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A Significant Decrease in the Incidence of Shigellosis in Israel during COVID-19 Pandemic.
Ravit Bassal1,2, Lital Keinan-Boker1,3, Dani Cohen2
1Israel Center for Disease Control, Ministry of Health, Sheba Medical Center, Ramat Gan 5262160, Israel.
Summary
COVID-19 prevention measures like social distancing significantly reduced bacterial enteric diseases in Israel. Shigellosis, transmitted person-to-person, saw the largest drop, highlighting the impact of public health interventions.
Area of Science:
- Epidemiology
- Infectious Diseases
- Public Health
Background:
- The COVID-19 pandemic prompted widespread public health interventions, including social distancing and enhanced hygiene.
- The impact of these measures on the incidence of other infectious diseases remained largely unexamined.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze trends in the incidence of salmonellosis, shigellosis, and campylobacteriosis in Israel during the COVID-19 pandemic.
- To assess the association between COVID-19 preventive strategies and the risk of these bacterial enteric diseases.
Main Methods:
- Utilized surveillance data from sentinel laboratories reporting culture-proven enteric bacterial infections.
- Calculated age-adjusted incidence rates and compared pre- and post-pandemic periods.
- Employed Joinpoint analysis to evaluate secular trends and Relative Risk Reduction (RRR).
Main Results:
- Significant reductions in the incidence of shigellosis (RRR=86.6%), salmonellosis (RRR=33.0%), and campylobacteriosis (RRR=30.0%) were observed during March-July 2020 compared to previous years.
- Shigellosis incidence showed a markedly sharper decline (APC=-77.7%) between February and May 2020.
- The decrease was most pronounced for shigellosis, a primarily person-to-person transmitted disease, compared to foodborne salmonellosis and campylobacteriosis.
Conclusions:
- COVID-19 preventive measures, such as social distancing and hand hygiene, were ecologically associated with a decreased incidence of bacterial enteric diseases in Israel.
- The findings underscore the effectiveness of non-pharmaceutical interventions in controlling infectious disease transmission, with varying impacts based on transmission routes.
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