Researchers at Marshfield Clinic Research Institute will follow participants who have COVID-19 and their household contacts to learn more about how COVID-19 spreads within households.

The study is a modification of an influenza household transmission study that has been conducted by the Center for Clinical Epidemiology and Population Health for the past three influenza seasons. Both studies are funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

“Household transmission plays a large role in ​the spread of epidemics," said Huong McLean, Ph.D, research scientist and principal investigator of the study. “Data from this study will be important to inform efforts to prevent further spread of COVID-19 and improve transmission models."

The study aims to estimate how often transmission occurs in households and identify factors associated with transmission. Families will be followed daily for 14 days by reporting symptoms and contact patterns. They also will provide samples to test for SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. Testing will be conducted by the Integrated Research and Development Laboratory and Marshfield Labs.

To date, the study has enrolled 10 households in the Eau Claire, Marshfield and Wausau/Weston area.

The study is conducted in collaboration with investigators at Vanderbilt University Medical Center and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.​