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Evidence summary: What seroprevalence studies have been completed in other countries - general population studies and also studies on specific population sub-groups such as health workers, hospitalized patients, blood donors and children? [v1.0]

dc.contributor.authorNational Health Library & Knowledge Service (NHLKS)
dc.contributor.authorHegarty, Ronan
dc.date.accessioned2020-06-12T08:57:12Z
dc.date.available2020-06-12T08:57:12Z
dc.date.issued2020-05-27
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10147/627771
dc.descriptionSerological tests detect antibodies to SARS-CoV-2 in the blood, and those that have been adequately validated can help identify patients who have had the virus6.The World Health Organization (WHO) states that most studies they have examined show that people who have recovered from the SARS-CoV-2 infection have antibodies to the virus. It also reports that it is unknown whether the presence of antibodies to SARS-CoV-2 confers immunity to subsequent infection by the virus in humans1. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) concur4. WHO cautions against so-called ‘immunity passports’ as this may lead to those previously infected not following public health advice1. The WHO have created a protocol to investigate the extent of SARS-CoV-2 infection as determined by seropositivity in the general population2. It cautions that each country may need to tailor some aspects of this protocol to align with public health, laboratory and clinical systems, according to capacity, availability of resources and cultural appropriateness. Similarly, the European Commission has published guidance on current performance of COVID-19 test methods and devices and proposed performance criteria with the most critical performance parameters being diagnostic sensitivity and specificity3. The CDC is evaluating the performance of commercially manufactured antibody tests tests in collaboration with the other federal organisations. CDC’s serologic test is designed to detect antibodies produced in response to SARS-CoV-2 and to avoid detection of antibodies against other common coronaviruses that cause less severe illnesses, such as colds4. It is important to choose the correct serological test and this is discussed extensively throughout the document 2, 3 , 4, 6, 7 , 9 , 1 0, 11. There are a wide range of seroprevalence studies with defined populations from various cities and countries that have taken place and there are many examples included throughout this evidence summary. A key objective of such studies is to find out what%age of the population has been exposed to the virus already. According to one study, the herd immunity threshold for SARS-CoV-2 is estimated at 50 to 67%21. Looking at the national, regional and city tests that have provided results it seems clear that no place studied is near this%age yet. For instance, just 5% of the Spanish population has been infected and has developed antibodies29. A study estimated the seroprevalence in the Netherlands at just 2.7%21. Some cities that have been hit hard by the virus appear to have a higher%age of their population that have been previously infected. New York has reported that around 21% of the city has SARS-CoV-2 antibodies37 while London’s figure has been calculated at approximately 17% 33. Serological tests of healthcare workers to ascertain if they have been infected is an important question and articles concerning this topic are included in the document12, 13, 14, 15. Studies that examine serological testing of blood donors are also considered.en_US
dc.language.isoenen_US
dc.publisherHealth Service Executiveen_US
dc.relation.ispartofseriesEvidence summariesen_US
dc.subjectCORONAVIRUSen_US
dc.subjectCOVID-19en_US
dc.subjectSEROPREVALENCEen_US
dc.subjectANTIBODIESen_US
dc.titleEvidence summary: What seroprevalence studies have been completed in other countries - general population studies and also studies on specific population sub-groups such as health workers, hospitalized patients, blood donors and children? [v1.0]en_US
dc.typeOtheren_US
refterms.dateFOA2020-06-12T08:57:14Z


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