Seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in university students: Cross-sectional study, December 2020, England - 19/06/21
, Heather Whitaker a, Samuel Jones a, Elise Tessier a, Ray Borrow b, Ezra Linley b, Katja Hoschler a, Frances Baawuah a, Shazaad Ahmad c, Nick Andrews a, Mary Ramsay a, Shamez N Ladhani a, d, Kevin E Brown a, Gayatri Amirthalingam a
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Summary |
Background |
In England, the reopening of universities in September 2020 coincided with a rapid increase in SARS-CoV-2 infection rates in university aged young adults. This study aimed to estimate SARS-CoV-2 antibody prevalence in students attending universities that had experienced a COVID-19 outbreak after reopening for the autumn term in September 2020.
Methods |
A cross-sectional serosurvey was conducted during 02–11 December 2020 in students aged ≤ 25 years across five universities in England. Blood samples for SARS-CoV-2 antibody testing were obtained using a self-sampling kit and analysed using the Abbott SARS-CoV-2 N antibody and/or an in-house receptor binding domain (RBD) assay.
Findings |
SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence in 2,905 university students was 17.8% (95%CI, 16.5–19.3), ranging between 7.6%-29.7% across the five universities. Seropositivity was associated with being younger likely to represent first year undergraduates (aOR 3.2, 95% CI 2.0–4.9), living in halls of residence (aOR 2.1, 95% CI 1.7–2.7) and sharing a kitchen with an increasing number of students (shared with 4–7 individuals, aOR 1.43, 95%CI 1.12–1.82; shared with 8 or more individuals, aOR 1.53, 95% CI 1.04–2.24). Seropositivity was 49% in students living in halls of residence that reported high SARS-CoV-2 infection rates (>8%) during the autumn term.
Interpretation |
Despite large numbers of cases and outbreaks in universities, less than one in five students (17.8%) overall had SARS-CoV-2 antibodies at the end of the autumn term in England. In university halls of residence affected by a COVID-19 outbreak, however, nearly half the resident students became infected and developed SARS-CoV-2 antibodies.
Le texte complet de cet article est disponible en PDF.Keywords : SARS-CoV-2 infection, COVID-19, Universities, Transmission, Students
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Vol 83 - N° 1
P. 104-111 - juillet 2021 Retour au numéro
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