3 ms·
You can’t reduce the basic reproduction number (R0) of a pathogen. You can reduce doubling time and similar metrics of the actual spread, but R0 is a fixed numb
by IAmGraydon 7y ago
You can’t reduce the basic reproduction number (R0) of a pathogen. You can reduce doubling time and similar metrics of the actual spread, but R0 is a fixed number. What you are referring to is the effective reproduction number, which is the rate of spread in a population at it’s current state.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basic_reproduction_number https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basic_reproduction_number
- mistrial9 7y agocitation please
- IAmGraydon 7y agoAdded. It’s all in the first paragraph. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basic_reproduction_number https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basic_reproduction_number
- jacquesm 7y agoMaybe you should read a bit further than the first paragraph for your future citations? "R0 is not a biological constant for a pathogen as it is also affected by other factors such as environmental conditions and the behaviour of the infected population."
- leethargo 7y agoFrom what I've read recently, I agree with this distinction. It's simply a matter of definition. R_0 is the infection rate without any measures taken. Sometimes, R is used for the net infection (e.g. with social distancing).
- usaar333 7y agoHuh? "R0 is not a biological constant for a pathogen as it is also affected by other factors such as environmental conditions and the behaviour of the infected population."
- crankylinuxuser 7y agoPretty way of saying "Summer heat causes these things to go in remission" by lowering the R0 for a time.
- notfromhere 7y agoGiven that there are cases in hot, humid climates now, I wouldn’t expect summer to save us
- watwut 7y agoChange in behavior can change basic reproduction number. That is what happened with SARS. Making basic reproduction number smaller is whole point of those curfew laws and of closing shops we now have. It is also the point of washing hands often and keeping distance. It is defined as "expected number of cases directly generated by one case in a population where all individuals are susceptible to infection". And that is possible to influence by behavior. If no one even meets anybody, no sick person can generate next case. If people live in over-crowded houses, one person will infect many more.
- adenadel 7y agoRead the first sentence of the second paragraph.