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Chang T, Cho SI, Yoo DS, Min KD. Trends in Nationally Notifiable Infectious Diseases in Humans and Animals during COVID-19 Pandemic, South Korea. Emerg Infect Dis 2024; 30:1154-1163. [PMID: 38781924 PMCID: PMC11138988 DOI: 10.3201/eid3006.231422] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/25/2024] Open
Abstract
We investigated trends in notifiable infectious diseases in both humans and animals during the COVID-19 pandemic in South Korea and compared those data against expected trends had nonpharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) not been implemented. We found that human respiratory infectious diseases other than COVID-19 decreased by an average of 54.7% after NPIs were introduced. On the basis of that trend, we estimated that annual medical expenses associated with respiratory infections other than COVID-19 also decreased by 3.8% in 2020 and 18.9% in 2021. However, human gastrointestinal infectious diseases and livestock diseases exhibited similar or even higher incidence rates after NPIs were instituted. Our investigation revealed that the preventive effect of NPIs varied among diseases and that NPIs might have had limited effectiveness in reducing the spread of certain types of infectious diseases. These findings suggest the need for future, novel public health interventions to compensate for such limitations.
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Higurashi T, Tamura S, Misawa N, Horita N. Trends in Gastrointestinal Infections during the COVID-19 Pandemic and Concerns of Post-Pandemic Resurgence in Japan. Diseases 2023; 12:4. [PMID: 38275566 PMCID: PMC10813896 DOI: 10.3390/diseases12010004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2023] [Revised: 12/12/2023] [Accepted: 12/21/2023] [Indexed: 01/27/2024] Open
Abstract
The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic was very broad and substantial, affecting a variety of fields worldwide. In Japan, the infection began spreading in March 2020. At that time, the government alerted people to cancel overseas travel, and encouraged wearing of masks, handwashing, sanitizing and keeping social distance. We sought to determine how COVID-19 infections affected other infectious diseases by investigating the trends in seven gastrointestinal infections that are listed among the 77 important infectious diseases designated by the National Institute of Infectious Diseases. We compared seven gastrointestinal infectious diseases, namely cholera, bacterial dysentery, enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli, typhoid fever, paratyphoid fever, amoebic dysentery, and giardiasis, in terms of numbers of new cases before the COVID-19 pandemic (2012-2019) and during the pandemic (2020-2022). During the COVID-19 pandemic period (2020-2022), the incidence of the seven infections decreased significantly (p < 0.05) compared with before the pandemic (2012-2019). The sharp and significant decline in incidence of these seven infections in Japan during the COVID-19 pandemic period (2020-2022) appears to be due to restrictions on overseas travel and strict anti-infection measures, such as self-quarantine and encouragement of handwashing and sanitizing. The number of new cases of gastrointestinal infections in Japan is expected to increase in 2024 as these measures lapse. It is important for physicians to continue to monitor trends in gastrointestinal infections and educate people about proper infection prevention.
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Affiliation(s)
- Takuma Higurashi
- Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Yokohama City University School of Medicine, Yokohama 236-0004, Japan; (S.T.); (N.M.)
| | - Shigeki Tamura
- Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Yokohama City University School of Medicine, Yokohama 236-0004, Japan; (S.T.); (N.M.)
| | - Noboru Misawa
- Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Yokohama City University School of Medicine, Yokohama 236-0004, Japan; (S.T.); (N.M.)
| | - Nobuyuki Horita
- Chemotherapy Center, Yokohama City University Hospital, Yokohama 236-0004, Japan;
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Kim E, Kim BI. Characteristics and related factors of waterborne and foodborne infectious disease outbreaks before and after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic (2017-2021) in the Republic of Korea: a descriptive study. Osong Public Health Res Perspect 2023; 14:483-493. [PMID: 38204427 PMCID: PMC10788414 DOI: 10.24171/j.phrp.2023.0221] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/08/2023] [Revised: 10/17/2023] [Accepted: 11/12/2023] [Indexed: 01/12/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The incidence of waterborne and foodborne infectious diseases (WFIDs) continues to increase annually, attracting significant global attention. This study examined trends in WFID outbreaks in the Republic of Korea over the 5-year period before and during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and provided foundational data to establish measures for the prevention and control of WFID outbreaks. METHODS We analyzed 2,541 WFID outbreaks from 2017 to 2021 (42,805 cases) that were reported through the Integrated Disease Surveillance System of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency. Outbreaks were defined as the occurrence of gastrointestinal symptoms in ≥2 individuals within a group with temporal and regional epidemiological associations. The related factors associated with WFID outbreaks during the observation period were statistically analyzed. RESULTS The total number of WFID outbreaks significantly decreased in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic and increased to the pre-pandemic level in 2021. Different patterns were observed for each pathogen. The incidence of Salmonella outbreaks more than doubled, while norovirus outbreaks decreased significantly. CONCLUSION WFID outbreaks in the Republic of Korea showed different patterns before and during the COVID-19 pandemic, influenced by infection control measures and changes in dietary consumption patterns. Outbreaks of some diseases increased, but the infection control measures applied during the pandemic resulted in a significant decrease in the overall number of WFID outbreaks. This highlights the importance of strengthening the management strategies for outbreak prevention through hygiene inspections, long-term monitoring, education, and promotion by conducting multidimensional analyses to understand the complex related factors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eunkyoung Kim
