State Mask Mandate Bans for Schools: Law, Science, and Public Health

Yang, Y. Tony; DeRoo, Sarah Schaffer; Morain, Stephanie R.

doi:10.1542/peds.2021-054724

Cited by 5 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 8 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Third, the sample was drawn from two northeastern cities with a high prevalence of mask-wearing and strict social restrictions. Thus, our results may not generalize to children who experienced varying social inputs during the pandemic based on well-documented differences between states in mask mandates, physical distancing regulations, and school closures (Yang et al, 2022). Fourth, the parents in our sample tended to be highly educated (i.e., more than half had a graduate-level degree), such that our results may not generalize to children of parents with lower levels of education, among whom the pandemic may have affected in unmeasured ways that were relevant to our study variables (e.g., ability to socially distance) (Patel et al, 2020).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 89%

The COVID‐19 pandemic, mask‐wearing, and emotion recognition during late‐childhood

et al. 2022

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Face masks are an effective and important tool to prevent the spread of COVID‐19, including among children. However, occluding parts of the face can impact emotion recognition, which is fundamental to effective social interactions. Social distancing, stress, and changes to routines because of the pandemic have also altered the social landscape of children, with implications for social development. To better understand how social input and context impact emotion recognition, the current study investigated emotion recognition in children (7–12 years old, N = 131) using images of both masked and unmasked emotional faces. We also assessed a subsample of participants (“pre‐pandemic subsample,” n = 35) who had completed the same emotion recognition task with unmasked faces before and during the pandemic. Masking of faces was related to worse emotion recognition, with more pronounced effects for happy, sad, and fearful faces than angry and neutral faces. Masking was more strongly related to emotion recognition among children whose families reported greater social disruption in response to the pandemic. Finally, in the pre‐pandemic subsample, emotion recognition of sad faces was lower during versus before the pandemic relative to other emotions. Together, findings show that occluding face parts and the broader social context (i.e., global pandemic) both impact emotion‐relevant judgments in school‐aged children.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 89%

The COVID‐19 pandemic, mask‐wearing, and emotion recognition during late‐childhood

et al. 2022

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…In the previous Spring 2021 semester schools were open with multiple mitigation measures in place to prevent outbreaks (e.g., hybrid instructions, social distancing, masking) and there were very few cases of COVID-19 in children [ 27 ]. But, in the Fall 2021 academic term K-12 schools in South Carolina were prohibited from imposing mask mandates or switching to hybrid instruction due to state legislation passed during summer 2021 [ 28 ].…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern Alpha and Delta show increased viral load in saliva

et al. 2022

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background Higher viral loads in SARS-CoV-2 infections may be linked to more rapid spread of emerging variants of concern (VOC). Rapid detection and isolation of cases with highest viral loads, even in pre- or asymptomatic individuals, is essential for the mitigation of community outbreaks. Methods and findings In this study, we analyze Ct values from 1297 SARS-CoV-2 positive patient saliva samples collected at the Clemson University testing lab in upstate South Carolina. Samples were identified as positive using RT-qPCR, and clade information was determined via whole genome sequencing at nearby commercial labs. We also obtained patient-reported information on symptoms and exposures at the time of testing. The lowest Ct values were observed among those infected with Delta (median: 22.61, IQR: 16.72–28.51), followed by Alpha (23.93, 18.36–28.49), Gamma (24.74, 18.84–30.64), and the more historic clade 20G (25.21, 20.50–29.916). There was a statistically significant difference in Ct value between Delta and all other clades (all p.adj<0.01), as well as between Alpha and 20G (p.adj<0.05). Additionally, pre- or asymptomatic patients (n = 1093) showed the same statistical differences between Delta and all other clades (all p.adj<0.01); however, symptomatic patients (n = 167) did not show any significant differences between clades. Our weekly testing strategy ensures that cases are caught earlier in the infection cycle, often before symptoms are present, reducing this sample size in our population. Conclusions COVID-19 variants Alpha and Delta have substantially higher viral loads in saliva compared to more historic clades. This trend is especially observed in individuals who are pre- or asymptomatic, which provides evidence supporting higher transmissibility and more rapid spread of emerging variants. Understanding the viral load of variants spreading within a community can inform public policy and clinical decision making.

show abstract

“…In the previous Spring 2021 semester schools were open with multiple mitigation measures in place to prevent outbreaks (e.g., hybrid instructions, social distancing, masking) and there were very few cases of COVID-19 in children [25]. But, in the Fall 2021 academic term K-12 schools in South Carolina were prohibited from imposing mask mandates or switching to hybrid instruction due to state legislation passed during summer 2021 [26]. surveillance strategy is that infections are caught early, often before symptoms are present, which decreases the number of symptomatic samples in our population.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern Alpha and Delta show increased viral load in saliva

King

Wilson

Napolitano

et al. 2022

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

BackgroundHigher viral loads in SARS-CoV-2 infections may be linked to more rapid spread of emerging Variants of Concern. Rapid detection and isolation of cases with highest viral loads, even in pre- or asymptomatic individuals, is essential for the mitigation of community outbreaks.Methods and FindingsIn this study, we analyze Ct values from 1297 SARS-CoV-2 positive patient saliva samples collected at the Clemson University testing lab in Upstate South Carolina. Samples were identified as positive using RT-qPCR, and clade information was determined via whole genome sequencing at nearby commercial labs. We also obtained patient-reported information on symptoms and exposures at the time of testing. The lowest Ct values were observed among those infected with Delta (median: 22.61, IQR: 16.72-28.51), followed by Alpha (23.93, 18.36- 28.49), Gamma (24.74, 18.84-30.64), and the more historic clade 20G (25.21, 20.50-29.916). There was a statistically significant difference in Ct value between Delta and all other clades (all p.adj<0.01), as well as between Alpha and 20G (p.adj<0.05). Additionally, pre- or asymptomatic patients (n=1093) showed the same statistical differences between Delta and all other clades (all p.adj<0.01); however, symptomatic patients (n=167) did not show any significant differences between clades. Our weekly testing strategy ensures that cases are caught earlier in the infection cycle, often before symptoms are present, reducing this sample size in our population.ConclusionsCOVID-19 variants Alpha and Delta have substantially higher viral loads in saliva compared to more historic clades. This trend is especially observed in individuals who are pre- or asymptomatic, which provides evidence to the high transmissibility and rapid spread of emerging variants. Understanding the viral load of variants spreading within a community can inform public policy and clinical decision making.

show abstract

State Mask Mandate Bans for Schools: Law, Science, and Public Health

Cited by 5 publications

References 8 publications

The COVID‐19 pandemic, mask‐wearing, and emotion recognition during late‐childhood

The COVID‐19 pandemic, mask‐wearing, and emotion recognition during late‐childhood

SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern Alpha and Delta show increased viral load in saliva

SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern Alpha and Delta show increased viral load in saliva

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About