Masks curtail virus cases, study says
Cases, quarantines lower in schools with mandates
Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center has been advocating for universal masking in schools before the first bell rang this semester.
Now, though, the pediatric care center is backing up its support with a regional study.
The study made news at a recent COVID-19 briefing by Ohio Gov. Mike Dewine. Roughly 1 of every 3 school districts in Ohio currently requires masks for at least some students.
Dr. Katherine Auger, a pediatrician who cares for hospitalized children and associate chair of outcomes in the Cincinnati Children’s pediatrics department, recently examined COVID-19 caseloads in seven Cincinnati-area schools to learn whether uni
versal masking really makes a difference.
Her study shows it does:
h The rate of students getting diagnosed with COVID-19 was 78% higher in the partially masked schools than those that had universal masking.
h The rate of students being quarantined was 60% higher in the partially masked schools.
h The ratio of quarantines per COVID-19 case was 30% higher in the partially masked schools.
Bottom line: The districts with universal masking had a significantly lower rate of COVID-19 cases, and quarantines were lower, too.
“We were struck by how big that difference was,” Auger said, especially in such a short period of time.
The study was done in about three weeks, from the beginning of the school year to Sept. 7.
It has been Auger's job during the pandemic to focus on COVID-19 policies that affect children, including school closings.
Auger, who also is on the faculty at the University of Cincinnati's College of Medicine, joined with a colleague to publish a study showing that closing schools across most of the U.S. at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic likely reduced infections by 1 million and saved more than 40,000 people from dying due to the virus. The study appeared in the July 29, 2020, issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
The goal of current research is to learn as much about COVID-19 and schools to help children return safely to school, hospital officials said.
Wyoming City Schools was among the districts that provided data for the recent study, and Superintendent Tim Weber said the association with Cincinnati Children's throughout the pandemic has been helpful in navigating education through the pandemic.
He said Wyoming district officials this year had two major goals: provide students and staff with the safest possible learning environment, and do what works best to ensure continuing in-person learning.
The decision, Weber said, was obvious.
“When we're universally masked, it creates a safe environment for our students and our staff,” he said. “And, they stay in school.”
As of Tuesday afternoon, Wyoming City Schools, which enrolls just under 2,000 students, had 16 Covid-19-positive cases among students and staff. The district has had a total of 30 people quarantine since the middle of August, Weber said.
He said some parents have asked school officials about the need for masks, but the community has been overwhelmingly cooperative.
Auger's study used data from seven school districts, including Wyoming, with a total of 64,500 students. Three districts require universal masking (including one that switched to full masking after a week of school), four require masking for kids in kindergarten through sixth grade but not for kids in grades seven through 12. Five of the districts also provided the data on quarantines.
She said universal masking not only keeps unvaccinated students and staff safe from COVID-19, but is helpful to young children, who need to see role models in the adults and older students around them. And, it's less stressful for teenagers, who are saddled with worries about fitting in with other students.
“Masks work. They are effective. They do change the number of cases we see in schools. And masks are safe,” she said.
Auger also supports vaccination against COVID-19 for children who are eligible. For now, that's kids 12 and older.
“It's kind of like a combo package,” Auger said. “Get your kids vaccinated. Have them wear masks. They can stay in school, which is where they belong.”