The seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 among residents of the Khabarovsk Krai during the COVID-19 epidemic

Abstract

Introduction. The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic was announced by WHO in February 2020. In the Khabarovsk Krai, the first three cases of the disease were diagnosed on March 19, 2020, these cases were imported from Argentina (transit through Italy). The epidemic process of COVID-19 in the Khabarovsk Krai is characterized by a slow increase in the incidence. During the period of time when the SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence study was conducted the incidence rates varied from 35.9 to 39.1 per 100 thousand population. Within the next 5 weeks the incidence continued to increase, the maximum level was 67.3 per 100 thousand population. A statistically significant decrease in the incidence is noted in the first decade of August. The study of the SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence among residents of the region was carried out from June 9 to June 21, 2020 during the period of increasing intensity of the epidemic process of COVID-19 infection.Aim. To determine the level and structure of herd immunity to SARS-CoV-2 virus among the population of the Khabarovsk Krai during the period of intensive spread of COVID-19.Materials and methods. The study was conducted as a part of the first stage of a large-scale Rospotrebnadzor project to assess the herd immunity to SARS-CoV-2 virus among the population of the Russian Federation, taking into consideration the protocol recommended by WHO. The selection of volunteers for the study was carried out by the method of questionnaires and randomization by random sampling. The results of a survey of 2675 individuals were included into analysis. The number of volunteers in all age groups was similar.Results. The results of the study showed that the herd immunity to SARS-CoV-2 in the total population of the Khabarovsk Krai was 19.6%. The maximum level of herd immunity was observed in children 14–17 years old (34.4%), children 7–13 years old (24.8%), and people over 70 years (22.6%). The highest level of seropositivity, except for the children and the elderly, was found among educational workers (26.7%). The lowest level of seropositivity was found in the military (8.7%) and the unemployed (8.3%). There were no statistically significant differences in the level of seroprevalence between men and women.Conclusions. The results of the seroepidemiological study demonstrated that in the Khabarovsk Krai, the presence of the contacts with COVID-19 patients is associated with the 1.4-fold increase in the likelihood of the seroconversion. Antibodies were detected in 58.9% of the past COVID-19 cases. In individuals with the previous positive PCR test result, antibodies were detected in 50% of cases. A high rate of asymptomatic infection, up to 93.7%, was observed among seropositive volunteers.