Epidemiological characterisation of asymptomatic carriers of COVID-19 in Colombia: a cross-sectional study

Abstract

IntroductionAsymptomatic carriers (AC) of the new SARS-CoV-2 represent an important source of spread for COVID-19. Early diagnosis of these cases is a powerful tool to control the pandemic. Our objective was to characterise patients with AC status and identify associated sociodemographic factors.MethodsUsing a cross-sectional design and the national database of daily occurrence of COVID-19, we characterised both socially and demographically all ACs. Additional correspondence analysis and logistic regression model were performed to identify characteristics associated with AC state (OR, 95% CI).Results76.162 ACs (12.1%; 95% CI 12.0% to 12.2%) were identified, mainly before epidemiological week 35. Age≤26 years (1.18; 1.09 to 1.28), male sex (1.51; 1.40 to 1.62), cases imported from Venezuela, Argentina, Brazil, Germany, Puerto Rico, Spain, USA or Mexico (12.6; 3.03 to 52.5) and autochthonous cases (22.6; 5.62 to 91.4) increased the risk of identifying ACs. We also identified groups of departments with moderate (1.23; 1.13 to 1.34) and strong (19.8; 18.6 to 21.0) association with ACs.ConclusionSociodemographic characteristics strongly associated with AC were identified, which may explain its epidemiological relevance and usefulness to optimise mass screening strategies and prevent person-to-person transmission.

Evolution and Epidemic Spread of SARS-CoV-2 in Colombia: A Year into the Pandemic

“…The socioeconomic difficulties inherent to the country’s situation and the inadequate education and understanding of the public health context by the community, which results in an inappropriate perception of risk, are factors that have a negative impact on the management and effectiveness of the measures taken, which has facilitated the dispersion of COVID-19 [ 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 ]. Several epidemic modelling studies based on R t estimations have been performed in an attempt to decipher the current infection dynamics, with the caveat that most of these studies have been purely descriptive and restricted to certain geographical regions at the beginning of the pandemic [ 3 , 23 , 24 , 25 , 26 , 27 ]. This has precluded an accurate assessment on the impact of control strategies across wide settings throughout the pandemic period.…”

ENE-COVID nationwide serosurvey served to characterize asymptomatic infections and to develop a symptom-based risk score to predict COVID-19

“…21 The prevalence of asymptomatic cases was higher in men, in people younger than 20 years and in the elders. These differences, also observed in large hospital-based series 22 and in other studies 23 , may reflect either a distinct clinical presentation or different sensitivity to notice and report common unspecific symptoms. Interestingly, in general population studies, the number of symptoms reported is higher in women, 24,25 and tends to increase with age, 25 although with a slight decline in elder groups.…”

Factors Associated with the Level of Physical Activity in Middle-Aged Colombian People during Lockdown in Response to COVID-19: A Cross-Sectional Study

“…Despite the fact that there are some previous studies that link PA with either HRQoL, or with the quality of sleep and/or the reduction of depressive symptoms during the pandemic, to our knowledge, there have been no studies carried out in the middle-aged Colombian population who work in the university context, during the mandatory confinement caused by this pandemic. We emphasize that most of the investigations that have been carried out in the Colombian population, in this context, have examined aspects related to the biology of the virus, the epidemiology of the infection, the mortality of the infection, suicide risk, depression, perceived stress, resilience to disease and the impacts of infection on children and adolescents, and those who work in hospitals [ 65 , 66 , 67 ]. Therefore, there is clearly a gap in knowledge in relation to the population of interest that we are addressing.…”