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References:

COVID facts and figures

• COVID hospitalisations in Australia: https://covidlive.com.au/report/daily-hospitalised/aus#2020

• Number of infections per wave in Australia: https://www.abc.net.au/listen/programs/abc-news-daily/is-the-new-covid-wave-worth-worrying-about/103123542; https://www.health.gov.au/ministers/the-hon-mark-butler-mp/media/minister-for-health-and-aged-care-press-conference-8-february-2023

• Most Australians have had COVID: https://kirby.unsw.edu.au/sites/default/files/COVID19-Blood-Donor-Report-Round4-Nov-Dec-2022.pdf

• 70% of household cases start with a school-age child: https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2805468
  (Note: This study inferred household COVID transmission indirectly via reported fevers. The paper notes that other viruses can also cause fevers, but at the time of the study the prevalence of COVID cases was 10x to 100x higher than influenza and RSV cases.)

• 1/3 of people with COVID do not develop symptoms: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9321237/

• Most COVID infections come from people with no symptoms: https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2774707; https://abcnews.go.com/Health/covid-transmission-asymptomatic/story?id=84599810 

Health impacts of COVID

• Global death toll from COVID: https://www.economist.com/graphic-detail/coronavirus-excess-deaths-estimates

• 400 million people have Long COVID: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41577-023-00904-7; https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-024-03173-6

• 7.5 million children have lost a parent: https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2797407 

• Australian deaths from COVID: https://covidlive.com.au/

• Long COVID in Australia: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.5694/mja2.52400; https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-08-19/long-covid-billions-economic-loss-australia/104234434

• Children who have lost a parent to COVID in Australia: https://imperialcollegelondon.github.io/orphanhood_trends/?country=~AUS

• Deaths from COVID in Australian children: https://www.abs.gov.au/articles/covid-19-mortality-australia-deaths-registered-until-30-november-2023

• COVID is a vascular disease: https://scitechdaily.com/covid-19-is-a-vascular-disease-coronavirus-spike-protein-attacks-vascular-system-on-a-cellular-level/

• COVID causes cardiovascular diseases: https://thrombosisjournal.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12959-023-00504-4

• COVID increases short-term risk of cardiovascular disease: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8321431/ 

• COVID increases long-term risk of cardiovascular disease: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-022-00403-0, https://www.bmj.com/content/376/bmj.o378 

• Fatal heart attacks have surged in Australia: https://www.smh.com.au/national/fatal-heart-attacks-have-surged-in-australia-here-s-why-20230117-p5cd22.html 

• Heart Foundation calls for heart health checks following COVID infection: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-03-05/heart-attack-death-of-young-man-prompts-calls-for-health-checks/102049060

• COVID increases risk of neurological disorders: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-022-02001-z 

• COVID increases risk of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35812108/ 

• 1 in 4 COVID infections leads to cognitive deficit: https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.03.16.22272467v1.full, https://www.brainfacts.org/diseases-and-disorders/covid-19/2023/the-risks-of-even-mild-covid19-1-in-4-showing-cognitive-deficits-011723

• COVID can cause severe cognitive slowing: https://www.thelancet.com/journals/eclinm/article/PIIS2589-5370(24)00013-0/fulltext

• COVID causes brain cells to fuse: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.adg2248 

• COVID causes significant drops in IQ scores: https://theconversation.com/mounting-research-shows-that-covid-19-leaves-its-mark-on-the-brain-including-with-significant-drops-in-iq-scores-224216; https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMe2400189

• COVID damages the immune system: https://www.nih.gov/news-events/news-releases/sars-cov-2-infection-weakens-immune-cell-response-vaccination 

• Immune dysfunction lasts for at least 8 months: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41590-021-01113-x 

• COVID nearly doubles the risk of Type 1 diabetes in children: https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2805461 

• COVID increases many other health risks in kids: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9368731/ 

• Professor Jeremy Nicholson - Evidence provided to the Parliamentary Inquiry into Long COVID and Reinfection: https://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/download/committees/commrep/26537/toc_pdf/Health,%20Aged%20Care%20and%20Sport%20Committee_2023_02_20_Official.pdf 

• Risk increases with repeat infections: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-022-02051-3 

Long COVID

• Long COVID - Major findings: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41579-022-00846-2 

• Long COVID - Common symptoms: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41579-022-00846-2 

• Australians call for Long COVID to be recognised as a disability: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-05-03/advocates-call-for-long-covid-to-be-recognised-as-a-disability/102290446 

• Parliamentary Inquiry into Long COVID and Repeated Infections: https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/House/Health_Aged_Care_and_Sport/LongandrepeatedCOVID/Report 

• Long COVID in kids: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-022-13495-5 

