There is no evidence that lockdowns are effective in suppressing the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, scientists at Johns Hopkins University (USA) say after conducting a meta-analysis of studies on the effectiveness of quarantine measures and self-isolation. The results of the meta-analysis were published in Studies of Applied Economics.
The scientists conducted a systematic review and statistical analysis of existing scientific literature that would potentially show that lockdowns reduce mortality from COVID-19.
Researchers reviewed about 20,000 studies, and only 24 of those were suitable for inclusion in the meta-analysis. These studies were divided into three groups: studies of the effectiveness of lockdowns as a function of severity, studies of self-isolation regimens, and special studies related to coercive restraints.
An analysis of the results of all of these studies showed that each of the three groups did not support the conclusion that lockdowns significantly affected COVID-19 mortality. In Europe and the United States, lockdowns reduced mortality by only 0.2% on average, while the introduction of self-imposed restraints contributed 2.9% to the reduction in mortality.
At the same time, lockdowns have led to enormous economic and social problems, so lockdown policies, according to scientists, are not justified and should be rejected.
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