Low SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence but high perception of risk among healthcare workers at children’s hospital before second pandemic wave in Germany

Abstract

Background Healthcare workers are considered a particularly high-risk group during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Healthcare workers in paediatrics are a unique subgroup: they come into frequent contact with children, who often experience few or no symptoms when infected with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and, therefore, may transmit the disease to unprotected staff. In Germany, no studies exist evaluating the risk of COVID-19 to healthcare workers in paediatric institutions. Methods We tested the staff at a large children’s hospital in Germany for immunoglobulin (Ig) G antibodies against the nucleocapsid protein of SARS-CoV-2 in a period between the first and second epidemic wave in Germany. We used a questionnaire to assess each individual’s exposure risk and his/her own perception of having already been infected with SARS-CoV-2. Results We recruited 619 participants from all sectors, clinical and non-clinical, constituting 70% of the entire staff. The seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies was 0.325% (95% confidence interval 0.039–1.168). Self-perceived risk of a previous SARS-CoV-2 infection decreased with age (odds ratio, 0.81; 95% confidence interval, 0.70–0.93). Having experienced symptoms more than doubled the odds of a high self-perceived risk (odds ratio, 2.18; 95% confidence interval, 1.59–3.00). There was no significant difference in self-perceived risk between men and women. Conclusions Seroprevalence was low among healthcare workers at a large children’s hospital in Germany before the second epidemic wave, and it was far from a level that confers herd immunity. Self-perceived risk of infection is often overestimated.

Seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 Antibodies in Employees of Three Hospitals of a Secondary Care Hospital Network in Germany and an Associated Fire Brigade: Results of a Repeated Cross-Sectional Surveillance Study Over 1 Year

“…Data from German HCWs are available from a variety of hospitals, but nearly all published data focus on the first pandemic wave [14][15][16][17][18][19][20] (Table 1). Two hospitals reported data until December 2020 [21,22], but no information for HCWs in Germany is available for the year 2021 so far.…”