Public Health Measures During the COVID-19 Pandemic Reduce the Spread of Other Respiratory Infectious Diseases.

Background

Public health measures (such as wearing masks, physical distancing, and isolation) have significantly reduced the spread of the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19), but the impact of public health measures on other respiratory infectious diseases is unclear.

Objective

To assess the correlation between public health measures and the incidence of respiratory infectious diseases in China during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods

We collected the data from the National Health and Construction Commission in China on the number of patients with six respiratory infectious diseases (measles, tuberculosis, pertussis, scarlet fever, influenza, and mumps) from 2017 to 2020 and assessed the correlation between public health measures and the incidence of respiratory infectious diseases. Finally, we used the data of the six respiratory infectious diseases in 2021 to verify our results.

Results

We found public health measures significantly reduced the incidence of measles (p = 0.002), tuberculosis (p = 0.002), pertussis (p = 0.004), scarlet fever (p = 0.002), influenza (p = 0.034), and mumps (p = 0.002) in 2020, and prevented seasonal peaks. Moreover, the effects of public health measures were most marked during the peak seasons for these infections. Of the six respiratory infectious diseases considered, tuberculosis was least affected by public health measures.

Conclusion

Public health measures were very effective in reducing the incidence of respiratory infectious diseases, especially when the respiratory infectious diseases would normally have been at their peak.