More than two years after the COVID-19 pandemic, and months after the onset of the Omicron variant, about one-third of Canada’s population is infected with the virus, according to increasing research with experts.
Dr. Catherine Hankins, Co-Chair of COVID-19 Immune Task Force, Told global news A variant of Omicron that struck Canada in November 2021 evaded immunity, resulting in reinfection and breakthrough cases.
“I think it’s very likely that one-third of the population will be infected with COVID two years later,” Hankins said.
“Omicron was capable of avoiding antibodies built from either previous infections or vaccinations.”
Ann April 10 Report Based on seroprevalence analysis, which measures the level of pathogens in the population through blood samples, it is shown that the highly contagious Omicron variant doubled the natural infection rate in Canada.
The report has tracked the seroprevalence of COVID-19 to distinguish between innate immunity and vaccine-induced humoral immunity since the onset of the pandemic. In this latest update, which analyzed February data, the national average seroprevalence for infections was 23.7%, double the January rate.
“Humoral immunity was promoted primarily by vaccination, but in line with the arrival of the Omicron variant, the proportion of naturally exposed populations increased sharply after December,” said the COVID-19 Immune Task. A report jointly conducted by Force and Canada Blood Services states.
The data in this study are based on blood samples collected by Canadian Blood Services. The organization has blood collection sites in all large cities and many small city centers in all states except Quebec. Blood donations have not been collected in the northern region. Blood donors reasonably represent healthy Canadians between the ages of 17 and about 60.
According to the report, seroprevalence increased in February compared to January in all states, with Alberta, Manitoba and British Columbia showing the highest prevalence.
Young Canadians between the ages of 17 and 24 showed the highest levels of natural infection at 36.3% compared to other age groups. This is consistent with previous research.
Since the start of the pandemic, similar studies to track SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in blood samples have been conducted by the British Columbia Disease Control Center (BCCDC) in collaboration with LifeLabs.
Their analysis also reveals the significant impact of Omicron variants on the Canadian population.
BCCDC Principal Investigator and Epidemiologist Dr. Danuta Skowronski told Global News that more than 40% of British Columbia’s population had infectious antibodies as of March 2022 in the latest seroprevalence survey. .. Omicron’s wave, only 10 percent of the state’s population was infected.
The most affected group was children, she said, with about two-thirds of children under the age of 10 infected with the virus.
“We have left the population that is almost completely susceptible to the virus, but now more than 90 percent of us are doing some priming, either by vaccination or infection,” she said.
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Andrew Chen is a Toronto-based Epoch Times reporter.