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Assessment of population infection with SARS-CoV-2 in Ontario, Canada, March to June 2020

Shelly Bolotin1,2,3, Vanessa Tran1,3, Shelley L Deeks1,2

  • 1Public Health Ontario, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Euro Surveillance : Bulletin Europeen Sur Les Maladies Transmissibles = European Communicable Disease Bulletin
|December 17, 2021
PubMed

Insights

This study found low SARS-CoV-2 antibody prevalence in Ontario during the first pandemic wave, suggesting public health measures effectively limited virus spread. COVID-19 cases were underestimated by 4.9 times.

Area of Science:

  • Epidemiology
  • Immunology
  • Public Health

Background:

  • Serosurveys are crucial for estimating population infection rates of SARS-CoV-2.
  • Understanding seroprevalence provides insights into the true extent of viral spread beyond reported cases.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To assess the seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in Ontario, Canada, during the initial phase of the pandemic.
  • To analyze seroprevalence trends across different age groups, sexes, and regions during the first wave.

Main Methods:

  • An observational study utilizing 8,902 residual specimens from the Public Health Ontario laboratory.
  • Testing was conducted across three distinct time periods between March and June 2020.
  • Results were adjusted for antibody test characteristics and compared with PCR-confirmed COVID-19 data.

Main Results:

  • Adjusted seroprevalence ranged from 0.5% in late March-April to 1.5% in late May 2020.
  • Higher seroprevalence was observed in older adults (≥60 years) during March-April and June, and in the 20-59 age group in May.
  • Toronto consistently showed the highest regional seroprevalence across the study periods.

Conclusions:

  • The study indicates a low overall population seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 in Ontario during the first pandemic wave.
  • The findings suggest that implemented public health interventions were successful in controlling widespread transmission.
  • PCR-detected COVID-19 cases likely underestimated total SARS-CoV-2 infections by a factor of approximately 4.9.
Keywords:
COVID-19SARS-CoV-2serologyseroprevalence

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