Ah-Ra Kim1, Dohsik Minn2, Su Hwan Kim1, Hyeon Nam Do1, Byoungguk Kim1, Young Sill Choi3, Dong-Hyun Kim4, Eun-Jee Oh5, Kyungwon Oh6, Donghyok Kwon6, Jun-Wook Kwon7, Sung Soon Kim8, June-Woo Lee1. 1. Division of Vaccine Clinical Research, Center for Vaccine Research, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Cheongju, Korea. 2. Medical Director for Diagnostic Immunology, Seegene Medical Foundation, Seoul, Korea. 3. Division of Pathogen Resource Management, Center for Vaccine Research, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Cheongju, Korea. 4. Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Hallym University College of Medicine, Chuncheon, Korea. 5. Department of Laboratory Medicine, Seoul St. Mary's Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Korea. 6. Division of Public Health Emergency Responses Research, Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, Cheongju, Korea. 7. National Institute of Health (NIH), Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, Cheongju, Korea. 8. Center for Vaccine Research, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, Cheongju, Korea.
Abstract
OBJECTIVES: The Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) is a nationwide cross-sectional surveillance system that assesses the health and nutritional status of the Korean population. To evaluate the occurrence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection in the community, we investigated the prevalence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in the sera of KNHANES participants. METHODS: Subjects were recruited between April 24 and December 12, 2020. In total, 5,284 subjects aged 10-90 years from 17 regions participated. SARS-CoV-2 antibodies were screened using the Elecsys Anti-SARS-CoV-2 assay. Positive samples were verified using 4 different SARS-CoV-2 antibody assays and the plaque reduction neutralizing test. The final seropositivity criteria were a positive screening test and at least 1 positive result from the 5 additional tests. RESULTS: Almost half (49.2%; 2,600/5,284) of participants were from metropolitan areas, 48.9% were middle-aged (40-69 years), and 20.5% were in their 20s or younger. The seropositivity rate was 0.09% (5/5,284). Three of the 5 antibody-positive subjects had a history of infection, of whom 2 were infected abroad and 1 was infected in a local cluster outbreak. CONCLUSIONS: The low SARS-CoV-2 antibody seroprevalence in Korea indicates that there have been few coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases due to successful COVID-19 management measures (e.g., diagnostic tests for overseas arrivals, national social distancing, and strict quarantine measures). Moreover, asymptomatic infections were uncommon due to active polymerase chain reaction testing. However, hidden infections may exist in the community, requiring the continuation of quarantine and vaccination measures.
OBJECTIVES: The Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) is a nationwide cross-sectional surveillance system that assesses the health and nutritional status of the Korean population. To evaluate the occurrence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection in the community, we investigated the prevalence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in the sera of KNHANES participants. METHODS: Subjects were recruited between April 24 and December 12, 2020. In total, 5,284 subjects aged 10-90 years from 17 regions participated. SARS-CoV-2 antibodies were screened using the Elecsys Anti-SARS-CoV-2 assay. Positive samples were verified using 4 different SARS-CoV-2 antibody assays and the plaque reduction neutralizing test. The final seropositivity criteria were a positive screening test and at least 1 positive result from the 5 additional tests. RESULTS: Almost half (49.2%; 2,600/5,284) of participants were from metropolitan areas, 48.9% were middle-aged (40-69 years), and 20.5% were in their 20s or younger. The seropositivity rate was 0.09% (5/5,284). Three of the 5 antibody-positive subjects had a history of infection, of whom 2 were infected abroad and 1 was infected in a local cluster outbreak. CONCLUSIONS: The low SARS-CoV-2 antibody seroprevalence in Korea indicates that there have been few coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases due to successful COVID-19 management measures (e.g., diagnostic tests for overseas arrivals, national social distancing, and strict quarantine measures). Moreover, asymptomatic infections were uncommon due to active polymerase chain reaction testing. However, hidden infections may exist in the community, requiring the continuation of quarantine and vaccination measures.
Entities:
Keywords:
Antibodies; COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; Seroprevalence; South Korea
Authors: Jaehoon Jung; Sunyoung Kim; Byungsung Kim; Miji Kim; Jisoo Yang; Dongmin Chung; Changwon Won Journal: Int J Environ Res Public Health Date: 2022-08-26 Impact factor: 4.614