• Symptoms often persist for at least 6 months: https://www.jpeds.com/article/S0022-3476(23)00311-6/fulltext 

• Long COVID causes brain inflammation: https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.06.02.22275916v1 

• AEU Evidence to the Parliamentary Inquiry into Long COVID: https://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/download/committees/commrep/26537/toc_pdf/Health,%20Aged%20Care%20and%20Sport%20Committee_2023_02_20_Official.pdf 

• NZ data - Teachers are infected more often than any other occupation: https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/education/130800353/school-teachers-most-at-risk-with-highest-rates-of-covid19-infection-data-shows 

• UK teachers launch class action: https://inews.co.uk/news/teachers-legal-fight-long-covid-support-3144937

• Survey of US teachers regarding Long COVID: https://www.edweek.org/teaching-learning/the-pandemic-has-faded-from-view-but-many-educators-still-have-long-covid/2023/06

• The Precautionary Principle: https://oem.bmj.com/content/64/9/569.1, https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15512973 

How COVID spreads

• John Snow Project video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kX9t8jQ9-fM 

• COVID transmission via hands is extremely rare: https://www.cureus.com/articles/227537-sars-cov-2-contamination-on-healthy-individuals-hands-in-community-settings-during-the-covid-19-pandemic#!/

• COVID is transmitted primarily via aerosols: https://today.ucsd.edu/story/its-not-just-sars-cov-2-most-respiratory-viruses-spread-by-aerosols

• Choir practice case study: https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/69/wr/mm6919e6.htm 

• Most infections are via inhalation: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41370-022-00442-9 

• How COVID spreads in classrooms: https://academic.oup.com/pnasnexus/article/2/5/pgad142/7175271

Preventing COVID spreading in schools

• Swiss Cheese model of layered mitigations: https://virologydownunder.com/

• AIRAH (Australian Institute of Refrigeration Air Conditioning and Heating) Guidance for Primary and Secondary Schools on COVID-19 Ventilation Optimisation: https://airah.org.au/Common/Uploaded%20files/Archive/Resources/COVID19/2021_AIRAH_COVID-19_Ventilation_Optimisation_Guide_for_Schools.pdf

• OzSAGE guidance - Safe air in schools: https://static1.squarespace.com/static/656d053d3b66b13402b7fe50/t/65faabf8c8ac9652e9032393/1710926841472/21-09+Safe-Indoor-Air-advice.pdf

• OzSAGE advice - Safe indoor air: https://static1.squarespace.com/static/656d053d3b66b13402b7fe50/t/65faabf8c8ac9652e9032393/1710926841472/21-09+Safe-Indoor-Air-advice.pdf

• Letsair advice on CO2 levels: https://letsair.org/

• CO2 monitoring in schools: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0013935121008549 

• Classrooms should have a CO2 level below 800 ppm at all times: OzSAGE

• Boston Public Schools CO2 Dashboard: https://bostonschoolsiaq.terrabase.com/ 

• About HEPA filters: https://sites.manchester.ac.uk/covid19-national-project/2023/01/09/how-we-know-that-hepa-filter-based-air-cleaners-are-likely-to-be-beneficial-for-reducing-transmission-of-respiratory-infections/ 

• HEPA filters work: https://journals.plos.org/plosmedicine/article?id=10.1371/journal.pmed.1004226 

• Clean Air Stars: https://cleanairstars.com/ 

• VIC Department of Education advice on air purifiers: https://www.education.vic.gov.au/PAL/how-to-use-an-air-purifer.pdf 

• Evidence that HEPA filters reduce respiratory infections: https://sites.manchester.ac.uk/covid19-national-project/2023/01/09/how-we-know-that-hepa-filter-based-air-cleaners-are-likely-to-be-beneficial-for-reducing-transmission-of-respiratory-infections/ 

• Schools where all students wore masks had a 70% reduction in aerosols: https://journals.plos.org/plosmedicine/article?id=10.1371/journal.pmed.1004226

• Each 10% increase in mask-wearing led to a 47% decrease in COVID cases: https://www.healio.com/news/primary-care/20230222/wastewater-study-finds-masks-prevent-covid19-in-schools 

• Effectiveness of N95 masks vs surgical masks: https://www.axios.com/2022/01/11/n95-mask-protection-covid

• Evidence that masks and respirators prevent respiratory infections: https://journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/cmr.00124-23

• RATs can have a false negative rate of ~60%: https://www.mcgill.ca/oss/article/covid-19/navigating-false-negatives-covid-rapid-tests 

• Swabbing nose and throat vs nose only: https://academic.oup.com/pnasnexus/article/2/3/pgad033/7076919?login=false#400209979 

• How long are people infectious?: https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMc2202092 

• COVID Transmission From People Without COVID-19 Symptoms: https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2774707