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One in 15 Indians has already been exposed to novel coronavirus so far and the prevalence of the infection is four times more in urban slum population than in their counterparts in rural areas, according to ICMR’s second sero surveillance survey results revealed on Tuesday.
The second sero survey conducted by the Indian Council of Medical Research, together with other epidemiologists in the country, in August-September showed that there was a near 10-fold increase in exposure to Covid-19 virus in adult population compared with the first survey carried out in May.
According to ICMR Director General Balram Bhargava, for the survey, blood samples were collected from over 29,000 volunteers from the same 70 districts in 21 States and Union Territories that participated in the first round of survey. As against 0.73 per cent in the first survey, about 6.6 per cent of the samples collected in the second round had antibodies to the viral infection, he said.
While all participants in the first survey were above the age of 18 years, the researchers expanded the range by including volunteers from the age of 10 and above for the second sero survey. Among those above the age of 18 years, the prevalence rate is around 7.1 per cent.
The survey again proved that population density is an important factor in the spread of the infection. While 15.6 per cent of the samples collected from urban slums were found to have exposure to the virus, only 8.2 per cent and 4.4 per cent samples from non-slum urban areas and rural areas, respectively, had developed antibodies to SARS-CoV2 virus, Bhargava said.
More importantly, the ICMR chief said that with increased testing capacity, India is currently detecting 1 out of 26-32 infections as compared with 1 in 80-130 in May.
Word of caution
This actually indicates that a vast majority is yet to be exposed to be the virus, said VK Paul, Member (Health), NITI Aayog, adding that it makes it important for people to be more cautious during the coming festival season as well as winter months. Winter months are known to have higher incidence of respiratory illnesses.
The second sero survey results are on the expected lines. The prevalence has increased by almost 10 times since May. There is a possibility of achieving herd immunity faster, said Jayaprakash Muliyil, a noted epidemiologist.
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