tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
PLoS One
. 2024 Aug 29;19(8):e0309466.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0309466. eCollection 2024. COVID-19 IgG seropositivity and its determinants in occupational groups of varying infection risks in two Andean cities of Ecuador before mass vaccination
Jose E Leon-Rojas[SUP] 1 2 [/SUP], Fernanda Arias-Erazo[SUP] 3 4 [/SUP], Patricia Jiménez-Arias[SUP] 2 4 5 [/SUP], Ricardo Recalde-Navarrete[SUP] 2 6 [/SUP], Angel Guevara[SUP] 7 [/SUP], Josefina Coloma[SUP] 8 [/SUP], Miguel Martin[SUP] 1 2 3 [/SUP], Irina Chis Ster[SUP] 9 [/SUP], Philip Cooper[SUP] 3 9 [/SUP], Natalia Romero-Sandoval[SUP] 2 3 [/SUP]; Seroprevalence ECU-Group
Affiliations
Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has caused over 68.7 million infections and 1.35 million deaths in South America. There are limited data on SARS-CoV-2 seropositivity and its determinants from Andean countries prior to mass vaccinations against COVID-19.
Objective: To estimate SARS-CoV-2 seropositivity and its determinants before vaccination in occupational groups of adults presumed to have different levels of exposure and associations with potential symptomatology.
Methods: We measured seropositivity of anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgG antibodies in a cross-sectional study of vaccine-naïve adults aged 18 years and older, recruited within three occupational risk groups (defined as low [LR], moderate [MR], and high
) between January and September 2021 in two Andean cities in Ecuador. Associations with risk factors were estimated using logistic regression.
Results: In a sample of 882 adults, IgG seropositivity for the three different occupational risk groups was 39.9% (CI 95% 35.3-44.6), 74.6% (CI 95% 66.4-81.4), and 39.0% (CI 95% 34.0-44.4) for the HR, MR, and LR groups, respectively. History of an illness with loss of taste and/or smell was significantly associated with seropositivity in all occupational groups, with adjusted ORs of 14.31 (95%CI, 5.83-35.12; p<0.001), 14.34 (95%CI 3.01-68.42; p<0.001), and 8.79 (95%CI 2.69-28.72; p<0.001), for the HR, MR, and LR groups, respectively; while fever was significant for the LR group with an adjusted OR of 1.24 (95%CI, 1.11-4.57; p = 0.025) and myalgia for the HR group with an adjusted OR of 2.07 (95%CI, 1.13-3.81; p = 0.019).
Conclusion: Notable proportions of seropositivity were seen in all occupational groups between January and September 2021 prior to mass vaccination. Loss of taste and/or smell was strongly associated with presence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgG antibodies irrespective of presumed occupational exposure risk.
. 2024 Aug 29;19(8):e0309466.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0309466. eCollection 2024. COVID-19 IgG seropositivity and its determinants in occupational groups of varying infection risks in two Andean cities of Ecuador before mass vaccination
Jose E Leon-Rojas[SUP] 1 2 [/SUP], Fernanda Arias-Erazo[SUP] 3 4 [/SUP], Patricia Jiménez-Arias[SUP] 2 4 5 [/SUP], Ricardo Recalde-Navarrete[SUP] 2 6 [/SUP], Angel Guevara[SUP] 7 [/SUP], Josefina Coloma[SUP] 8 [/SUP], Miguel Martin[SUP] 1 2 3 [/SUP], Irina Chis Ster[SUP] 9 [/SUP], Philip Cooper[SUP] 3 9 [/SUP], Natalia Romero-Sandoval[SUP] 2 3 [/SUP]; Seroprevalence ECU-Group
Affiliations
- PMID: 39208200
- PMCID: PMC11361580
- DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0309466
Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has caused over 68.7 million infections and 1.35 million deaths in South America. There are limited data on SARS-CoV-2 seropositivity and its determinants from Andean countries prior to mass vaccinations against COVID-19.
Objective: To estimate SARS-CoV-2 seropositivity and its determinants before vaccination in occupational groups of adults presumed to have different levels of exposure and associations with potential symptomatology.
Methods: We measured seropositivity of anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgG antibodies in a cross-sectional study of vaccine-naïve adults aged 18 years and older, recruited within three occupational risk groups (defined as low [LR], moderate [MR], and high
) between January and September 2021 in two Andean cities in Ecuador. Associations with risk factors were estimated using logistic regression.
Results: In a sample of 882 adults, IgG seropositivity for the three different occupational risk groups was 39.9% (CI 95% 35.3-44.6), 74.6% (CI 95% 66.4-81.4), and 39.0% (CI 95% 34.0-44.4) for the HR, MR, and LR groups, respectively. History of an illness with loss of taste and/or smell was significantly associated with seropositivity in all occupational groups, with adjusted ORs of 14.31 (95%CI, 5.83-35.12; p<0.001), 14.34 (95%CI 3.01-68.42; p<0.001), and 8.79 (95%CI 2.69-28.72; p<0.001), for the HR, MR, and LR groups, respectively; while fever was significant for the LR group with an adjusted OR of 1.24 (95%CI, 1.11-4.57; p = 0.025) and myalgia for the HR group with an adjusted OR of 2.07 (95%CI, 1.13-3.81; p = 0.019).
Conclusion: Notable proportions of seropositivity were seen in all occupational groups between January and September 2021 prior to mass vaccination. Loss of taste and/or smell was strongly associated with presence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgG antibodies irrespective of presumed occupational exposure risk.