Department of Cardiology, Iwate Prefectural Central Hospital, Morioka, Iwate, Japan.
Department of Clinical Laboratory, Iwate Prefectural Central Hospital, Morioka, Iwate, Japan.
J Med Virol. 2021 Jul;93(7):4608-4611. doi: 10.1002/jmv.26962. Epub 2021 Apr 3.
The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing rate is low in our local area and the true rate of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection may include many asymptomatic individuals. We conducted a serosurveillance using antibody testing in an area where official report of COVID-19 infection is not done yet. Blood samples were obtained from 1404 healthcare workers (41 ± 11 years) in our hospital on May 29-31, 2020. First, the potential infection frequency was confirmed using two quantitative antibody tests. In addition, the usefulness of rapid antibody kit testing for COVID-19 serosurveillance was examined. A COVID-19-indected case was defined as showing positive results in both quantitative tests. None of 1404 samples had positive results from the two quantitative tests. The false positive rates were 0.36% and 0.07%, whereas those in rapid antibody kits were 3.3% and 3.0%. In conclusion, as of May, 2020, potential spread mainly by asymptomatic individuals infected with COVID-19 was not found in our local area where there was no official report of COVID-19, even if the PCR testing rate was low. Rapid antibody kits might not be useful due to the high false positive rate in an area with a low incidence of COVID-19 infected individuals.
聚合酶链反应（PCR）检测率在我们当地较低，而 2019 年冠状病毒病（COVID-19）的真实感染率可能包括许多无症状个体。我们在尚未报告 COVID-19 感染的地区进行了血清学监测，使用抗体检测。2020 年 5 月 29 日至 31 日，从我们医院的 1404 名医护人员（41±11 岁）中采集了血样。首先，使用两种定量抗体检测方法确认了潜在的感染频率。此外，还检查了快速抗体试剂盒检测在 COVID-19 血清学监测中的有用性。COVID-19 感染病例的定义是两种定量检测均呈阳性。在 1404 个样本中，没有一个样本在两种定量检测中呈阳性。假阳性率分别为 0.36%和 0.07%，而快速抗体试剂盒的假阳性率分别为 3.3%和 3.0%。总之，截至 2020 年 5 月，在尚未报告 COVID-19 的当地地区，未发现主要由无症状个体传播的 COVID-19，尽管 PCR 检测率较低。由于 COVID-19 感染个体发病率较低的地区假阳性率较高，快速抗体试剂盒可能用处不大。
