Seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in university students: Cross-sectional study, December 2020, England

Amoolya Vusirikala; Heather Whitaker; Samuel Jones; Elise Tessier; Raymond Borrow; Ezra Linley; Katja Hoschler; Frances Baawuah; Shazaad Ahmad; Nicholas Andrews; Mary Ramsay; Shamez Ladhani; Kevin Brown; Gayatri Amirthalingam

doi:10.1016/j.jinf.2021.04.028

Seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in university students: Cross-sectional study, December 2020, England

Amoolya Vusirikala^*, Heather Whitaker, Samuel Jones, Elise Tessier, Raymond Borrow, Ezra Linley, Katja Hoschler, Frances Baawuah, Shazaad Ahmad, Nicholas Andrews, Mary Ramsay, Shamez Ladhani, Kevin Brown, Gayatri Amirthalingam

^*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

14 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Background: In England, the reopening of universities in September 2020 coincided with a rapid increase in SARS-CoV-2 infection rates in university aged young adults. This study aimed to estimate SARS-CoV-2 antibody prevalence in students attending universities that had experienced a COVID-19 outbreak after reopening for the autumn term in September 2020.

Methods: A cross-sectional serosurvey was conducted during 02–11 December 2020 in students aged ≤ 25 years across five universities in England. Blood samples for SARS-CoV-2 antibody testing were obtained using a self-sampling kit and analysed using the Abbott SARS-CoV-2 N antibody and/or an in-house receptor binding domain (RBD) assay.

Findings: SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence in 2,905 university students was 17.8% (95%CI, 16.5–19.3), ranging between 7.6%-29.7% across the five universities. Seropositivity was associated with being younger likely to represent first year undergraduates (aOR 3.2, 95% CI 2.0–4.9), living in halls of residence (aOR 2.1, 95% CI 1.7–2.7) and sharing a kitchen with an increasing number of students (shared with 4–7 individuals, aOR 1.43, 95%CI 1.12–1.82; shared with 8 or more individuals, aOR 1.53, 95% CI 1.04–2.24). Seropositivity was 49% in students living in halls of residence that reported high SARS-CoV-2 infection rates (>8%) during the autumn term.

Interpretation: Despite large numbers of cases and outbreaks in universities, less than one in five students (17.8%) overall had SARS-CoV-2 antibodies at the end of the autumn term in England. In university halls of residence affected by a COVID-19 outbreak, however, nearly half the resident students became infected and developed SARS-CoV-2 antibodies.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	104-111
Number of pages	8
Journal	Journal of Infection
Volume	83
Issue number	1
Early online date	28 Apr 2021
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jinf.2021.04.028
Publication status	Published - Jul 2021

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
Public Health England (PHE) UNICOVID team members and staff within Clinical Services Unit, PHE Colindale for laboratory support. We would like to thank all the universities that participated in this study and their staff who made this study possible. We would also like thank the Newcastle City Council Public Health Team.

Publisher Copyright:
© 2021

Keywords

COVID-19
SARS-CoV-2 infection
Students
Transmission
Universities

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Access to Document

10.1016/j.jinf.2021.04.028

Cite this

Vusirikala, A., Whitaker, H., Jones, S., Tessier, E., Borrow, R., Linley, E., Hoschler, K., Baawuah, F., Ahmad, S., Andrews, N., Ramsay, M., Ladhani, S., Brown, K., & Amirthalingam, G. (2021). Seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in university students: Cross-sectional study, December 2020, England. Journal of Infection, 83(1), 104-111. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jinf.2021.04.028

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abstract = "Background: In England, the reopening of universities in September 2020 coincided with a rapid increase in SARS-CoV-2 infection rates in university aged young adults. This study aimed to estimate SARS-CoV-2 antibody prevalence in students attending universities that had experienced a COVID-19 outbreak after reopening for the autumn term in September 2020. Methods: A cross-sectional serosurvey was conducted during 02–11 December 2020 in students aged ≤ 25 years across five universities in England. Blood samples for SARS-CoV-2 antibody testing were obtained using a self-sampling kit and analysed using the Abbott SARS-CoV-2 N antibody and/or an in-house receptor binding domain (RBD) assay. Findings: SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence in 2,905 university students was 17.8% (95%CI, 16.5–19.3), ranging between 7.6%-29.7% across the five universities. Seropositivity was associated with being younger likely to represent first year undergraduates (aOR 3.2, 95% CI 2.0–4.9), living in halls of residence (aOR 2.1, 95% CI 1.7–2.7) and sharing a kitchen with an increasing number of students (shared with 4–7 individuals, aOR 1.43, 95%CI 1.12–1.82; shared with 8 or more individuals, aOR 1.53, 95% CI 1.04–2.24). Seropositivity was 49% in students living in halls of residence that reported high SARS-CoV-2 infection rates (>8%) during the autumn term. Interpretation: Despite large numbers of cases and outbreaks in universities, less than one in five students (17.8%) overall had SARS-CoV-2 antibodies at the end of the autumn term in England. In university halls of residence affected by a COVID-19 outbreak, however, nearly half the resident students became infected and developed SARS-CoV-2 antibodies.",

keywords = "COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2 infection, Students, Transmission, Universities",

author = "Amoolya Vusirikala and Heather Whitaker and Samuel Jones and Elise Tessier and Raymond Borrow and Ezra Linley and Katja Hoschler and Frances Baawuah and Shazaad Ahmad and Nicholas Andrews and Mary Ramsay and Shamez Ladhani and Kevin Brown and Gayatri Amirthalingam",

note = "Funding Information: Public Health England (PHE) UNICOVID team members and staff within Clinical Services Unit, PHE Colindale for laboratory support. We would like to thank all the universities that participated in this study and their staff who made this study possible. We would also like thank the Newcastle City Council Public Health Team. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2021",

