Escalating spread of SARS-CoV-2 infection after school reopening among students in hotspot districts of Oromia Region in Ethiopia: Longitudinal study
<h4>Background</h4> COVID-19 pandemic caused by extended variants of SARS-CoV-2 has infected more than 350 million people, resulting in over 5.5 million deaths globally. However, the actual burden of the pandemic in Africa, particularly among children, remains largely unknown. We aimed t...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
2023-01-01
|
| Series: | PLoS ONE |
| Online Access: | https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9897530/?tool=EBI |
| _version_ | 1811170925565968384 |
|---|---|
| author | Dabesa Gobena Esayas Kebede Gudina Daniel Yilma Tsinuel Girma Getu Gebre Tesfaye Gelanew Alemseged Abdissa Daba Mulleta Tarekegn Sarbessa Henok Asefa Mirkuzie Woldie Gemechu Shumi Birhanu Kenate Arne Kroidl Andreas Wieser Beza Eshetu Tizta Tilahun Degfie Zeleke Mekonnen |
| author_facet | Dabesa Gobena Esayas Kebede Gudina Daniel Yilma Tsinuel Girma Getu Gebre Tesfaye Gelanew Alemseged Abdissa Daba Mulleta Tarekegn Sarbessa Henok Asefa Mirkuzie Woldie Gemechu Shumi Birhanu Kenate Arne Kroidl Andreas Wieser Beza Eshetu Tizta Tilahun Degfie Zeleke Mekonnen |
| author_sort | Dabesa Gobena |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | <h4>Background</h4> COVID-19 pandemic caused by extended variants of SARS-CoV-2 has infected more than 350 million people, resulting in over 5.5 million deaths globally. However, the actual burden of the pandemic in Africa, particularly among children, remains largely unknown. We aimed to assess the seroepidemiological changes of SARS-CoV-2 infection after school reopening among school children in Oromia, Ethiopia. <h4>Methods</h4> A prospective cohort study involving students aged 10 years and older were used. A serological survey was performed twice, at school reopening in December 2020 and four months later in April 2021. Participants were selected from 60 schools located in 15 COVID-19 hotspot districts in Oromia Region. Serology tests were performed by Elecsys anti-SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid assay. Data were collected using CSentry CSProData Entry 7.2.1 and exported to STATA version 14.2 for data cleaning and analysis. <h4>Results</h4> A total of 1884 students were recruited at baseline, and 1271 completed the follow-up. SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence almost doubled in four months from 25.7% at baseline to 46.3% in the second round, with a corresponding seroincidence of 1910 per 100,000 person-week. Seroincidence was found to be higher among secondary school students (grade 9–12) compared to primary school students (grade 4–8) (RR = 1.6, 95% CI 1.21–2.22) and among those with large family size (> = 5) than those with a family size of <3 (RR = 2.1, 95% CI 1.09–4.17). The increase in SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence among the students corresponded with Ethiopia’s second wave of the COVID-19 outbreak. <h4>Conclusion</h4> SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence among students in hotspot districts of the Oromia Region was high even at baseline and almost doubled within four months of school recommencement. The high seroincidence coincided with the second wave of the COVID-19 outbreak in Ethiopia, indicating a possible contribution to school opening for the new outbreak wave. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-10T17:04:50Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-2368f7c4784c49239c262b72f7ca3192 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1932-6203 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-10T17:04:50Z |
| publishDate | 2023-01-01 |
| publisher | Public Library of Science (PLoS) |
| record_format | Article |
| series | PLoS ONE |
| spelling | doaj.art-2368f7c4784c49239c262b72f7ca31922023-02-06T05:31:06ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032023-01-01182Escalating spread of SARS-CoV-2 infection after school reopening among students in hotspot districts of Oromia Region in Ethiopia: Longitudinal studyDabesa GobenaEsayas Kebede GudinaDaniel YilmaTsinuel GirmaGetu GebreTesfaye GelanewAlemseged AbdissaDaba MulletaTarekegn SarbessaHenok AsefaMirkuzie WoldieGemechu ShumiBirhanu KenateArne KroidlAndreas WieserBeza EshetuTizta Tilahun DegfieZeleke Mekonnen<h4>Background</h4> COVID-19 pandemic caused by extended variants of SARS-CoV-2 has infected more than 350 million people, resulting in over 5.5 million deaths globally. However, the actual burden of the pandemic in Africa, particularly among children, remains largely unknown. We aimed to assess the seroepidemiological changes of SARS-CoV-2 infection after school reopening among school children in Oromia, Ethiopia. <h4>Methods</h4> A prospective cohort study involving students aged 10 years and older were used. A serological survey was performed twice, at school reopening in December 2020 and four months later in April 2021. Participants were selected from 60 schools located in 15 COVID-19 hotspot districts in Oromia Region. Serology tests were performed by Elecsys anti-SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid assay. Data were collected using CSentry CSProData Entry 7.2.1 and exported to STATA version 14.2 for data cleaning and analysis. <h4>Results</h4> A total of 1884 