Department of Biology, San Francisco State University, San Francisco, California, United States of America.
Department of Public Health, San Francisco State University, San Francisco, California, United States of America.
PLoS One. 2022 Aug 4;17(8):e0272089. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0272089. eCollection 2022.
To date, there are no studies of COVID-19 cases and deaths in the Navajo Nation, US. The primary objective of this manuscript is to understand whether counties with a higher proportion of Navajo (Diné) population also had higher cases and deaths of COVID-19 and whether these dropped with vaccination.
We undertook a cross-sectional analysis of county level data from March 16, 2020-May 11, 2021. Data were obtained from public repositories and the US Census for the Navajo Nation, including northeastern Arizona, southeastern Utah, and northwestern New Mexico. The primary outcome measure is the number of individuals with confirmed cases or deaths of COVID-19. A secondary outcome was COVID-19 vaccinations.
The 11 counties in Navajo Nation have a wide variation in the percent Navajo population, the resources available (ICU beds and occupancy), and COVID-19 outcomes. Overall, there was a substantial increase in the number of cases from March 16 -July 16, 2020 (the height of the pandemic) with a doubling time of 10.12 days on Navajo Nation. The percent Navajo population was a strong predictor of COVID-19 cases and deaths per million population. COVID-19 vaccinations were inversely associated with COVID-19 cases and deaths in these counties.
The COVID-19 pandemic on the Navajo Nation is a story of resilience. Navajo Nation was one of the hardest hit areas of the United States, with peak cases and deaths due to COVID-19. With an aggressive vaccination effort, these cases and deaths were strikingly curtailed, showing the resilience of the Navajo (Diné) people.
截至目前，尚无美国纳瓦霍族地区（纳瓦霍族，亦称迪内族）COVID-19 病例和死亡的相关研究。本文旨在了解纳瓦霍族人口比例较高的县 COVID-19 病例和死亡人数是否更高，以及这些数据是否随着疫苗接种而下降。
我们对 2020 年 3 月 16 日至 2021 年 5 月 11 日期间的县一级数据进行了横断面分析。数据来自公共存储库和美国纳瓦霍族地区的美国人口普查，包括亚利桑那州东北部、犹他州东南部和新墨西哥州西北部。主要结局指标为确诊 COVID-19 病例或死亡人数。次要结局指标为 COVID-19 疫苗接种情况。
纳瓦霍族地区的 11 个县的纳瓦霍族人口比例、可用资源（重症监护病床和占用率）和 COVID-19 结果存在很大差异。总体而言，2020 年 3 月 16 日至 7 月 16 日期间（大流行高峰期）病例数量大幅增加，纳瓦霍族地区的倍增时间为 10.12 天。纳瓦霍族人口比例是 COVID-19 病例和每百万人死亡人数的强有力预测因素。在这些县，COVID-19 疫苗接种与 COVID-19 病例和死亡呈负相关。
纳瓦霍族地区的 COVID-19 大流行是一个充满韧性的故事。纳瓦霍族地区是美国受疫情影响最严重的地区之一，COVID-19 病例和死亡人数达到高峰。通过积极的疫苗接种工作，这些病例和死亡人数显著减少，展现了纳瓦霍族（迪内族）人民的韧性。
