Analysis of a large SARS-CoV-2 (Alpha) outbreak in a Catalan prison using conventional and genomic epidemiology

Antoni E Bordoy; Xavier Vallès; Juan Fernández-Náger; Montserrat Sánchez-Roig; Juan Fernández-Recio; Verónica Saludes; Marc Noguera-Julian; Ignacio Blanco; Elisa Martró; Quatre Camins COVID-19 Study Group

doi:10.1093/infdis/jiae161

Analysis of a large SARS-CoV-2 (Alpha) outbreak in a Catalan prison using conventional and genomic epidemiology

J Infect Dis. 2024 Apr 4:jiae161. doi: 10.1093/infdis/jiae161. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Collaborators

Quatre Camins COVID-19 Study Group:
E P Balcázar, M R Díaz, R Encarnación, M Fuentes, C Gallego, A M Pale, P Puig, E A Moreno, A Puertolas, G Chouldry, I Sala, A G Jiménez, B Armenteros, J Alvo, S Gómez, M Guillament, D Martínez, A Martin, M A Moruno, N Parra, A Puig, F J Rodríguez, M Sánchez, A C Varoucha, M Moreno, J Martínez, S Huguet, A Sánchez, T Alonso, M Garcia, E Prat, A Aranda, M J Arguelles, J Azqueta, E Cruz, R M Egido, R Galvany, B Garcia, M González, V González, J A Infante, C Latorre, P Márquez, I Muñoz, M Porras, M Ramos, M Escamilla, J Santalucía, M Riquelme, L Rastrollo, M Pedrerol, V Caraballo, J Fontan, M Verú, V Conill, L Soler, D Panisello Yagüe, C Casañ, G Clarà, M Giménez, M Guerrero-Murillo, P J Cardona, Andrés Marco

Affiliations

¹ Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP), Badalona, Spain.
² Microbiology Department, Northern Metropolitan Clinical Laboratory, Hospital Universitari Germans Trias i Pujol, Badalona, Spain.
³ Primary Penitentiary Care Team, La Roca del Vallès 1, Barcelona, Spain.
⁴ Instituto de Ciencias de la Vid y del Vino (ICVV), CSIC-Universidad de La Rioja-Gobierno de La Rioja, Logroño, Spain.
⁵ CIBER in Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), Madrid, Spain.
⁶ Institut de Recerca de la SIDA-IrsiCaixa, Hospital Universitari Germans Trias i Pujol (HUGTiP), Badalona, Spain.
⁷ University of Vic-Central University of Catalonia (UVic-UCC), Vic, Spain.
⁸ Clinical Genetics Department, Northern Metropolitan Clinical Laboratory, Hospital Universitari Germans Trias i Pujol, Badalona, Spain.

PMID: 38570699
DOI: 10.1093/infdis/jiae161

Abstract

Enforcing strict protocols that prevent transmission of airborne infections in prisons is challenging. We examine a large SARS-CoV-2 outbreak in a Catalan penitentiary center from February-March 2021, prior to vaccination deployment. The aim was to describe the evolution of the outbreak using classical and genomic epidemiology and the containment strategy applied. The outbreak was initially detected in one module but spread to four, infecting 7 staff members and 140 incarcerated individuals, 6 of whom were hospitalized (4.4%). Genomic analysis confirmed a single origin (B.1.1.7). Contact tracing identified transmission vectors between modules and prevented further viral spread. In future similar scenarios, the control strategy described here may help limiting transmission of airborne infections in correctional settings.

Keywords: COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; disease transmission model; genomic epidemiology; intervention measures; outbreak; prisons.

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