A massive antibody study in England has found that 3.4 million people, or 6 percent of the country’s population, have contracted the coronavirus.
The study of more than 100,000 volunteers, who paid the government as the largest survey of its kind, showed the severity of the outbreak varies between demographics and different areas in the country.
London, with a population of nearly 9 million people, was hit hardest, with 13 per cent of the population using coronavirus antibodies. Less than 3 per cent of the inhabitants in the South West region of England had the same results.
The study found high rates of antibodies among people working in ‘nursing homes’ (16 percent) and the health care sector (12 percent), while anti-antibody rates for Black people (17 percent) and Asian people (12 percent) were remarkably higher than those for white people (5 percent.).
Antibodies were also higher among people aged 18-34 years than 65 and older, and people living in households with more than 6 or 7 people were more than twice as likely to have antibodies as those living alone or with normal one other person.
Of those who tested positive for antibodies, 32 percent reported no COVID-19 symptoms.
The figures are the result of research in which 100,000 people tested themselves at home for coronavirus antibodies from June 20 to July 13. The government claims it has no solid evidence that antibodies have translated into immunity to COVID-19.
“There are still many unknowns with this new virus, including the extent to which the presence of antibodies provides protection against future infections,” said Graham Cooke of the UK National Institute for Health Research, adding that the results have “significant implications”. will decide to hide lockdown restrictions in the UK. “
More than 46,700 people have died from coronavirus across the UK.
The study will be replicated later this year and is expected to test another 200,000 people for antibodies.
“Large-scale antibody research is essential to help us understand how the virus has spread across the country and whether there are specific groups that are more vulnerable,” said Public Health Minister Edward Argar in an email. to Bloomberg. “We do not yet know that antibodies provide immunity to coronavirus, but the more information we can gather about this virus, and the easier we can make it for people to participate in these studies, the better we will be able to respond.”
.
