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. 2021 Feb;26(7):2100065.
doi: 10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2021.26.7.2100065.

Reducing contacts to stop SARS-CoV-2 transmission during the second pandemic wave in Brussels, Belgium, August to November 2020

Brecht Ingelbeen  1 , Laurène Peckeu  1 , Marie Laga  1 , Ilona Hendrix  2 , Inge Neven  2 , Marianne Ab van der Sande  1   3 , Esther van Kleef  1
Affiliations

Reducing contacts to stop SARS-CoV-2 transmission during the second pandemic wave in Brussels, Belgium, August to November 2020

Brecht Ingelbeen et al. Euro Surveill. 2021 Feb.

Abstract

To evaluate the effect of physical distancing and school reopening in Brussels between August and November 2020, we monitored changes in the number of reported contacts per SARS-CoV-2 case and associated SARS-CoV-2 transmission. The second COVID-19 pandemic wave in Brussels was the result of increased social contact across all ages following school reopening. Physical distancing measures including closure of bars and restaurants, and limiting close contacts, while primary and secondary schools remained open, reduced social mixing and controlled SARS-CoV-2 transmission.

Keywords: COVID-19; Coronavirus Infections; Disease outbreak; Europe; Pandemics; Pneumonia, Viral; Reproduction number; SARS-CoV-2; epidemiology; prevention and control.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interest: None declared.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
7-day moving average of SARS-CoV-2 confirmed cases reported, Brussels region, Belgium, 1 August–12 November 2020 (n = 415,412)
Figure 2
Figure 2
Weekly mean number of contacts reported per SARS-CoV-2 case (excluding cases not reporting any contacts), by age group, Brussels region, Belgium, 1 August–12 November 2020 (n = 24,166)
Figure 3
Figure 3
Estimated instantaneous reproduction number Rt based on daily reported cases and a mean 5.2-day serial interval (95% credible interval: 4.4–6.0 [14]), Brussels region, Belgium, 1 August–12 November 2020 (n = 63,838)
Figure 4
Figure 4
Transmission matrix between primary and secondary cases of all identified transmission events, Brussels region, Belgium, 1 August–30 November 2020 (n = 2,387)
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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