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Neuhauser H, Rosario AS, Butschalowsky H, Haller S, Hoebel J, Michel J, Nitsche A, Poethko-Müller C, Prütz F, Schlaud M, Steinhauer HW, Wilking H, Wieler LH, Schaade L, Liebig S, Gößwald A, Grabka MM, Zinn S, Ziese T. Nationally representative results on SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence and testing in Germany at the end of 2020. Sci Rep 2022; 12:19492. [PMID: 36376417 PMCID: PMC9662125 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-23821-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2021] [Accepted: 11/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Pre-vaccine SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence data from Germany are scarce outside hotspots, and socioeconomic disparities remained largely unexplored. The nationwide representative RKI-SOEP study (15,122 participants, 18-99 years, 54% women) investigated seroprevalence and testing in a supplementary wave of the Socio-Economic-Panel conducted predominantly in October-November 2020. Self-collected oral-nasal swabs were PCR-positive in 0.4% and Euroimmun anti-SARS-CoV-2-S1-IgG ELISA from dry-capillary-blood antibody-positive in 1.3% (95% CI 0.9-1.7%, population-weighted, corrected for sensitivity = 0.811, specificity = 0.997). Seroprevalence was 1.7% (95% CI 1.2-2.3%) when additionally correcting for antibody decay. Overall infection prevalence including self-reports was 2.1%. We estimate 45% (95% CI 21-60%) undetected cases and lower detection in socioeconomically deprived districts. Prior SARS-CoV-2 testing was reported by 18% from the lower educational group vs. 25% and 26% from the medium and high educational group (p < 0.001, global test over three categories). Symptom-triggered test frequency was similar across educational groups. Routine testing was more common in low-educated adults, whereas travel-related testing and testing after contact with infected persons was more common in highly educated groups. This countrywide very low pre-vaccine seroprevalence in Germany at the end of 2020 can serve to evaluate the containment strategy. Our findings on social disparities indicate improvement potential in pandemic planning for people in socially disadvantaged circumstances.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hannelore Neuhauser
- Robert Koch Institute, Berlin, Germany.
- Department of Epidemiology and Health Monitoring, Robert Koch Institute, General-Pape-Str. 62-66, 12101, Berlin, Germany.
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Hans W Steinhauer
- Socio-Economic Panel, German Institute for Economic Research, Berlin, Germany
| | | | | | | | - Stefan Liebig
- Socio-Economic Panel, German Institute for Economic Research, Berlin, Germany
- SOEP & Department of Political and Social Sciences, Free University, Berlin, Germany
| | | | - Markus M Grabka
- Socio-Economic Panel, German Institute for Economic Research, Berlin, Germany
| | - Sabine Zinn
- Socio-Economic Panel, German Institute for Economic Research, Berlin, Germany
- SOEP & Department of Social Sciences, Humboldt University, Berlin, Germany
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Schilling J, Tolksdorf K, Marquis A, Faber M, Pfoch T, Buda S, Haas W, Schuler E, Altmann D, Grote U, Diercke M. [The different periods of COVID-19 in Germany: a descriptive analysis from January 2020 to February 2021]. Bundesgesundheitsblatt Gesundheitsforschung Gesundheitsschutz 2021; 64:1093-1106. [PMID: 34374798 PMCID: PMC8353925 DOI: 10.1007/s00103-021-03394-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/06/2021] [Accepted: 06/30/2021] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
The first case of coronavirus SARS-CoV‑2 infection in Germany was diagnosed on 27 January 2020. To describe the pandemic course in 2020, we regarded four epidemiologically different periods and used data on COVID-19 cases from the mandatory reporting system as well as hospitalized COVID-19 cases with severe acute respiratory infection from the syndromic hospital surveillance.Period 0 covers weeks 5 to 9 of 2020, where mainly sporadic cases of younger age were observed and few regional outbreaks emerged. In total, 167 cases with mostly mild outcomes were reported. Subsequently, the first COVID-19 wave occurred in period 1 (weeks 10 to 20 of 2020) with a total of 175,013 cases throughout Germany. Increasingly, outbreaks in hospitals and nursing homes were registered. Moreover, elderly cases and severe outcomes were observed more frequently. Period 2 (weeks 21 to 39 of 2020) was an interim period with more mild cases, where many cases were younger and often travel-associated. Additionally, larger trans-regional outbreaks in business settings were reported. Among the 111,790 cases, severe outcomes were less frequent than in period 1. In period 3 (week 40 of 2020 to week 8 of 2021), the second COVID-19 wave started and peaked at the end of 2020. With 2,158,013 reported cases and considerably more severe outcomes in all age groups, the second wave was substantially stronger than the first wave.Irrespective of the different periods, more elderly persons and more men were affected by severe outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julia Schilling
- Abteilung für Infektionsepidemiologie, Robert Koch-Institut, Seestr. 10, 13353, Berlin, Deutschland.
| | - Kristin Tolksdorf
- Abteilung für Infektionsepidemiologie, Robert Koch-Institut, Seestr. 10, 13353, Berlin, Deutschland
| | - Adine Marquis
- Abteilung für Infektionsepidemiologie, Robert Koch-Institut, Seestr. 10, 13353, Berlin, Deutschland
| | - Mirko Faber
- Abteilung für Infektionsepidemiologie, Robert Koch-Institut, Seestr. 10, 13353, Berlin, Deutschland
| | - Thomas Pfoch
- Abteilung für Infektionsepidemiologie, Robert Koch-Institut, Seestr. 10, 13353, Berlin, Deutschland
| | - Silke Buda
- Abteilung für Infektionsepidemiologie, Robert Koch-Institut, Seestr. 10, 13353, Berlin, Deutschland
| | - Walter Haas
- Abteilung für Infektionsepidemiologie, Robert Koch-Institut, Seestr. 10, 13353, Berlin, Deutschland
| | | | - Doris Altmann
- Abteilung für Infektionsepidemiologie, Robert Koch-Institut, Seestr. 10, 13353, Berlin, Deutschland
| | - Ulrike Grote
- Abteilung für Infektionsepidemiologie, Robert Koch-Institut, Seestr. 10, 13353, Berlin, Deutschland
| | - Michaela Diercke
- Abteilung für Infektionsepidemiologie, Robert Koch-Institut, Seestr. 10, 13353, Berlin, Deutschland
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