Cited by 43COVID-19 epidemiological studiesSARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 ResearchSARS-CoV-2 detection and testing

Seroprevalence surveys in sub-Saharan Africa: what do they tell us?

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Usuf, Effua, Roca, Anna·2021·The Lancet Global Health

Abstract

Initial estimates of the potential effect of SARS-CoV-2 virus in sub-Saharan Africa were catastrophic:1 fortunately, these predictions have not been met in terms of number of cases, deaths, and saturation of health systems. On one hand, since ageing is the main risk factor for COVID-19,2 the young population in sub-Saharan Africa partly explains the low number of cases and deaths registered. On the other hand, the limited testing capacity in many sub-Saharan Africa countries, accompanied by stigmatisation, might result in underestimation of the magnitude of transmission.

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  1. 1 Massinga Loembe M, Tshangela A, Salyer SJ, Varma JK, Ouma AEO, Nkengasong JN. COVID-19 in Africa: the spread and response. Nat Med 2020; 26: 999-1003.
  2. 2 de Lusignan S, Dorward J, Correa A, et al. Risk factors for SARS-CoV-2 among patients in the Oxford Royal College of General Practitioners Research and Surveillance Centre primary care network: a cross-sectional study. Lancet Infect Dis 2020; 20: 1034-42.
  3. 5 Olayanju O, Bamidele O, Edem F, et al. SARS-CoV-2 seropositivity in asymptomatic frontline health workers in Ibadan, Nigeria. Am J Trop Med Hyg 2021; 104: 91-94.
  4. 7 Mendelson M, Madhi S. South Africa's coronavirus testing strategy is broken and not fit for purpose: it's time for a change. S Afr Med J 2020; 110: 429-31.
  5. 8 Sadio AJ, Gbeasor-Komlanvi FA, Konu RY, et al. Assessment of selfmedication practices in the context of the COVID-19 outbreak in Togo. BMC Public Health 2021; 21: 58.
  6. 9 Long QX, Tang XJ, Shi QL, et al. Clinical and immunological assessment of asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infections. Nat Med 2020; 26: 1200-04.

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Authors
Usuf, E., & Roca, A.
Affiliations
MRC Unit the Gambia (GM)
Corresponding author
Usuf, Effua
Venue
The Lancet Global Health
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2021-06
Volume
9
Issue
6
Pages
e724-e725
ISSN
2214-109X (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W3134769325
Cited by
43
References
3
Citations by year
2026: 1 · 2025: 2 · 2024: 6 · 2023: 9 · 2022: 13 · 2021: 12
FWCI
3.88
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • The Lancet Global Health (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • LSHTM Research Online (London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine) (acceptedVersion)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
Funders
Medical Research Council (MC_PC_20028)
Topics
  • Physical Sciences › Mathematics › Modeling and Simulation › COVID-19 epidemiological studies
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Infectious Diseases › SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 Research
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Infectious Diseases › SARS-CoV-2 detection and testing
Keywords
SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 pandemic, seroprevalence, sub-Saharan Africa, testing capacity, stigma, youth population, health system capacity, risk factors
MeSH terms
Humans, Surveys and Questionnaires, Seroepidemiologic Studies, Africa South of the Sahara

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