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PLOS Glob Public Health
. 2023 Mar 29;3(3):e0001252.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pgph.0001252. eCollection 2023.
Travel history among persons infected with SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern in the United States, December 2020-February 2021
Alicia Dunajcik 1 , Kambria Haire 1 , Jennifer D Thomas 1 , Leah F Moriarty 1 , Yuri Springer 1 , Julie M Villanueva 1 , Adam MacNeil 1 , Benjamin Silk 1 , Jeffrey B Nemhauser 1 , Ramona Byrkit 1 , Melanie Taylor 1 , Krista Queen 1 , Suxiang Tong 1 , Justin Lee 1 , Dhwani Batra 1 , Clinton Paden 1 , Tiffany Henderson 2 , Audrey Kunkes 3 , Mojisola Ojo 4 , Melanie Firestone 5 6 , Lindsey Martin Webb 7 , Melissa Freeland 8 , Catherine M Brown 9 , Thelonious Williams 10 11 , Krisandra Allen 12 , Judy Kauerauf 13 , Erica Wilson 14 , Seema Jain 15 , Eric McDonald 16 , Elana Silver 15 , Sarah Stous 16 , Debra Wadford 15 , Rachel Radcliffe 17 , Chandra Marriott 18 , Jennifer P Owes 19 , Stephen M Bart 6 20 , Lynn E Sosa 20 , Kelly Oakeson 21 , Natalie Wodniak 22 , Julia Shaffner 1 23 , Quanta Brown 24 , Ryan Westergaard 25 , Andrea Salinas 26 , Sara Hallyburton 27 , Yasmin Ogale 28 , Tabatha Offutt-Powell 28 , Kimberly Bonner 6 29 , Sheri Tubach 30 , Clay Van Houten 31 , Victoria Hughes 32 , Valerie Reeb 33 , Chris Galeazzi 33 , Shreya Khuntia 34 , Sasha McGee 34 , Joseph T Hicks 6 35 , Dimple Dinesh Patel 36 , Anna Krueger 37 , Scott Hughes 38 , Fabiana Jeanty 38 , Jade C Wang 38 , Ellen H Lee 38 , Tracey Assanah-Deane 38 , Megan Tompkins 39 , Kendra Dougherty 40 , Ozair Naqvi 40 , Matthew Donahue 41 , Justin Frederick 42 , Baha Abdalhamid 43 , Ann M Powers 1 , Mark Anderson 1
Affiliations
- PMID: 36989218
- DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgph.0001252
Abstract
The first three SARS-CoV-2 phylogenetic lineages classified as variants of concern (VOCs) in the United States (U.S.) from December 15, 2020 to February 28, 2021, Alpha (B.1.1.7), Beta (B.1.351), and Gamma (P.1) lineages, were initially detected internationally. This investigation examined available travel history of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases reported in the U.S. in whom laboratory testing showed one of these initial VOCs. Travel history, demographics, and health outcomes for a convenience sample of persons infected with a SARS-CoV-2 VOC from December 15, 2020 through February 28, 2021 were provided by 35 state and city health departments, and proportion reporting travel was calculated. Of 1,761 confirmed VOC cases analyzed, 1,368 had available data on travel history. Of those with data on travel history, 1,168 (85%) reported no travel preceding laboratory confirmation of SARS-CoV-2 and only 105 (8%) reported international travel during the 30 days preceding a positive SARS-CoV-2 test or symptom onset. International travel was reported by 92/1,304 (7%) of persons infected with the Alpha variant, 7/55 (22%) with Beta, and 5/9 (56%) with Gamma. Of the first three SARS-CoV-2 lineages designated as VOCs in the U.S., international travel was common only among the few Gamma cases. Most persons infected with Alpha and Beta variant reported no travel history, therefore, community transmission of these VOCs was likely common in the U.S. by March 2021. These findings underscore the importance of global surveillance using whole genome sequencing to detect and inform mitigation strategies for emerging SARS-CoV-2 VOCs.