A quantitative compendium of COVID-19 epidemiology

TL;DR

This paper provides a curated, comprehensive collection of key epidemiological parameters for COVID-19, with clear definitions, measurement methods, and references to aid researchers and policymakers.

Contribution

It offers a systematically curated, annotated compendium of COVID-19 epidemiological numbers, clarifying common confusions and serving as an accessible reference for the community.

Findings

Provides definitions and measurement methods for key COVID-19 parameters

Includes annotated references for each epidemiological number

Aims to improve data accessibility and accuracy for decision-making

Abstract

Accurate numbers are needed to understand and predict viral dynamics. Curation of high-quality literature values for the infectious period duration or household secondary attack rate, for example, is especially pressing currently because these numbers inform decisions about how and when to lockdown or reopen societies. We aim to provide a curated source for the key numbers that help us understand the virus driving our current global crisis. This compendium focuses solely on COVID-19 epidemiology. The numbers reported in summary format are substantiated by annotated references. For each property, we provide a concise definition, description of measurement and inference methods, and associated caveats. We hope this compendium will make essential numbers more accessible and avoid common sources of confusion for the many newcomers to the field such as using the incubation period to denote and quantify the latent period or using the hospitalization duration for the infectiousness period duration. This document will be repeatedly updated and the community is invited to participate in improving it.