Public Health Department Reutlingen, St. Wolfgangstr. 13, 72764, Reutlingen, Germany.
Medical Faculty, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.
BMC Infect Dis. 2022 Mar 29;22(1):307. doi: 10.1186/s12879-022-07133-8.
The air borne SARS-CoV-2 poses a high threat to the elderly and people with underlying diseases. COVID-19 spread quickly in South German nursing homes and for this reason called for preventive measures by the German government. The aim of this paper is to showcase the testing strategies implemented by the Public Health Department Reutlingen to control the spread of COVID-19 in local nursing homes and to report the results thereof.
This study reports COVID-19 outbreaks in nursing homes in Reutlingen County and how they were dealt with through extensive testing, contact tracing, isolation and hygiene inspections. The testing strategy consisted of three phases: In phase 1 only suspected cases, in phase 2 all staff and residents, and in phase 3 all suspected cases and their contacts were tested.
Nearly all residents (98%) and staff members (92%) of all nursing homes in Reutlingen County were tested for SARS-COV-2. 25 of 37 nursing homes had COVID-19 cases, 5 had 30-81 cases/home. 62% of the 395 nursing homes cases were residents, but less than half of them exhibited symptoms (41%). The cases uncovered in nursing homes represented 26% of all 1529 cases in Reutlingen County during the time of this study.
Many COVID-19 cases were discovered through extensive testing, allowing for early interventions. The results shed light on the COVID-19 situation in nursing homes and allowed for individually designed preventive measures. The results also lead to a change in the German legislation. The outbreak management methods of the Public Health Department Reutlingen may also be applicable in other countries.
空气中传播的 SARS-CoV-2 对老年人和患有基础疾病的人构成了高度威胁。COVID-19 在德国南部的养老院迅速传播，因此德国政府呼吁采取预防措施。本文旨在展示雷根斯堡公共卫生局为控制 COVID-19 在当地养老院的传播而实施的检测策略，并报告其结果。
本研究报告了雷根斯堡县养老院的 COVID-19 疫情爆发情况，以及通过广泛检测、接触者追踪、隔离和卫生检查来应对疫情的情况。检测策略包括三个阶段：第一阶段仅对疑似病例进行检测，第二阶段对所有员工和居民进行检测，第三阶段对所有疑似病例及其接触者进行检测。
雷根斯堡县所有养老院的居民（98%）和工作人员（92%）几乎都接受了 SARS-COV-2 检测。37 家养老院中有 25 家出现 COVID-19 病例，每家养老院有 30-81 例。395 例养老院病例中有 62%是居民，但其中不到一半有症状（41%）。在本研究期间，在养老院发现的病例占雷根斯堡县所有 1529 例病例的 26%。
通过广泛检测发现了许多 COVID-19 病例，从而可以进行早期干预。结果揭示了养老院的 COVID-19 情况，并允许制定个性化的预防措施。结果还导致德国立法发生了变化。雷根斯堡公共卫生局的疫情管理方法也可能适用于其他国家。
