Abstract
Background
Predicting infection outbreak dynamics within local microenvironments is a challenging task. Some methods assume smaller population pools and often lack the statistical power of inferences. Other methods are designed for larger population pools and cannot be downscaled to accommodate the details of microenvironments, such as a gym or cafeteria. Moreover, typically, individuals have a relatively small circle of friends, family, and co-workers with whom most contacts are taking place, while the external contacts occur sporadically, rendering the population clustered. Practicable infection risk assessment models should account for population size, geometry and occupancy of public places, behavioral and professional patterns that define daily routines, and societal structure.
Objective
We describe a novel methodology and investigate effects of the population social structure, along with other local constraints, on infection outbreak dynamics.
Methods
The study is based on the recently developed stochastic microexposure model (S-MEM). The model has been generalized to describe clustered populations. The methodology is demonstrated for a generic community of several thousand students living on campus. The student population possesses a natural social structure of being clustered into classes.
Results
The results indicate that the social structure has the first order effect on the spread of the infection. Depending on the number, size, and degree of inner- and outer-cluster connections, the outbreak exhibits distinct durations, power, and multiple peaks of infection. Moreover, the contribution of different microenvironments to infection risk evolves during the course of the outbreak.
Impact
-
Social structure plays a major role in infection spread, and therefore should be accounted for in risk prediction tools. Furthermore, the contribution of different microenvironments to infection risk changes with time during the course of an outbreak. An optimal infection spread mitigation policy should, correspondingly, change in time depending on the evolving risk factors; the policy should not be static. The stochastic microexposure model accounts for the social structure of a population at multiple scales, and can predict the dynamic contributions of different microenvironments to infection spread risks.
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Data availability
Detailed information on model parameters and calibration can be found in ref. [25].
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Acknowledgements
We are grateful to anonymous reviewers whose comments and suggestions allowed authors to improve the manuscript. This paper is based upon work supported by the Installation Technology Transfer Program. The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the individual authors and not those of the U.S. Army or other sponsor organizations.
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SV is the author of the technical ideas and theoretical development of the method, AM is a lead developer of the code and data analyst, CC and BT are public health advisors, CE is installation safety specialist and consultant, and IL is general manager and senior advisor.
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No human or animal subjects were used in the study. The considered cases represent realistic, but virtual scenarios created for a hypothetical student campus.
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Vecherin, S.N., Meyer, A.C., Cummings, C.L. et al. Infection risk assessment for socially structured population using stochastic microexposure model. J Expo Sci Environ Epidemiol (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41370-025-00811-0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41370-025-00811-0