news-date">04.03.2022
In the recommendations of the DGKJ/DGPI with the support of the BVKJ, children should be given perspectives. The relaxation of the infection control measures should also apply to children.
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The peak of the omicron wave has passed in most federal states. At the Prime Ministers’ Conference on February 16, 2022, the federal and state governments agreed to scale back state infection control measures. Children and young people have suffered particularly from the changes during the pandemic and the associated interventions in their social participation. In its 7th statement, the Federal Government’s Expert Council expressly called for the priority consideration of the well-being of children during the pandemic. Relaxation of the measures for children and young people should take place at least analogously to easing in the overall social framework.
The goal is now primarily targeted protection against severe disease progression, no longer protection against every single infection. This particularly affects vulnerable groups with risk factors that are now well defined. Children and young people are only included in very rare exceptional cases.
SARS-CoV2 vaccination
A vaccine against SARS-CoV-2 contributes significantly to the fact that severe courses of a COVID-19 infection do not occur. However, it cannot reliably prevent every infection.
We expressly support the vaccination recommendations of the STIKO. We call for vaccinations, especially in the environment of children. The benefit of the vaccination is evident, serious complications are extremely rare, even in the age group of children and adolescents. Vaccination of all adults also protects the under-5s, for whom no approved vaccine is yet available. In the 5 to 11-year-old age group, basic immunization with two vaccinations is equivalent to complete vaccination protection.
masks
Wearing a medical mouth and nose protector (MNS) or in special cases also an FFP-2 mask plays a major role among the measures used to limit the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. In addition to other hygiene measures, wearing an MNS also reduces the risk of infection in schools. Analogous to the AWMF guideline “Measures to prevent and control SARS-CoV-2 transmission in schools” Depending on the incidence of infection and the general rules that also apply outside of school, we recommend wearing an MNS when visiting secondary schools; wearing a mask can also be recommended for elementary school students in special situations, but should not be mandatory. Mask breaks must be allowed, physical education classes should take place without masks. We refer here to our updated information. Small children should be regularly excluded from wearing masks. Between the waves of infection, when the disease burden of the children is low, for example measured by hospitalization rates, masks should not be worn in educational institutions. Wearing a medical MNS should not be made dependent on vaccination or recovery status or the performance of SARS-CoV-2 tests without cause.
SARS-CoV-2 antigen rapid tests / PCR pool tests
The age group that has been monitored most consistently in the past, ie without a reason, with rapid antigen tests or PCR pool tests are children and young people in day-care centers and schools, some of which have daily tests. This had and has far-reaching consequences that went beyond what was demanded and implemented outside of school operations. For example, if the test results were positive, isolation and quarantine measures were initiated, which were maintained at least until confirmation/non-confirmation by a PCR test.
Unprovoked antigen tests with subsequent PCR tests in the event of a positive result do not make sense due to the high pre-analytical and analytical errors. The test results are unreliable, especially in younger children. Experience has shown that even if a PCR test is subsequently carried out, the evaluation and transfer of information is considerably delayed.
PCR pool tests are also not useful in the case of high incidences, as they result in a high percentage of individual PCR tests, which are currently not available in sufficient numbers, tie up resources unnecessarily and also only allow infected people to be identified with a certain amount of latency.
Prompt rapid antigen tests / PCR pool tests should therefore be discontinued with immediate effect. In the case of COVID-19 symptoms, on the other hand, rapid antigen tests should be used, as well as if children and adolescents or parents so wish, e.g. if there is a person with risk factors (illness or poor vaccination response) in the same household.
If the test result is negative but the symptoms persist, this can be repeated daily if necessary. Isolation at home and a confirmation test using PCR should only be carried out if the antigen test is positive.
quarantine
In the case of daycare and school children, quarantine should no longer necessarily be ordered if they come into contact with a child in the daycare group or school class with a positive SARS-CoV-2 test. They should be given the opportunity to remain at the facility. Their infection status can be checked with sufficient certainty by means of an antigen (or PCR) test in the days following contact.
Recommendations from DGKJ, DGPI and BVKJ in PDF format for download
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