Higher SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence in workers with lower socioeconomic status in Cape Town, South Africa
Autor: | Vinzeigh N. Leukes, Novel N. Chegou, Nosipho Mtala, Wolfgang Preiser, Stephanus T. Malherbe, Marika Flinn, Conita Claassen, Donald Simon, Gerhard Walzl, Candice E. MacDonald, Tracy Cummins, Jane A. Shaw, Gerard Tromp, Andre G. Loxton, Kim Stanley, Andriëtte Hiemstra, Léanie Kleynhans, Helmuth Reuter, Maynard Meiring, Nelita du Plessis |
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Jazyk: | angličtina |
Rok vydání: | 2021 |
Předmět: |
RNA viruses
Male Viral Diseases Coronaviruses Social Sciences Artificial Gene Amplification and Extension Polymerase Chain Reaction Geographical locations South Africa Medical Conditions Immunodeficiency Viruses Seroepidemiologic Studies Cape Pandemic Epidemiology Medicine and Health Sciences Public and Occupational Health Pathology and laboratory medicine Virus Testing Multidisciplinary Geography Medical microbiology Socioeconomic Aspects of Health Infectious Diseases Viruses Medicine Female SARS CoV 2 Pathogens medicine.symptom Research Article Adult medicine.medical_specialty SARS coronavirus Science Research and Analysis Methods Human Geography Social class Microbiology Asymptomatic Diagnostic Medicine Retroviruses medicine Humans Seroprevalence Medical history Molecular Biology Techniques Molecular Biology Socioeconomic status Biology and life sciences SARS-CoV-2 business.industry Lentivirus Organisms Viral pathogens HIV COVID-19 Covid 19 Reverse Transcriptase-Polymerase Chain Reaction Microbial pathogens Health Care Social Class Africa Earth Sciences Housing People and places business Demography |
Zdroj: | PLoS ONE, Vol 16, Iss 2, p e0247852 (2021) PLoS ONE |
ISSN: | 1932-6203 |
Popis: | Background Inequality is rife throughout South Africa. The first wave of COVID-19 may have affected people in lower socioeconomic groups worse than the affluent. The SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence and the specificity of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibody tests in South Africa is not known. Methods We tested 405 volunteers representing all socioeconomic strata from the workforce of a popular shopping and tourist complex in central Cape Town with the Abbott SARS-CoV-2 IgG assay. We assessed the association between antibody positivity and COVID-19 symptom status, medical history, and sociodemographic variables. We tested 137 serum samples from healthy controls collected in Cape Town prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, to confirm the specificity of the assay in the local population. Results Of the 405 volunteers tested one month after the first peak of the epidemic in Cape Town, 96(23.7%) were SARS-CoV-2 IgG positive. Of those who tested positive, 46(47.9%) reported no symptoms of COVID-19 in the previous 6 months. Seropositivity was significantly associated with living in informal housing, residing in a subdistrict with low income-per household, and having a low-earning occupation. The specificity of the assay was 98.54%(95%CI 94.82%-99.82%) in the pre-COVID controls. Conclusions There is a high background seroprevalence in Cape Town, particularly in people of lower socioeconomic status. Almost half of cases are asymptomatic, and therefore undiagnosed by local testing strategies. These results cannot be explained by low assay specificity. |
Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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