Trends in the numbers of SARS-CoV-2 infections among students: a prospective cohort study comparing students in sports boarding schools with students in day schools during early COVID-19 pandemic

IntroductionDuring the first months of the COVID pandemic it emerged that facilities where people gather or live together in cohorts, such as nursing homes or schools, were particularly at high risk for becoming hotspots of virus transmission. German political and health institutions responded with far-reaching interventions and preventive strategies to protect the population from infection with SARS-CoV-2. In this context, it remains unclear whether boarding schools for sports particularly pose a risk of infection to their residents.MethodsIn a single-center prospective cohort study, numbers of SARS-CoV-2 infections of students in sports boarding schools (n = 11) vs. students attending regular day schools (n = 22) in the region Freiburg/Hochschwarzwald in Germany were investigated over a period from October 2020 to January 2021 via regular virus and antibody screening (German Clinical Trials Register; Study ID: DRKS00021909). In addition, individual and behavioral risk factors for infection were stratified via questionnaire, which provide an indication of cohort specific risk factors for infection and the success of the implementation of hygiene concepts, as well as other infection prevention strategies, within the respective facilities.ResultsRegarding SARS-CoV-2 infection numbers, the screening detected no significant group difference between sports boarding schools vs. day schools.DiscussionThe study results provide indications that sports boarding schools did not pose an increased risk of infection, assuming that the facilities prevent virus transmissions with appropriate preventive strategies and hygiene measures. In future pandemic scenarios larger-scale and multicenter studies are necessary to achieve more comprehensive epidemiological data in this field

Unusual cause of exercise-induced ventricular fibrillation in a well-trained adult endurance athlete: a case report

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Introduction</p> <p>The diseases responsible for sudden deaths in athletes differ considerably with regard to age. In young athletes, congenital malformations of the heart and/or vascular system cause the majority of deaths and can only be detected noninvasively by complex diagnostics. In contrast, in older athletes who die suddenly, atherosclerotic disease of the coronary arteries is mostly found. Reports of congenital coronary anomalies as a cause of sudden death in older athletes are rare.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>A 48-year-old man who was a well-trained, long-distance runner collapsed at the finish of a half marathon because of a myocardial infarction with ventricular fibrillation. Coronary angiography showed an anomalous origin of the right coronary artery from the left sinus of Valsalva with minimal wall alterations. Multislice computed tomography of the coronary arteries confirmed these findings. Cardiomagnetic resonance imaging demonstrated a mild hypokinesia of the basal right- and left-ventricular posterior wall. An electrophysiological study showed an inducible temporary polymorphic ventricular tachycardia and an inducible ventricular fibrillation. The athlete was subsequently treated by acetylsalicylic acid 100 mg (0-1-0), bisoprolol 2.5 mg (1-0-0) and atorvastatin 10 mg (0-0-1) and was instructed to keep his training intensity under the 'individual anaerobic threshold'. Intense and long-lasting exercise under extreme environmental conditions, particularly heat, should also be avoided.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>This case report presents a coronary anomaly as the most likely reason for an exercise-induced myocardial infarction with ventricular fibrillation in a well-trained 48-year-old endurance athlete. Therefore, coronary anomalies have also to be considered as a possible cause of cardiac problems in older athletes.</p