'Significant increase' in number of new COVID-19 cases among under-20s in Ontario, study finds
Guelph professor Ed McBean says results support continued closure of schools and daycares.
Researchers at the University of Guelph studying the impact of the COVID-19 caseload on the medical system in Canada have found the number of new cases continue to climb among people under the age of 20 in Ontario.
Ed McBean, a professor and the lead researcher, said as of mid-May, infection curves were flattening for other age groups in the province but numbers of daily new cases for people under 20 were still rising, especially in the Toronto and Peel regions.
"It was very surprising — a significant increase. They are not the biggest caseload at this point, but they are increasing at the highest rate," McBean told CBC News on Monday. "This was very unusual, especially given that daycares and schools are closed."
McBean analyzed data from Ontario public health units alongside University of Guelph engineering professor Andrew Gadsden, PhD student Brett Snider and John Yawney, chief analytic officer with Adastra Corp., an information management and data science firm in Markham, Ont.
