TraCK Transmission of COVID19 in Kids

COVID-19 可以感染儿童而不引起症状，这意味着几乎不可能研究 COVID-19 在儿童中的传播。其他喉咙感染，如猩红热，在儿童之间迅速传播，并从儿童传播到其他家庭成员。相比之下，人们认为儿童不是 COVID-19 的主要传播者。尽管如此，有证据表明，在某些社区中，儿童感染 COVID-19 的可能性与成年人一样。如果儿童传播 COVID-19 的程度与猩红热类似，那么我们可能会错过防止 COVID-19 更广泛社区传播的一个重要环节。我们的研究将调查该病毒在学童（包括教师和家庭接触者）中传播的速度和效率。我们将调查儿童可以携带“传染性”病毒多久，以及唾液或周围空气中是否存在病毒。相反，如果我们发现儿童根本不易传播病毒，我们的研究将能够为教师、家长和公众提供高度的放心。研究结果将为建模和公共卫生指导提供急需的信息。

COVID-19 can infect children without causing symptoms, meaning that spread of COVID-19 among children has been almost impossible to study. Other infections in the throat like scarlet fever spread rapidly between children, and spread from children to other household members. In contrast, it is thought that children are not major spreaders of COVID-19. Nonetheless, there is evidence that children are just as likely to have been infected with COVID-19 as adults in some communities.If COVID-19 can be spread by children at a level similar to scarlet fever, we may be missing a vital link in preventing wider community spread of COVID-19. Our study will investigate how quickly and efficiently the virus might be spread by schoolchildren, and will include teachers and household contacts. We will investigate how long children can carry 'infectious' virus, and if the virus is present in saliva or the surrounding air. Conversely, if we find that children do not readily transmit the virus at all, our study will be able to provide a high level of reassurance to teachers, parents, and the public. The findings should provide much needed information for modelling and public health guidance.