Skip Navigation
Skip to contents

Epidemiol Health : Epidemiology and Health

OPEN ACCESS
SEARCH
Search

Search

Page Path
HOME > Search
1 "Religion"
Filter
Filter
Article category
Keywords
Publication year
Authors
COVID-19: Original Article
Epidemiological characteristics of a COVID-19 outbreak caused by religious activities in Daegu, Korea
Jong-Yeon Kim, Yu-Mi Lee, Hwajin Lee, Jung-Whan Kim, Shin-Woo Kim
Epidemiol Health. 2021;43:e2021024.   Published online April 14, 2021
DOI: https://doi.org/10.4178/epih.e2021024
  • 11,272 View
  • 354 Download
  • 6 Web of Science
  • 10 Crossref
AbstractAbstract AbstractSummary PDFSupplementary Material
Abstract
OBJECTIVES
A coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak triggered by religious activities occurred in Daegu, Korea in February 2020. This outbreak spread rapidly to the community through high-risk groups. This study describes the characteristics of COVID-19 cases based on S religious group membership and summarizes the Daegu municipal government’s processes and responses to control the outbreak.
METHODS
The epidemiological characteristics of confirmed cases were obtained through basic and in-depth epidemiological surveys. General characteristics, the proportion of asymptomatic cases, the case-fatality rate, and the time-to-event within each group were presented after stratifying confirmed cases according to S religious group membership.
RESULTS
Overall, 7,008 COVID-19 cases were confirmed in Daegu from February 18, 2020 to June 30, 2020, and 61.5% (n= 4,309) were S religious group members. Compared with non-members, members had a higher proportion of female (p< 0.001) and younger age (p< 0.001), as well as lower disease prevalence. At the time of the investigation, 38.4% of cases in members were asymptomatic versus 23.7% of cases in non-members (p< 0.001). The case-fatality rate of non-members aged ≥ 60 years was significantly higher than that of members (p< 0.001). Compared with non-members, members had longer intervals from symptom onset to diagnosis (p< 0.001) and from diagnosis to admission (p< 0.001), and a shorter interval from admission to discharge (p< 0.001).
CONCLUSIONS
The epidemiological features of S religious group members, including the proportion of asymptomatic cases, case-fatality rate, and time-to-event, differed from non-members. The Daegu authorities prevented further COVID-19 spread through immediate isolation and active screening tests of all S religious group members.
Summary
Korean summary
2020년 2월 대구에서는 종교활동에 의한 코로나바이러스감염증-19(COVID-19) 유행이 발생하였다. 2020년 2월 18일부터 6월 30일까지 대구에서 7,008명이 확진되었으며, 이 중 약 61.5%가 S 종교집단의 신도였다. 비신도인 확진자에 비하여 S 종교집단의 신도인 확진자는 높은 여성 비율, 낮은 연령, 낮은 기저질환 유병률, 높은 무증상 감염율, 동일 연령대에 비하여 낮은 치명률을 보였다. 대구시 보건당국은 S 종교집단의 모든 회원에 대한 즉각적인 격리와 적극적인 선별검사를 통해 지역사회 내 더욱 광범위한 COVID-19 확산을 막을 수 있었다.
Key Message
A coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak triggered by religious activities occurred in Daegu, Korea in February 2020. Overall, 7,008 COVID-19 cases were confirmed in Daegu from February 18, 2020 to June 30, 2020, and approximately 61.5% were S religious group members. Compared with non-members, members had a higher proportion of women, younger age, and lower disease prevalence, higher proportion of asymptomatic cases and lower case-fatality rate within the same age group. The Daegu authorities prevented further COVID-19 spread through immediate isolation and active screening tests of all S religious group members.

Citations

Citations to this article as recorded by  
  • Achieving COVID-19 zero without lockdown, January 2020 to March 2022: The Taiwan model explained
    Yi-Hsuan Chen, Chi-Tai Fang
    Journal of the Formosan Medical Association.2024; 123: S8.     CrossRef
  • Estimation of the Effectiveness of a Tighter, Reinforced Quarantine for the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Outbreak: Analysis of the Third Wave in South Korea
    Marn Joon Park, Ji Ho Choi, Jae Hoon Cho
    Journal of Personalized Medicine.2023; 13(3): 402.     CrossRef
  • COVID-19 outbreak in a religious village community in Republic of Korea and risk factors for transmission
    Jiae Shim, Eunju Lee, Eunyoung Kim, Yeonhwa Choi, Giseok Kang, Bryan Inho Kim
    Osong Public Health and Research Perspectives.2023; 14(2): 110.     CrossRef
  • Factors Related to the Transmission of COVID-19 within Households from Pediatric Initial Cases
    Da Hye Lee, Jong Yeon Kim, Youn Joo Kim, Seung Soo Lee, Won Kee Lee
    Journal of Health Informatics and Statistics.2023; 48(3): 203.     CrossRef
  • COVID-19 outbreak and risk factors for infection in a taekwondo gym in the Republic of Korea
    Seung Hwan Shin, Eonjoo Park, Sookhyun Kim, Minji Jang, Subin Park, Dong-Hwi Kim, Tae Jong Son, Ji-Hyuk Park
    Osong Public Health and Research Perspectives.2022; 13(2): 162.     CrossRef
  • Preventive Measures Against COVID-19 in Small- and Mid-sized Enterprises from an Early Stage of the Epidemic in Daegu and Gyeongsangbuk-do
    Kiook Baek, Seong-Hui Kim, Chulyong Park, Joon Sakong
    Safety and Health at Work.2022; 13(3): 294.     CrossRef
  • An Experience of the Early Stage of COVID-19 Outbreak in Nursing Homes in Gyeonggi Province, Korea
    Gawon Choi, Na-young Kim, Seon-young Lee, Hae Deun Noh, Heeyoung Lee
    Korean Journal of Clinical Geriatrics.2022; 23(1): 27.     CrossRef
  • Evaluation of a Follow-Up Health Consultation Program for Patients with Coronavirus Disease 2019 in Korea: Using the Context–Input–Process–Product Model
    Keun-Mi Lee, Hae-Jin Ko, Geon Ho Lee, Yun-A Kim, Seung-Pil Jung, A-Sol Kim
    International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health.2022; 19(13): 7996.     CrossRef
  • Evaluation of the Public Health Emergency Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic in Daegu, Korea During the First Half of 2020
    Hwajin Lee, Keon-Yeop Kim, Jong-Yeon Kim, Sin Kam, Kyeong Soo Lee, Jung Jeung Lee, Nam Soo Hong, Tae-Yoon Hwang
    Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health.2022; 55(4): 360.     CrossRef
  • COVID-19 Outbreak in Daegu City, Korea and Response to COVID-19: How Have We Dealt and What Are the Lessons?
    Shin-Woo Kim
    Journal of Korean Medical Science.2022;[Epub]     CrossRef

Epidemiol Health : Epidemiology and Health