Assessing the impact of lateral flow testing strategies on within-school SARS-CoV-2 transmission and absences: A modelling study

What is it about?

During the COVID-19 pandemic, a range of measures have been implemented to reduce transmission in schools. If an infected pupil is detected, one approach involves ‘isolating’ their contacts, who must then remain at home and not attend school. However, this could lead to high levels of pupil absences, which may impact educational attainment. Another approach involves testing the contacts of infected individuals each day, who are allowed to attend school if they test negative. In this study, through mathematical modelling, we compare the impact of strategies that use lateral flow tests to rapidly test secondary school pupils to strategies that require the contacts of infected individuals to isolate. Our results demonstrate the conflict between the competing aims of minimising transmission, minimising absences, and minimising test burden.

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Why is it important?

To inform