SARS-CoV-2 Seroprevalence in Lithuania: Results of National Population Survey
Background. Betacoronavirus SARS-CoV-2 has spread in early 2020 worldwide just in several months. The official statistics are consistently collected, but this is mainly based on symptomatic reports. This study was aimed to estimate the seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 infection in Lithuanian population....
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Vilnius University Press
2021-01-01
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| Series: | Acta Medica Lituanica |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.journals.vu.lt/AML/article/view/22344 |
| _version_ | 1818337763390390272 |
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| author | Kastytis Šmigelskas Kęstutis Petrikonis Vytautas Kasiulevičius Ramunė Kalėdienė Audronė Jakaitienė Snieguolė Kaselienė Skirmantė Sauliūnė Aušra Beržanskytė Mindaugas Stankūnas |
| author_facet | Kastytis Šmigelskas Kęstutis Petrikonis Vytautas Kasiulevičius Ramunė Kalėdienė Audronė Jakaitienė Snieguolė Kaselienė Skirmantė Sauliūnė Aušra Beržanskytė Mindaugas Stankūnas |
| author_sort | Kastytis Šmigelskas |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Background. Betacoronavirus SARS-CoV-2 has spread in early 2020 worldwide just in several months. The official statistics are consistently collected, but this is mainly based on symptomatic reports. This study was aimed to estimate the seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 infection in Lithuanian population.
Materials and methods. Study was conducted during August–September 2020 in 6 municipalities of Lithuania. The sample comprised 3087 adult participants from the general population (mean age 53.7 years, 64% female). SARS-CoV-2 antibodies were assessed using AMP IgM/IgG Rapid Test, other data were based on self-report. Seroprevalence was assessed as a crude estimate and as adjusted by sensitivity-specificity of the test.
Results. The crude seroprevalence in the total sample was 1.9%, the adjusted – 1.4%, ranging from 0.8% to 2.4% across municipalities. Among seroprevalent cases, 67.2% had IgG, 29.3% had IgM, and 3.5% had both IgG and IgM. An increased risk for seropositive test was observed among people who reported having had close contacts with SARS-CoV-2 positives (OR=5.49, p<0.001). At the borderline significance were female gender (OR=1.75, p=0.082) and non-smoking status (OR=2.95, p=0.072). Among the seropositive participants, 69.0% reported having had no COVID-19 symptoms since 1 March 2020, while 31.0% reported having had at least one of the symptoms.
Conclusions. The SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence in Lithuanian sample in August–September 2020 was 1.4%, ranging from 0.8% to 2.4% across municipalities. Given the overall official data, by the end of study (11 September 2020) the total COVID-19 rate in Lithuania was 117.5 per 100,000 population or 0.12%. This suggests more than 10 times higher prevalence of virus across the population than the official estimates. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-13T15:00:23Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-d314922e51804c5a905a57ef10987dd0 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1392-0138 2029-4174 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-13T15:00:23Z |
| publishDate | 2021-01-01 |
| publisher | Vilnius University Press |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Acta Medica Lituanica |
| spelling | doaj.art-d314922e51804c5a905a57ef10987dd02022-12-21T23:41:09ZengVilnius University PressActa Medica Lituanica1392-01382029-41742021-01-0128110.15388/Amed.2020.28.1.2SARS-CoV-2 Seroprevalence in Lithuania: Results of National Population SurveyKastytis Šmigelskas0Kęstutis Petrikonis1Vytautas Kasiulevičius2Ramunė Kalėdienė3Audronė Jakaitienė4Snieguolė Kaselienė5Skirmantė Sauliūnė6Aušra Beržanskytė7Mindaugas Stankūnas8Lithuanian University of Health SciencesLithuanian University of Health SciencesVilnius University, LithuaniaLithuanian University of Health SciencesVilnius University, LithuaniaLithuanian University of Health SciencesLithuanian University of Health SciencesVilnius University, LithuaniaLithuanian University of Health SciencesBackground. Betacoronavirus SARS-CoV-2 has spread in early 2020 worldwide just in several months. The official statistics are consistently collected, but this is mainly based on symptomatic reports. This study was aimed to estimate the seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 infection in Lithuanian population. Materials and methods. Study was conducted during August–September 2020 in 6 municipalities of Lithuania. The sample comprised 3087 adult participants from the general population (mean age 53.7 years, 64% female). SARS-CoV-2 antibodies were assessed using AMP IgM/IgG Rapid Test, other data were based on self-report. Seroprevalence was assessed as a crude estimate and as adjusted by sensitivity-specificity of the test. Results. The crude seroprevalence in the total sample was 1.9%, the adjusted – 1.4%, ranging from 0.8% to 2.4% across municipalities. Among seroprevalent cases, 67.2% had IgG, 29.3% had IgM, and 3.5% had both IgG and IgM. An increased risk for seropositive test was observed among people who reported having had close contacts with SARS-CoV-2 positives (OR=5.49, p<0.001). At the borderline significance were female gender (OR=1.75, p=0.082) and non-smoking status (OR=2.95, p=0.072). Among the seropositive participants, 69.0% reported having had no COVID-19 symptoms since 1 March 2020, while 31.0% reported having had at least one of the symptoms. Conclusions. The SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence in Lithuanian sample in August–September 2020 was 1.4%, ranging from 0.8% to 2.4% across municipalities. Given the overall official data, by the end of study (11 September 2020) the total COVID-19 rate in Lithuania was 117.5 per 100,000 population or 0.12%. This suggests more than 10 times higher prevalence of virus across the population than the official estimates.https://www.journals.vu.lt/AML/article/view/22344Seroepidemiologic studiesSARS-CoV-2Asymptomatic casesLithuania |
| spellingShingle | Kastytis Šmigelskas Kęstutis Petrikonis Vytautas Kasiulevičius Ramunė Kalėdienė Audronė Jakaitienė Snieguolė Kaselienė Skirmantė Sauliūnė Aušra Beržanskytė Mindaugas Stankūnas SARS-CoV-2 Seroprevalence in Lithuania: Results of National Population Survey Acta Medica Lituanica Seroepidemiologic studies SARS-CoV-2 Asymptomatic cases Lithuania |
| title | SARS-CoV-2 Seroprevalence in Lithuania: Results of National Population Survey |
| title_full | SARS-CoV-2 Seroprevalence in Lithuania: Results of National Population Survey |
| title_fullStr | SARS-CoV-2 Seroprevalence in Lithuania: Results of National Population Survey |
| title_full_unstemmed | SARS-CoV-2 Seroprevalence in Lithuania: Results of National Population Survey |
| title_short | SARS-CoV-2 Seroprevalence in Lithuania: Results of National Population Survey |
| title_sort | sars cov 2 seroprevalence in lithuania results of national population survey |
| topic | Seroepidemiologic studies SARS-CoV-2 Asymptomatic cases Lithuania |
| url | https://www.journals.vu.lt/AML/article/view/22344 |
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