Epidemic Trend of Corona Virus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) and public Health response in Senegal

Background: The first case of Covid-19 was notified in Senegal on March 2, 2020. One month after, this study aims to analyze the trend and the main measures that have been taken. Methods Data sources are from the Department of Disease Prevention in Senegal and some administrative documents. The epidemic trend has been described through epidemic curves according to the characteristics of infected people. Results Of the 195 patients tested positive for COVID-19, a proportion of 53.8% is female. Six out of 14 regions were affected by the epidemic on April 1, 2020. The mean age is 37.9 years with a standard deviation of 18.6 years. The proportion of imported cases is 39.5%. The major strategy in Senegal is based on the isolation of cases for treatment and tracking of contacts. Decisions have been made to limit spread of the virus through social distancing. Airlines have been closed and border control strengthened. Conclusions The preparation and the measures taken made it possible to contain the pandemic during the first month. However, there is a need to strengthen the surveillance following the appearance of community-based cases and readjust strategies to hope to contain the pandemic during the second month.