza A H1N1 virus in New York City: economic impact on households. Clin Infect Dis. 2011;52(Suppl 1):S168-72.  https://doi.org/10.1093/cid/ciq033  PMID: 21342890 
  26. Mizumoto K, Yamamoto T, Nishiura H. Contact behaviour of children and parental employment behaviour during school closures against the pandemic influenza A (H1N1-2009) in Japan. J Int Med Res. 2013;41(3):716-24.  https://doi.org/10.1177/0300060513478061  PMID: 23613502 
  27. Russell ES, Zheteyeva Y, Gao H, Shi J, Rainey JJ, Thoroughman D, et al. Reactive school closure during increased influenza-like illness (ILI) activity in Western Kentucky, 2013: A field evaluation of effect on ILI incidence and economic and social consequences for families. Open Forum Infect Dis. 2016;3(3):ofw113.  https://doi.org/10.1093/ofid/ofw113  PMID: 27800520 
  28. Basurto-Dávila R, Garza R, Meltzer MI, Carlino OL, Albalak R, Orellano PW, et al. Household economic impact and attitudes toward school closures in two cities in Argentina during the 2009 influenza A (H1N1) pandemic. Influenza Other Respir Viruses. 2013;7(6):1308-15.  https://doi.org/10.1111/irv.12054  PMID: 23176127 
  29. McVernon J, Mason K, Petrony S, Nathan P, LaMontagne AD, Bentley R, et al. Recommendations for and compliance with social restrictions during implementation of school closures in the early phase of the influenza A (H1N1) 2009 outbreak in Melbourne, Australia. BMC Infect Dis. 2011;11(1):257.  https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2334-11-257  PMID: 21958428 
  30. Timperio CG, Humbaugh KE, Riggs ML, Thoroughman D, Barrios LCB, Copeland DL, et al. Impact of seasonal influenza-related school closures on families - Southeastern Kentucky, February 2008. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 2009;58(50):1405-9. PMID: 20032924 
  31. Chen WC, Huang AS, Chuang JH, Chiu CC, Kuo HS. Social and economic impact of school closure resulting from pandemic influenza A/H1N1. J Infect. 2011;62(3):200-3.  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jinf.2011.01.007  PMID: 21256153 
  32. Steelfisher GK, Blendon RJ, Bekheit MM, Liddon N, Kahn E, Schieber R, et al. Parental attitudes and experiences during school dismissals related to 2009 influenza A (H1N1) --- United States, 2009. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 2010;59(35):1131-4. PMID: 20829746 
  33. Tsai V, Khan NM, Shi J, Rainey J, Gao H, Zheteyeva Y. Evaluation of Unintended Social and Economic Consequences of an Unplanned School Closure in Rural Illinois. J Sch Health. 2017;87(7):546-53.  https://doi.org/10.1111/josh.12525  PMID: 28580673 
  34. Zheteyeva Y, Rainey JJ, Gao H, Jacobson EU, Adhikari BB, Shi J, et al. Unintended costs and consequences of school closures implemented in preparation for Hurricane Isaac in Harrison County School District, Mississippi, August-September 2012. PLoS One. 2017;12(11):e0184326.  https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0184326  PMID: 29091717 
  35. Webster RK, Brooks SK, Smith LE, Woodland L, Wessely S, Rubin GJ. How to improve adherence with quarantine: Rapid review of the evidence. medRxiv. 2020;20037408: (Preprint). Available from: https://doi.org/10.1101/2020.03.17.20037408
  36. Brooks SK, Webster RK, Smith LE, Woodland L, Wessely S, Greenberg N, et al. The psychological impact of quarantine and how to reduce it: rapid review of the evidence. Lancet. 2020;395(10227):912-20.  https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(20)30460-8  PMID: 32112714 
  37. Bish A, Michie S. Demographic and attitudinal determinants of protective behaviours during a pandemic: a review. Br J Health Psychol. 2010;15(4):797-824.  https://doi.org/10.1348/135910710X485826  PMID: 20109274 
  38. Smith LE, Amlôt R, Weinman J, Yiend J, Rubin GJ. A systematic review of factors affecting vaccine uptake in young children. Vaccine. 2017;35(45):6059-69.  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.vaccine.2017.09.046  PMID: 28974409 
