The following is a summary of “Changes in the Incidence of Invasive Bacterial Disease During the COVID-19 Pandemic in the United States, 2014–2020,” published in the April 2023 issue of Infectious Diseases by Prasad, et al.

For a study, researchers sought to investigate the impact of nonpharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) during the COVID-19 pandemic on the incidence of invasive bacterial disease (IBD) caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae, group A Streptococcus (GAS), and group B Streptococcus (GBS) in the United States.

The study analyzed changes in IBD incidence during the COVID-19 pandemic period (1 March to 31 December 2020) compared to expected incidences based on trends from January 2014 to February 2020. Surveillance data from multiple age and race groups across the US were analyzed. A secondary healthcare database also assessed blood and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) culture testing rates during the pandemic.

The observed incidences of IBD caused by S. pneumoniae, H. influenzae, GAS, and GBS were 58%, 60%, 28%, and 12% lower during the pandemic period of 2020, respectively, compared to expected incidences. These declines corresponded closely with the implementation of COVID-19-associated NPIs. Significant declines were observed across all age and race groups and surveillance sites for S. pneumoniae and H. influenzae. Blood and CSF culture testing rates during the pandemic were similar to previous years.

The study suggested that NPIs likely contributed to the decline in IBD incidence in the US during the COVID-19 pandemic. Reductions in testing rates did not drive the observed declines.

Reference: https://academic.oup.com/jid/article/227/7/907/7022112