Prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 IgG antibodies in a population from Veracruz (Southeastern Mexico)

Abstract

Introduction/Aim: Recent studies have shown that seroprevalence is quite variable depending on the country, the population and the time of the pandemic in which the serological tests are performed. Here, we investigated the prevalence of IgG antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 in a population living in Veracruz City, Mexico. Methods: From of June 1 to July 31, 2020, the consecutive adult patients that attended 2 ambulatory diagnostic private practice centers for testing were included. Samples were run on the Abbott Architect instrument using the commercial Abbott SARS-CoV-2 IgG assay. The main outcome was seroprevalence. Demographics, previous infection to SARS-CoV-2 (according to a previous positive polymerase-chain reaction nasopharyngeal swab), self-suspicious of virus of infection (according to have in the previous 4 weeks either fever, headache, respiratory symptoms but not a confirmatory PCR) or no having symptoms were also evaluated. Results: A total of 2174 subjects were tested, included 53.6% women (mean age 41.8, range 18-98 years). One thousand and forty-one (52.5%) subjects were asymptomatic, 722 (33.2%) had suspicious of infection and 311 (14.3%) had previous infection. Overall, 642 of 2174 (29.5% [95% CI 27.59%-31.47%]) of our population were seropositive. Seropositivity among groups was 21.3% in asymptomatic, 23.4% in self-suspicious patients and 73.9% in previous infection patients. Conclusions: We found one of the highest seroprevalences reported for SARS-CoV-2 worldwide in asymptomatic subjects (21.3%) as well in subjects with self-suspicious of COVID-19 (23.4%). The number of infected subjects in our population is not encouraging and it should be interpreted with caution.

SARS-CoV-2 IgG Antibodies Seroprevalence and Sera Neutralizing Activity in MEXICO: A National Cross-Sectional Study during 2020

“…In all the studies carried out in Mexico [25,26], including this one, the results show a considerably higher number of cases, if we compare it with that reported by molecular techniques (15-21 times higher). This indicates a significant underestimation of cases, possibly due to a wide range of factors (e.g., origin characteristics and attributes considered by the surveillance strategy, lack of assistance by health services when initial symptoms appeared, lack of health services in marginalized areas).…”

“…Until March 2021, only two published study had evaluated the seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 in Mexico. One of these was carried out in Veracruz City from 1 June to 31 July 2020, with 2174 individuals aged 18 years or older; among the 1141 (52.5%) who were asymptomatic, prevalence was 21.3% [ 25 ]. In the present study, samples from Veracruz during the same period and within the same age range yielded lower IgG seropositivity against SARS-CoV-2 (15.2%).…”

Seroepidemiological study of SARS-CoV-2 infection in East Java, Indonesia

“…The overall positive rate of IgG antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 in this study was 11.4%, suggesting a higher positivity among this asymptomatic population compared to 8.3% in an asymptomatic population in Brazil [ 21 ] and 1.2% of asymptomatic outpatients in Germany [ 22 ]. However, higher prevalences have been reported in asymptomatic populations, e.g., Veracruz (Southeastern Mexico) at 21.3% [ 23 ] and Japan at 17.9% [ 24 ].…”

Seroprevalence of Anti-SARS-CoV-2 Antibodies in Blood Donors from Nuevo Leon State, Mexico, during 2020: A Retrospective Cross-Sectional Evaluation

“…Until now, there have been few studies on the prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 in Mexico. One of them was focused on a specific area (Guadalupe, a municipality in Nuevo Leon) [ 19 ], while the other was conducted in another state (Veracruz State in Southeast Mexico) [ 18 ]. Both involved cross-sectional analyses during July 2020.…”

“…To date, limited data have documented the prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in the general population and asymptomatic outpatients in Mexico [ 18 , 19 ]. In this study, we conducted a retrospective cross-sectional seroprevalence survey using residual plasma samples to identify SARS-CoV-2-specific IgG antibodies among blood donors who attended two regional transfusion centers during 2020.…”