Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39942457›Full record

ArticleHealthcare (Basel, Switzerland)2025

Contact Tracing During the COVID-19 Epidemic: Insights from the Experience of the Veneto Region in Italy.

Honoria Ocagli, Erica Marcolin, Filippo Da Re, Gloria Brigiari, Davide Gentili, Michele Mongillo, Michele Tonon, Federica Michieletto, Dario Gregori, Francesca Russo

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland), 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

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Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors.

Honoria OcagliUnit of Biostatistics, Epidemiology and Public Health, Department of Cardio-Thoraco-Vascular Sciences and Public Health, University of Padova, 35131 Padova, Italy.ORCID 0000-0002-5823-1659
Erica MarcolinUnit of Biostatistics, Epidemiology and Public Health, Department of Cardio-Thoraco-Vascular Sciences and Public Health, University of Padova, 35131 Padova, Italy.
Filippo Da ReUnit of Biostatistics, Epidemiology and Public Health, Department of Cardio-Thoraco-Vascular Sciences and Public Health, University of Padova, 35131 Padova, Italy.
Gloria BrigiariUnit of Biostatistics, Epidemiology and Public Health, Department of Cardio-Thoraco-Vascular Sciences and Public Health, University of Padova, 35131 Padova, Italy.
Davide GentiliDirectorate of Prevention, Food Safety, and Veterinary Public Health-Veneto Region, 30123 Venice, Italy.ORCID 0000-0002-7852-191X
Michele MongilloDirectorate of Prevention, Food Safety, and Veterinary Public Health-Veneto Region, 30123 Venice, Italy.
Michele TononDirectorate of Prevention, Food Safety, and Veterinary Public Health-Veneto Region, 30123 Venice, Italy.
Federica MichielettoDirectorate of Prevention, Food Safety, and Veterinary Public Health-Veneto Region, 30123 Venice, Italy.
Dario GregoriUnit of Biostatistics, Epidemiology and Public Health, Department of Cardio-Thoraco-Vascular Sciences and Public Health, University of Padova, 35131 Padova, Italy.
Francesca RussoDirectorate of Prevention, Food Safety, and Veterinary Public Health-Veneto Region, 30123 Venice, Italy.ORCID 0009-0007-9557-7361

Funding

Italian Ministry of Health The research was conducted under the scope of the CCM (Centre for Diseases Control) 2020 Project "Modelli organizzativi per l'efficientamento delle attività di contact tracing" (Organizational models to improve the efficiency of contact tracing activities
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundNonpharmaceutical public health interventions, such as contact tracing (CT), have been widely implemented worldwide to mitigate the spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

objectivesThis study investigated the association between CT activity and COVID-19 cases, as well as the impact of timely contact with positive cases on hospitalizations in the Veneto region in northeastern Italy.

methodsData sources included a CT-focused questionnaire, regional daily CT activity data, and a regional database of daily COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations, and intensive care unit (ICU) admissions. Negative binomial regression models were used to assess associations between CT activity and the number of positive cases, the number of hospitalizations, the time to contact cases, the number of positive cases traced, and the number of CT operators. Different organizational models (OMs) were compared in terms of their effectiveness.

resultsHospitalization rates decreased by 54% when index cases were contacted within 0-1 days compared with a five-day delay in the first period. During periods of increasing case numbers, hospitalizations decreased to 8% for contact ranges of 0-1 and 2-4 days. The increase in CT activity showed a 60% increase in daily activity per 100 cases in the third period, excluding external CT activities.

conclusionsThese results emphasize the critical role of prompt and effective CT in controlling the spread of infectious diseases and reducing the burden on health care systems. Further research is warranted to explore the potential benefits and limitations of different organizational models in the context of contact tracing and public health management, as well as in a cross-cultural comparison.

Indexed as

contact tracingCOVID-19hospitalizationsorganizational modelspandemic control

Identifiers

PMID39942457
PMCPMC11816897

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.