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Vusirikala, A, Whitaker, H, Jones, S, Tessier, E , Borrow, R , Linley, E , Hoschler, K, Baawuah, F, Ahmad, S , Andrews, N , Ramsay, M , Ladhani, S, Brown, K & Amirthalingam, G 2021, 'Seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in university students: Cross-sectional study, December 2020, England', Journal of Infection, vol. 83, no. 1, pp. 104-111. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jinf.2021.04.028

TY - JOUR

T1 - Seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in university students

T2 - Cross-sectional study, December 2020, England

AU - Vusirikala, Amoolya

AU - Whitaker, Heather

AU - Jones, Samuel

AU - Tessier, Elise

AU - Borrow, Raymond

AU - Linley, Ezra

AU - Hoschler, Katja

AU - Baawuah, Frances

AU - Ahmad, Shazaad

AU - Andrews, Nicholas

AU - Ramsay, Mary

AU - Ladhani, Shamez

AU - Brown, Kevin

AU - Amirthalingam, Gayatri

N1 - Funding Information: Public Health England (PHE) UNICOVID team members and staff within Clinical Services Unit, PHE Colindale for laboratory support. We would like to thank all the universities that participated in this study and their staff who made this study possible. We would also like thank the Newcastle City Council Public Health Team. Publisher Copyright: © 2021

PY - 2021/7

Y1 - 2021/7

N2 - Background: In England, the reopening of universities in September 2020 coincided with a rapid increase in SARS-CoV-2 infection rates in university aged young adults. This study aimed to estimate SARS-CoV-2 antibody prevalence in students attending universities that had experienced a COVID-19 outbreak after reopening for the autumn term in September 2020. Methods: A cross-sectional serosurvey was conducted during 02–11 December 2020 in students aged ≤ 25 years across five universities in England. Blood samples for SARS-CoV-2 antibody testing were obtained using a self-sampling kit and analysed using the Abbott SARS-CoV-2 N antibody and/or an in-house receptor binding domain (RBD) assay. Findings: SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence in 2,905 university students was 17.8% (95%CI, 16.5–19.3), ranging between 7.6%-29.7% across the five universities. Seropositivity was associated with being younger likely to represent first year undergraduates (aOR 3.2, 95% CI 2.0–4.9), living in halls of residence (aOR 2.1, 95% CI 1.7–2.7) and sharing a kitchen with an increasing number of students (shared with 4–7 individuals, aOR 1.43, 95%CI 1.12–1.82; shared with 8 or more individuals, aOR 1.53, 95% CI 1.04–2.24). Seropositivity was 49% in students living in halls of residence that reported high SARS-CoV-2 infection rates (>8%) during the autumn term. Interpretation: Despite large numbers of cases and outbreaks in universities, less than one in five students (17.8%) overall had SARS-CoV-2 antibodies at the end of the autumn term in England. In university halls of residence affected by a COVID-19 outbreak, however, nearly half the resident students became infected and developed SARS-CoV-2 antibodies.

AB - Background: In England, the reopening of universities in September 2020 coincided with a rapid increase in SARS-CoV-2 infection rates in university aged young adults. This study aimed to estimate SARS-CoV-2 antibody prevalence in students attending universities that had experienced a COVID-19 outbreak after reopening for the autumn term in September 2020. Methods: A cross-sectional serosurvey was conducted during 02–11 December 2020 in students aged ≤ 25 years across five universities in England. Blood samples for SARS-CoV-2 antibody testing were obtained using a self-sampling kit and analysed using the Abbott SARS-CoV-2 N antibody and/or an in-house receptor binding domain (RBD) assay. Findings: SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence in 2,905 university students was 17.8% (95%CI, 16.5–19.3), ranging between 7.6%-29.7% across the five universities. Seropositivity was associated with being younger likely to represent first year undergraduates (aOR 3.2, 95% CI 2.0–4.9), living in halls of residence (aOR 2.1, 95% CI 1.7–2.7) and sharing a kitchen with an increasing number of students (shared with 4–7 individuals, aOR 1.43, 95%CI 1.12–1.82; shared with 8 or more individuals, aOR 1.53, 95% CI 1.04–2.24). Seropositivity was 49% in students living in halls of residence that reported high SARS-CoV-2 infection rates (>8%) during the autumn term. Interpretation: Despite large numbers of cases and outbreaks in universities, less than one in five students (17.8%) overall had SARS-CoV-2 antibodies at the end of the autumn term in England. In university halls of residence affected by a COVID-19 outbreak, however, nearly half the resident students became infected and developed SARS-CoV-2 antibodies.

KW - COVID-19

KW - SARS-CoV-2 infection

KW - Students

KW - Transmission

KW - Universities

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DO - 10.1016/j.jinf.2021.04.028

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JO - Journal of Infection

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SN - 0163-4453

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ER -

Seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in university students: Cross-sectional study, December 2020, England

Abstract

Bibliographical note

Keywords

UN SDGs

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