Prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 Antibody in 2,935 Healthcare Workers at 6 Major Hospitals, Daegu, Korea

Yu Kyung Kim, Dohsik Minn, Do Young Song, Chae Hoon Lee, Nam Hee Ryoo, Chang Ho Jeon, Kyung Eun Song, Jang Soo Suh, Soon Hee Chang

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

3 Scopus citations

Abstract

Background: In Korea, the first community outbreak of Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) occurred in Daegu on February 18, 2020. This study was performed to investigate the prevalence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) antibodies in healthcare workers (HCWs) at 6 major hospitals in Daegu. Methods: Blood specimens of 2,935 HCWs at 6 major hospitals in Daegu from January 2021 to February 2021 were collected. Every specimen was tested for antibody against SARS-CoV-2 using both Elecsys Anti-SARS-CoV-2 electrochemiluminescence immunoassay (Roche Diagnostics, Rotkreuz, Switzerland) and R-FIND COVID-19 IgG/M/A enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kit (SG medical Inc., Seoul, Korea) as screening tests. If 1 or more of these screening test results was positive, 2 additional antibody tests were performed using Abbott Anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgG assay (Abbott, Abbott Park, IL, USA) and cPass SARS-CoV-2 Neutralization Antibody Detection Kit (GenScript USA Inc., Piscataway, NJ, USA). If 2 or more of the total 4 test results were positive, it was determined as positive for the antibody against SARS-CoV-2. Results: According to the criteria of SARS-CoV-2 antibody positivity determination, 12 subjects were determined as positive. The overall positive rate of the SARS-CoV-2 antibody was 0.41% (12/2,935). Of the 12 subjects determined as positive, 7 were diagnosed with COVID-19, and the remaining 5 were nondiagnosed cases of COVID-19. Conclusion: In early 2021, the overall seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 antibody among HCW located in Daegu was 0.41%, and 0.17% excluding COVID-19 confirmed subjects. These results were not particularly high compared with the general public and were much lower than HCWs in other countries.

Original languageEnglish
Article numbere294
JournalJournal of Korean Medical Science
Volume36
Issue number43
DOIs
StatePublished - 2021

Keywords

  • COVID-19
  • Healthcare Worker
  • Neutralizing Antibody
  • SARS-CoV-2 Antibody

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