Rapid Control of a SARS-CoV-2 B.1.617.2 (Delta) Variant COVID-19 Community Outbreak: The Successful Experience in Pingtung County of Taiwan

Cherng-Gueih Shy, Jian-He Lu, Hui-Chen Lin, Min-Nan Hung, Hsiu-Chun Chang, Meng-Lun Lu, How-Ran Chao, Yao-Shen Chen and Pi-Sheng Wang
Additional contact information
Cherng-Gueih Shy: Public Health Bureau, Pingtung County Government, Pingtung, Pingtung County 900, Taiwan
Jian-He Lu: Emerging Compounds Research Center, General Research Service Center, National Pingtung University of Science and Technology, Neipu, Pingtung County 912, Taiwan
Hui-Chen Lin: Kaohsiung-Pingtung Regional Center, Taiwan Centers for Disease Control, Ministry of Health and Welfare, Executive Yuan, Taipei City 10050, Taiwan
Min-Nan Hung: Kaohsiung-Pingtung Regional Center, Taiwan Centers for Disease Control, Ministry of Health and Welfare, Executive Yuan, Taipei City 10050, Taiwan
Hsiu-Chun Chang: Public Health Bureau, Pingtung County Government, Pingtung, Pingtung County 900, Taiwan
Meng-Lun Lu: Public Health Bureau, Pingtung County Government, Pingtung, Pingtung County 900, Taiwan
How-Ran Chao: Emerging Compounds Research Center, General Research Service Center, National Pingtung University of Science and Technology, Neipu, Pingtung County 912, Taiwan
Yao-Shen Chen: Department of Administration, Kaohsiung Veterans General Hospital, Kaohsiung 813, Taiwan
Pi-Sheng Wang: Hospital and Social Welfare Organizations Administration Commission, Ministry of Health and Welfare, Nangang, Taipei City 11558, Taiwan

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 3, 1-12

Abstract: The Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome-associated Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) was an outbreak in December, 2019 and rapidly spread to the world. All variants of SARS-CoV-2, including the globally and currently dominant Delta variant (Delta-SARS-CoV-2), caused severe disease and mortality. Among all variants, Delta-SARS-CoV-2 had the highest transmissibility, growth rate, and secondary attack rate than other variants except for the new variant of Omicron that still exists with many unknown effects. In Taiwan, the pandemic Delta-SARS-CoV-2 began in Pingtung from 14 June 2021 and ceased at 11 July 2021. Seventeen patients were infected by Delta-SARS-CoV-2 and 1 person died during the Pingtung outbreak. The Public Health Bureau of Pingtung County Government stopped the Delta-SARS-CoV-2 outbreak within 1 month through measures such as epidemic investigation, rapid gene sequencing, rapidly expanding isolation, expanded screening of the Delta-SARS-CoV-2 antigen for people who lived in regional villages, and indirect intervention, including rapid vaccination, short lockdown period, and travel restrictions. Indirect environmental factors, such as low levels of air pollution, tropic weather in the summer season, and rural areas might have accelerated the ability to control the Delta-SARS-CoV-2 spread. This successful experience might be recommended as a successful formula for the unvaccinated or insufficiently vaccinated regions.

Keywords: Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2); Delta-variant; rapid control; vaccination; quarantine; PCR fast screening (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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