Seroprevalence of anti–SARS-CoV-2 IgG antibodies in Kenyan blood donors

Type Journal Article Author Sophie Uyoga Author Ifedayo M. O. Adetifa Author Henry K. Karanja Author James Nyagwange Author James Tuju Author Perpetual Wanjiku Author Rashid Aman Author Mercy Mwangangi Author Patrick Amoth Author Kadondi Kasera Author Wangari Ng’ang’a Author Charles Rombo Author Christine Yegon Author Khamisi Kithi Author Elizabeth Odhiambo Author Thomas Rotich Author Irene Orgut Author Sammy Kihara Author Mark Otiende Author Christian Bottomley Author Zonia N. Mupe Author Eunice W. Kagucia Author Katherine E. Gallagher Author Anthony Etyang Author Shirine Voller Author John N. Gitonga Author Daisy Mugo Author Charles N. Agoti Author Edward Otieno Author Leonard Ndwiga Author Teresa Lambe Author Daniel Wright Author Edwine Barasa Author Benjamin Tsofa Author Philip Bejon Author Lynette I. Ochola-Oyier Author Ambrose Agweyu Author J. Anthony G. Scott Author George M. Warimwe URL https://science.sciencemag.org/content/early/2020/11/11/science.abe1916 Rights Copyright © 2020 The Authors, some rights reserved; exclusive licensee American Association for the Advancement of Science. No claim to original U.S. Government Works. Distributed under a Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0 (CC BY).. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution license, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Publication Science ISSN 0036-8075, 1095-9203 Date 11/11/2020 Extra Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science Section: Report PMID: 33177105 DOI 10.1126/science.abe1916 Library Catalog science.sciencemag.org Language en Abstract The spread of SARS-CoV-2 in Africa is poorly described. The first case of SARS-CoV-2 in Kenya was reported on March 12, 2020 and an overwhelming number of cases and deaths were expected but by July 31, 2020 there were only 20,636 cases and 341 deaths. However, the extent of SARS-CoV-2 exposure in the community remains unknown. We determined the prevalence of anti–SARS-CoV-2 IgG among blood donors in Kenya in April-June 2020. Crude seroprevalence was 5.6% (174/3098). Population-weighted, test-performance-adjusted national seroprevalence was 4.3% (95% CI 2.9–5.8%) and was highest in urban counties, Mombasa (8.0%), Nairobi (7.3%) and Kisumu (5.5%). SARS-CoV-2 exposure is more extensive than indicated by case-based surveillance and these results will help guide the pandemic response in Kenya, and across Africa.