Risk of #COVID-19 among front-line health-care workers and the general community : a prospective cohort study - The Lancet Public Health
▻https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanpub/article/PIIS2468-2667(20)30164-X/abstract
Étude prospective britannique et états-unienne ; auto-declaration à partir d’une application : risque plus grand chez les #soignants de covid-19 que chez les autres membres de la communauté, même chez ceux qui sont porteurs d’un équipement de protection individuelle de bonne qualité (bien que risque moindre par rapport aux soignants n’en bénéficiant pas)
[...] sufficient availability of PPE, quality of PPE, or both reduce the risk of COVID-19, but reuse of PPE or inadequate PPE might confer comparably increased risk, which is compatible with findings from one of the first studies to specifically investigate PPE reuse.18 The greater risk associated with PPE reuse could be related to either self-contamination during repeated application and removal of PPE or breakdown of materials from extended wear. Of note, during the period of this study, disinfection protocols before PPE reuse were not widely available.11, 12, 13 Thus, results should be not extended to reflect risk of PPE reuse after such disinfection, which has now been implemented in various settings. An assessment of the PPE supply chain and equitable access to PPE should be a part of the deliberate and informed decision making about resource allocation.
However, even with adequate PPE, health-care workers who cared for patients with COVID-19 remained at increased risk, highlighting the importance of not only ensuring PPE quality and availability but also other aspects of appropriate use , including correct application and removal of PPE and clinical situation (practice location). Moreover, these data underscore the possibility for health-care workers to perpetuate infections or contribute to community spread, particularly when asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic, and justify calls to increase testing to reduce hospital-based transmission.5
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