- Division of Infectious Disease Control, Bureau of Infectious Disease Policy, Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, Cheongju, Republic of Korea
| | - Bryan Inho Kim
- Division of Infectious Disease Control, Bureau of Infectious Disease Policy, Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, Cheongju, Republic of Korea
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Love NK, Douglas A, Gharbia S, Hughes H, Morbey R, Oliver I, Smith GE, Elliot AJ. Understanding the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic response on GI infection surveillance trends in England, January 2020-April 2022. Epidemiol Infect 2023; 151:e147. [PMID: 37622322 PMCID: PMC10540168 DOI: 10.1017/s095026882300136x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2023] [Revised: 07/13/2023] [Accepted: 08/02/2023] [Indexed: 08/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Stepwise non-pharmaceutical interventions and health system changes implemented as part of the COVID-19 response have had implications on the incidence, diagnosis, and reporting of other communicable diseases. Here, we established the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak response on gastrointestinal (GI) infection trends using routinely collected surveillance data from six national English laboratory, outbreak, and syndromic surveillance systems using key dates of governmental policy to assign phases for comparison between pandemic and historic data. Following decreases across all indicators during the first lockdown (March-May 2020), bacterial and parasitic pathogens associated with foodborne or environmental transmission routes recovered rapidly between June and September 2020, while those associated with travel and/or person-to-person transmission remained lower than expected for 2021. High out-of-season norovirus activity was observed with the easing of lockdown measures between June and October 2021, with this trend reflected in laboratory and outbreak systems and syndromic surveillance indicators. Above expected increases in emergency department (ED) attendances may have reflected changes in health-seeking behaviour and provision. Differential reductions across specific GI pathogens are indicative of the underlying routes of transmission. These results provide further insight into the drivers for transmission, which can help inform control measures for GI infections.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicola K. Love
- North East Field Services, Health Protection Operations, UK Health Security Agency, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK
- National Institute for Health Research Health Protection Research Unit (NIHR HPRU) in Gastrointestinal Infections, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK
| | - Amy Douglas
- Gastrointestinal Infections and Food Safety (One Health) Division, UK Health Security Agency, London, UK
| | - Saheer Gharbia
- Gastrointestinal Infections and Food Safety (One Health) Division, UK Health Security Agency, London, UK
| | - Helen Hughes
- National Institute for Health Research Health Protection Research Unit (NIHR HPRU) in Gastrointestinal Infections, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK
- Real-time Syndromic Surveillance Team, Field Service, Health Protection Operations, UK Health Security Agency, Birmingham, UK
- Farr Institute@HeRC, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK
| | - Roger Morbey
- Real-time Syndromic Surveillance Team, Field Service, Health Protection Operations, UK Health Security Agency, Birmingham, UK
- National Institute for Health Research Health Protection Research Unit (NIHR HPRU) in Emergency Preparedness and Response, King’s College London, London, UK
| | - Isabel Oliver
- Science Group, UK Health Security Agency, London, UK
- National Institute for Health Research Health Protection Research Unit (NIHR HPRU) in Behavioural Science and Evaluation, Population Health Sciences, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
| | - Gillian E. Smith
- National Institute for Health Research Health Protection Research Unit (NIHR HPRU) in Gastrointestinal Infections, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK
- Real-time Syndromic Surveillance Team, Field Service, Health Protection Operations, UK Health Security Agency, Birmingham, UK
- National Institute for Health Research Health Protection Research Unit (NIHR HPRU) in Emergency Preparedness and Response, King’s College London, London, UK
| | - Alex J. Elliot
- National Institute for Health Research Health Protection Research Unit (NIHR HPRU) in Gastrointestinal Infections, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK
- Real-time Syndromic Surveillance Team, Field Service, Health Protection Operations, UK Health Security Agency, Birmingham, UK
- National Institute for Health Research Health Protection Research Unit (NIHR HPRU) in Emergency Preparedness and Response, King’s College London, London, UK
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Hayes LJ, Uri H, Bojkova D, Cinatl J, Wass MN, Michaelis M. Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the circulation of other pathogens in England. J Med Virol 2023; 95:e28401. [PMID: 36512325 PMCID: PMC9877778 DOI: 10.1002/jmv.28401] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/21/2022] [Revised: 11/28/2022] [Accepted: 12/09/2022] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Hannah Uri
- School of BiosciencesUniversity of KentCanterburyUK
| | - Denisa Bojkova
- Institute for Medical VirologyUniversity Hospital, Goethe UniversityFrankfurt am MainGermany
| | - Jindrich Cinatl
- Institute for Medical VirologyUniversity Hospital, Goethe UniversityFrankfurt am MainGermany,Dr. Petra Joh‐ForschungshausFrankfurt am MainGermany
| | - Mark N. Wass
- School of BiosciencesUniversity of KentCanterburyUK
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