About one in ten young Montrealers (9.7%) had, between May and August 2021, antibodies resulting from an infection with COVID-19.
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This is what the results of a study by Kate Zinszer, associate professor of epidemiology at McGill University, revealed, released Thursday. This is an increase from the 5.8% observed between October 2020 and March 2021.
The study was carried out on a cohort of 1,222 children (51% girls and 49% boys) from two to 17 years old, of which 285 are in daycare, 567 in elementary school and 370 in secondary school in Montreal. Blood samples from 936 participants were taken by finger prick and analyzed for the presence of antibodies that recognize SARS-CoV-2.
A high percentage in disadvantaged regions
The participants were recruited from schools and daycare centers in four regions of Montreal with very distinct socioeconomic and population characteristics: the Plateau Mont-Royal, Montreal North, the West Island and Mercier-Hochelaga-Maisonneuve. (HOMA).
Seroprevalence, the number of people with antibodies, was lowest in the West Island (6.1%). In contrast, Montréal-Nord, the most disadvantaged neighborhood studied, had the highest rate (15.1%).
The study also showed that the antibodies are present in the body for a short time. Thus, 5.3% of participants who had detectable antibodies at a particular time did not have them a few weeks or a few months after infection. “Even if antibodies are not the only measure of protection against infection, they may indicate that these children and adolescents are no longer protected enough to avoid reinfection,” reads the study.
We also learn that most parents (86%) had their child vaccinated or plan to do so as soon as they could. Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine for children ages 5 to 11 could be cleared in the country as early as Friday, according to the Toronto Star.