U.S. kids and parents perform DIY tests for coronavirus science
In a comfy suburb just outside Nashville, members of a young family swab their noses twice a month in a DIY study seeking answers to some of the most vexing questions about the coronavirus.
How many U.S. children and teens are infected? How many kids who are infected show no symptoms? How likely are they to spread it to other kids and adults?
“The bottom line is we just don’t know yet the degree to which children can transmit the virus,” said Dr. Tina Hartert of Vanderbilt University, who is leading the government-funded study.
Evidence from the U.S., China and Europe shows children are less likely to become infected with the virus than adults and are less likely to become seriously ill when they do get sick. There also are data suggesting that young children don’t spread the virus very often but that kids age 10 and up may spread it just as easily as adults. The new study aims to find more solid proof.
“If we don’t see significant transmission within households, that would be very reassuring,” Hartert said.
Some 2,000 families in 11 U.S. cities are enrolled in the DIY experiment, pulled from participants in previous government research. In all, that’s 6,000 people. They have no in-person contact with researchers. Testing supplies are mailed to their homes.
They collect their own nasal swabs for COVID-19 tests, and less often blood and stool samples. The specimens are mailed to the study organizers. Participants get text messages asking about symptoms and reminding them to test. They fill out questionnaires.
The study could help determine the safety of inclass education during the pandemic. But results aren’t expected before year’s end.
For Mendy and Joe McNulty and their two youngest sons in Mount Juliet, Tenn., nasal swabbing at home is a family affair. Testing supplies are spread out on a carefully wiped kitchen counter, where the four gather to perform what has become a ritual. Mendy Mcnulty helps the boys with their swabbing.
“We were excited to be able to feel like we could contribute somehow,” she said, explaining why the family chose to participate.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says at least 175,000 cases have been confirmed in those age 17 and under, accounting for less than 10% of all confirmed cases. But the true number is likely much higher because many kids have silent infections or only vague symptoms and don’t get tested.
Mendy Mcnulty says so far her family has remained healthy. She and her husband are 39 and don’t feel overly worried about getting infected.
She’s interested in what happens when her kids return to school in mid-august — two classroom days a week with masks and social distancing, three days online.
“Schools are like little petri dishes anyway,” said Mcnulty, also a former teacher.
Dr. David Kimberlin says he and other infectious-disease specialists have been waiting for the kind of data the study will provide.
“Generally speaking, the virus behaves differently in children than adults,” said Kimberlin, a pediatrics professor at the University of Alabama- Birmingham. “Why is that? We just need to know so much more.”