Utilizing student-led contact tracing initiative to alleviate COVID-19 disease burden in central Pennsylvania

Contact tracing elicits probable contacts from COVID-19 cases. Our student-led contact tracing initiative promoted isolation of both confirmed and probable cases and quarantine of contacts to reduce disease in Central Pennsylvania. Close contacts of COVID-19 cases were contacted by tracers, advised to quarantine, and monitored for 14 days for symptoms. Symptomatic contacts were classified as probable cases and advised to isolate. Data was collected from March 24, 2020 to May 26, 2020. Poisson regression and linear regression were utilized to examine the relationships between case and number of contacts and proportion of symptomatic contacts. Study sample comprised of 346 confirmed and 157 probable cases. Our results indicate a significant difference in percent of household contacts who became symptomatic between confirmed and probable cases (22% vs. 3%; adjusted P