A Quantitative Estimate of the Expected Shortening of the Median Isolation Period of Patients With COVID-19 After the Adoption of a Symptom-Based Strategy
oleh: Francesca Bai, Alessandro Tavelli, Giovanni Mulè, Camilla Falcinella, Debora Mondatore, Daniele Tesoro, Diletta Barbanotti, Daniele Tomasoni, Roberto Castoldi, Matteo Augello, Marina Allegrini, Gianmarco Tagliaferri, Andrea Cona, Alessandro Cozzi-Lepri, Giulia Marchetti, Antonella d'Arminio Monforte
| Format: | Article |
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| Diterbitkan: | Frontiers Media S.A. 2021-06-01 |
Deskripsi
A long period of isolation was observed in patients hospitalized for COVID-19 in Milan over March-September 2020 (45; IQR: 37–54 days). A significantly shorter period would have been observed by the application of May-WHO (22, IQR: 17–30 days, P < 0.001) and October-Italian (26, IQR: 21–34 days, P < 0.001) Guidelines. The adoption of the new symptom-based criteria is likely to lead to a significant reduction in the length of the isolation period with potential social, economic and psychological benefits, particularly in the younger population with mild/moderate disease and no comorbidities. In our opinion, the release from isolation after 21 days from symptoms onset, even without a PCR diagnostic test, in most cases seems the most adequate strategy that could balance precautions to prevent SARS CoV-2 transmission and unnecessary prolonged isolation or overuse of diagnostic testing.