students were recruited at baseline, and 1271 completed the follow-up. SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence almost doubled in four months from 25.7% at baseline to 46.3% in the second round, with a corresponding seroincidence of 1910 per 100,000 person-week. Seroincidence was found to be higher among secondary school students (grade 9–12) compared to primary school students (grade 4–8) (RR = 1.6, 95% CI 1.21–2.22) and among those with large family size (> = 5) than those with a family size of <3 (RR = 2.1, 95% CI 1.09–4.17). The increase in SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence among the students corresponded with Ethiopia’s second wave of the COVID-19 outbreak. <h4>Conclusion</h4> SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence among students in hotspot districts of the Oromia Region was high even at baseline and almost doubled within four months of school recommencement. The high seroincidence coincided with the second wave of the COVID-19 outbreak in Ethiopia, indicating a possible contribution to school opening for the new outbreak wave.https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9897530/?tool=EBI |
| spellingShingle | Dabesa Gobena Esayas Kebede Gudina Daniel Yilma Tsinuel Girma Getu Gebre Tesfaye Gelanew Alemseged Abdissa Daba Mulleta Tarekegn Sarbessa Henok Asefa Mirkuzie Woldie Gemechu Shumi Birhanu Kenate Arne Kroidl Andreas Wieser Beza Eshetu Tizta Tilahun Degfie Zeleke Mekonnen Escalating spread of SARS-CoV-2 infection after school reopening among students in hotspot districts of Oromia Region in Ethiopia: Longitudinal study PLoS ONE |
| title | Escalating spread of SARS-CoV-2 infection after school reopening among students in hotspot districts of Oromia Region in Ethiopia: Longitudinal study |
| title_full | Escalating spread of SARS-CoV-2 infection after school reopening among students in hotspot districts of Oromia Region in Ethiopia: Longitudinal study |
| title_fullStr | Escalating spread of SARS-CoV-2 infection after school reopening among students in hotspot districts of Oromia Region in Ethiopia: Longitudinal study |
| title_full_unstemmed | Escalating spread of SARS-CoV-2 infection after school reopening among students in hotspot districts of Oromia Region in Ethiopia: Longitudinal study |
| title_short | Escalating spread of SARS-CoV-2 infection after school reopening among students in hotspot districts of Oromia Region in Ethiopia: Longitudinal study |
| title_sort | escalating spread of sars cov 2 infection after school reopening among students in hotspot districts of oromia region in ethiopia longitudinal study |
| url | https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9897530/?tool=EBI |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT dabesagobena escalatingspreadofsarscov2infectionafterschoolreopeningamongstudentsinhotspotdistrictsoforomiaregioninethiopialongitudinalstudy AT esayaskebedegudina escalatingspreadofsarscov2infectionafterschoolreopeningamongstudentsinhotspotdistrictsoforomiaregioninethiopialongitudinalstudy AT danielyilma escalatingspreadofsarscov2infectionafterschoolreopeningamongstudentsinhotspotdistrictsoforomiaregioninethiopialongitudinalstudy AT tsinuelgirma escalatingspreadofsarscov2infectionafterschoolreopeningamongstudentsinhotspotdistrictsoforomiaregioninethiopialongitudinalstudy AT getugebre escalatingspreadofsarscov2infectionafterschoolreopeningamongstudentsinhotspotdistrictsoforomiaregioninethiopialongitudinalstudy AT tesfayegelanew escalatingspreadofsarscov2infectionafterschoolreopeningamongstudentsinhotspotdistrictsoforomiaregioninethiopialongitudinalstudy AT alemsegedabdissa escalatingspreadofsarscov2infectionafterschoolreopeningamongstudentsinhotspotdistrictsoforomiaregioninethiopialongitudinalstudy AT dabamulleta escalatingspreadofsarscov2infectionafterschoolreopeningamongstudentsinhotspotdistrictsoforomiaregioninethiopialongitudinalstudy AT tarekegnsarbessa escalatingspreadofsarscov2infectionafterschoolreopeningamongstudentsinhotspotdistrictsoforomiaregioninethiopialongitudinalstudy AT henokasefa escalatingspreadofsarscov2infectionafterschoolreopeningamongstudentsinhotspotdistrictsoforomiaregioninethiopialongitudinalstudy AT mirkuziewoldie escalatingspreadofsarscov2infectionafterschoolreopeningamongstudentsinhotspotdistrictsoforomiaregioninethiopialongitudinalstudy AT gemechushumi escalatingspreadofsarscov2infectionafterschoolreopeningamongstudentsinhotspotdistrictsoforomiaregioninethiopialongitudinalstudy AT birhanukenate escalatingspreadofsarscov2infectionafterschoolreopeningamongstudentsinhotspotdistrictsoforomiaregioninethiopialongitudinalstudy AT arnekroidl escalatingspreadofsarscov2infectionafterschoolreopeningamongstudentsinhotspotdistrictsoforomiaregioninethiopialongitudinalstudy AT andreaswieser escalatingspreadofsarscov2infectionafterschoolreopeningamongstudentsinhotspotdistrictsoforomiaregioninethiopialongitudinalstudy AT bezaeshetu escalatingspreadofsarscov2infectionafterschoolreopeningamongstudentsinhotspotdistrictsoforomiaregioninethiopialongitudinalstudy AT tiztatilahundegfie escalatingspreadofsarscov2infectionafterschoolreopeningamongstudentsinhotspotdistrictsoforomiaregioninethiopialongitudinalstudy AT zelekemekonnen escalatingspreadofsarscov2infectionafterschoolreopeningamongstudentsinhotspotdistrictsoforomiaregioninethiopialongitudinalstudy |