COVID-19

COVID-19 Roundup: Past Infection, Vitamin D, Antibody Cocktail

Past Infection

Less than 1 in 10 Americans show signs of having previously been infected with COVID-19, according to a study which tested plasma from 28,503 adults in the US.

Overall, seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 was 8.0% (95% CI 7.7–8.4), and 9·3% (8.8–9.9) after standardization to the US adult population. After comparing these results with case counts, they found that 9.2% (8.7–9.8) of seropositive patients were diagnosed.

“During the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, fewer than 10% of the US adult population formed antibodies against SARS-CoV-2, and fewer than 10% of those with antibodies were diagnosed. Public health efforts to limit SARS-CoV-2 spread need to especially target racial and ethnic minority and densely populated communities,” they wrote.

Vitamin D

Improving vitamin D sufficiency has the potential to significantly reduce complications and mortality among patients hospitalized for COVID-19, according to a recent study.

The study investigate data from 235 patients, 74% of whom had severe COVID-19 infection and 32.8% of whom were vitamin D deficient. Overall, they found a significant association between vitamin D sufficiency and reductions in clinical severity, mortality, serum levels of C-reactive protein, and increased lymphocyte percentage.

“Therefore, it is recommended that improving vitamin D status in the general population and in particular hospitalized patients has a potential benefit in reducing the severity of morbidities and mortality associated with acquiring COVID-19.”

Antibody Mix

A combination of ultrapotent human antibodies that were taken from patients who recovered from COVID-19 inhibit SARS-CoV-2 from attaching to cells and has been shown to effectively protect against infection in an animal model.

The various antibodies included in the cocktail featured complementary mechanisms of action, working to accomplish the same goals in several different ways, which the authors noted could help to make the combination more effective.

COVID-19 Updates from CDC

As of September 25, 2020, the CDC has received reports of a total of 51,075,554 specimens tested for SARS-CoV-2, of which, 4,163,115 (8.2%) were positive.

Levels of influenza-like illness (ILI) are typical for this time of year. Levels of COVID-19-like illness have decreased since the previous week, although 3 regions have reported increases in the percentage of positive specimens.

Overall, the cumulative COVID-19-associated hospitalization rate is 174.8 per 100,000, with the highest rates in individuals aged 65 years and older (472.3 per 100,000) followed by people 50–64 years (261.5 per 100,000).

Percentages of deaths attributed to pneumonia, influenza, or COVID-19 is 6.6% for week 38, which is lower than the 9.8% seen the week before.

—Michael Potts

References:

  1. Anand S, Montez-Rath M, Han J, et al. Prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in a large nationwide sample of patients on dialysis in the USA: a cross-sectional study. Published online September 25, 2020. Lancet. DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(20)32009-2.
  2. Maghbooli Z, Sahraian MA, Ebrahimi M, et al. Vitamin D sufficiency, a serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D at least 30 ng/mL reduced risk for adverse clinical outcomes in patients with COVID-19 infection. Published online September 25, 2020. PLOS One. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0239799
  3. Tortorici MA, Beltramello M, Lempp FA, et al. Ultrapotent human antibodies protect against SARS-CoV-2 challenge via multiple mechanisms. Published online September 24, 2020. Science. DOI: 10.1126/science.abe3354
  4. COVIDView: a weekly surveillance summary of US COVID-19 Activity. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/covidview/index.html. Updated August 7, 2020. Accessed August 10, 2020.