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Meta-Analysis
. 2021 Mar;6(3):e004537.
doi: 10.1136/bmjgh-2020-004537.

Evidence of the effectiveness of travel-related measures during the early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic: a rapid systematic review

Karen Ann Grépin  1 , Tsi-Lok Ho  2 , Zhihan Liu  3 , Summer Marion  4 , Julianne Piper  5 , Catherine Z Worsnop  4 , Kelley Lee  5
Affiliations
Meta-Analysis

Evidence of the effectiveness of travel-related measures during the early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic: a rapid systematic review

Karen Ann Grépin et al. BMJ Glob Health. 2021 Mar.

Abstract

Objective: To review the effectiveness of travel measures implemented during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic to inform changes on how evidence is incorporated in the International Health Regulations (2005) (IHR).

Design: We used an abbreviated Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Protocols to identify studies that investigated the effectiveness of travel-related measures preprinted or published by 1 June 2020.

Results: We identified 29 studies, of which 26 were modelled. Thirteen studies investigated international measures, while 17 investigated domestic measures (one investigated both). There was a high level of agreement that the adoption of travel measures led to important changes in the dynamics of the early phases of the COVID-19 pandemic: the Wuhan measures reduced the number of cases exported internationally by 70%-80% and led to important reductions in transmission within Mainland China. Additional travel measures, including flight restrictions to and from China, may have led to additional reductions in the number of exported cases. Few studies investigated the effectiveness of measures implemented in other contexts. Early implementation was identified as a determinant of effectiveness. Most studies of international travel measures did not account for domestic travel measures thus likely leading to biased estimates.

Conclusion: Travel measures played an important role in shaping the early transmission dynamics of the COVID-19 pandemic. There is an urgent need to address important evidence gaps and also a need to review how evidence is incorporated in the IHR in the early phases of a novel infectious disease outbreak.

Keywords: COVID-19; control strategies; public health; systematic review.

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Conflict of interest statement

Competing interests: KL was a member of two donor-funded reviews of WHO in 1995 and 1997. She has previously received funding from WHO to conduct research on global health governance and global tobacco control and review evidence on the impacts of globalisation and infectious diseases. CZW was a member of a WHO guideline development group and technical consultation in 2019.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
PRISMA diagram. PRISMA, Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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