  39. Blendon RJ, Koonin LM, Benson JM, Cetron MS, Pollard WE, Mitchell EW, et al. Public response to community mitigation measures for pandemic influenza. Emerg Infect Dis. 2008;14(5):778-86.  https://doi.org/10.3201/eid1405.071437  PMID: 18439361 
  40. Eastwood K, Durrheim D, Francis JL, Tursan d’Espaignet ET, Duncan S, Islam F, et al. Knowledge about pandemic influenza and compliance with containment measures among Australians. Bull World Health Organ. 2009;87(8):588-94.  https://doi.org/10.2471/BLT.08.060772  PMID: 19705008 
  41. Bukhsh A, Rehman H, Mallhi TH, Ata H, Rehman IU, Lee L-H, et al. Parents’ attitude, awareness and behaviour towards influenza vaccination in Pakistan. Hum Vaccin Immunother. 2018;14(4):952-7.  https://doi.org/10.1080/21645515.2017.1415686  PMID: 29333939 
  42. Haby MM, Chapman E, Clark R, Barreto J, Reveiz L, Lavis JN. What are the best methodologies for rapid reviews of the research evidence for evidence-informed decision making in health policy and practice: a rapid review. Health Res Policy Syst. 2016;14(1):83.  https://doi.org/10.1186/s12961-016-0155-7  PMID: 27884208 
  43. House T, Baguelin M, Van Hoek AJ, White PJ, Sadique Z, Eames K, et al. Modelling the impact of local reactive school closures on critical care provision during an influenza pandemic. Proc Biol Sci. 2011;278(1719):2753-60.  https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2010.2688  PMID: 21288945 
  44. Verelst F, Willem L, Beutels P. Behavioural change models for infectious disease transmission: a systematic review (2010-2015). J R Soc Interface. 2016;13(125):20160820.  https://doi.org/10.1098/rsif.2016.0820  PMID: 28003528 
  45. Weston D, Hauck K, Amlôt R. Infection prevention behaviour and infectious disease modelling: a review of the literature and recommendations for the future. BMC Public Health. 2018;18(1):336.  https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-018-5223-1  PMID: 29523125 
The impact of unplanned school closure on children’s social contact: rapid evidence review
<p class="citation"> <span>Citation style for this article:</span> <span class="meta-value authors"> <a href="/search?value1=Samantha+K+Brooks&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Brooks Samantha K</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Louise+E+Smith&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Smith Louise E</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Rebecca+K+Webster&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Webster Rebecca K</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Dale+Weston&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Weston Dale</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Lisa+Woodland&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Woodland Lisa</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Ian+Hall&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Hall Ian</a>, <a href="/search?value1=G+James+Rubin&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Rubin G James</a></span>. The impact of unplanned school closure on children’s social contact: rapid evidence review. <a href="/content/ecdc">Euro Surveill.</a> 2020;25(13):pii=2000188. <a href="https://doi.org/10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2020.25.13.2000188" title="doi link" target="_blank">https://doi.org/10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2020.25.13.2000188</a> <span class="ES_Article_citation"> <span class="generated">Received</span>: 24 Feb 2020;&nbsp;&nbsp; <span class="generated">Accepted</span>: 24 Mar 2020 </span> </p>
/content/10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2020.25.13.2000188
/content/10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2020.25.13.2000188
Loading

Data & Media loading...

Supplementary data

Submit comment
Close
Comment moderation successfully completed
This is a required field
Please enter a valid email address
Approval was a Success
Invalid data
An Error Occurred
Approval was partially successful, following selected items could not be processed due to error