COVID-19 lockdown and its latency in Northern Italy: seismic evidence and socio-economic interpretation

Abstract

The Italian Government has decreed a series of progressive restrictions to delay the COVID-19 pandemic diffusion in Italy since March 10, 2020, including limitation in individual mobility and the closure of social, cultural, economic and industrial activities. Here we show the lockdown effect in Northern Italy, the COVID-19 most affected area, as revealed by noise variation at seismic stations. The reaction to lockdown was slow and not homogeneous with spots of negligible noise reduction, especially in the first week. A fresh interpretation of seismic noise variations in terms of socio-economic indicators sheds new light on the lockdown efficacy pointing to the causes of such delay: the noise reduction is significant where non strategic activities prevails, while it is small or negligible where dense population and strategic activities are present. These results are crucial for the a posteriori interpretation of the pandemic diffusion and the efficacy of differently targeted political actions.

Changes in Drug Use Patterns during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Italy: Monitoring a Vulnerable Group by Hair Analysis

“…The Italian government has implemented various initiatives since 10 March 2020 to prevent or delay the spread of COVID-19, such as the lockdown of social and cultural activities and the partial closure of economic and industrial activities [ 2 , 3 ]. A second government decree, on 22 March 2020, imposed even stricter rules, such as the closure of all non-strategic economic activities, including schools, universities and shops selling non-essential goods [ 3 , 4 ]. People were allowed to leave their homes for specific and documented reasons only [ 3 ].…”

“…A second government decree, on 22 March 2020, imposed even stricter rules, such as the closure of all non-strategic economic activities, including schools, universities and shops selling non-essential goods [ 3 , 4 ]. People were allowed to leave their homes for specific and documented reasons only [ 3 ]. Although these measures were necessary to reduce the pressure on the Italian health system, there are reasons to be concerned, because prolonged home confinement during an epidemic can reduce levels of physical activity and exposure to daylight, and increase the level of stress due to social isolation [ 5 , 6 ].…”

Changes in Drug Use Patterns During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Italy: Monitoring a Vulnerable Group by Hair Analysis

“…Coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), was rst identi ed in December 2019 in Wuhan, China and then declared as a public health emergency of international concern in January 2020 and as a pandemic in March 2020 [1]. The Italian government from 10 March 2020 has implemented various initiatives to prevent or delay the spread of COVID-19, such as the lockdown of social and cultural activities and the partial closure of economic and industrial activities [2,3]. A second government decree, on March 22, 2020 imposed even stricter rules, such as the closure of all non-strategic economic activities, including schools, universities and shops selling non-essential goods [3,4].…”

“…The Italian government from 10 March 2020 has implemented various initiatives to prevent or delay the spread of COVID-19, such as the lockdown of social and cultural activities and the partial closure of economic and industrial activities [2,3]. A second government decree, on March 22, 2020 imposed even stricter rules, such as the closure of all non-strategic economic activities, including schools, universities and shops selling non-essential goods [3,4]. People were allowed to leave their homes for speci c and documented reasons only [3].…”

“…A second government decree, on March 22, 2020 imposed even stricter rules, such as the closure of all non-strategic economic activities, including schools, universities and shops selling non-essential goods [3,4]. People were allowed to leave their homes for speci c and documented reasons only [3]. Although these measures were necessary to reduce the pressure on Italian health system, there are reasons to be concerned because prolonged home con nement during an epidemic can reduce the level of physical activity and exposure to daylight and increase the level of stress due to social isolation [5,6].…”