SARS-CoV-2 PCR and antibody positivity among school staff at the beginning and end of the first school term

SARS-CoV-2 infection in 3,241 School working staffs: Impact of SARS CoV-2 variants of concern [Wild, B.1.1.7 and Omicron]

BACKGROUND

There is debate over whether physical attendance at school affects the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic.

METHODS

A cohort of personnel from several schools in Qatar provided nasopharyngeal swabs (NPS) for SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR and rapid antigen testing. Each of them was monitored for infection until February 2022.

RESULTS

In total, 3,241 employees gave samples for analysis. Prior to the start of the 2020-2021 academic year (Group I), 3.49% of samples tested positive for SARS-CoV-2. Most of the positive PCR results were from male, senior, non-teaching staff members. Only 110 (3.39%) employees who had enrolled in face-to-face instruction before the B.1.1.7 variant's emergence (Group II), 238 (7.34%) after the B.1.1.7 variant's emergence (Group III), and 410 (12.65%) after the introduction of the Omicron variant (Group IV) had reported infection by PCR test. Most people who tested positive by PCR after enrolling in school were young, female teachers. In the Cox Proportional-Hazards Model, exposure to a confirmed case, the presence of symptoms in the two weeks prior to exposure in all groups-young age in Groups II and III, male gender in Groups I and IV, shared housing in Group III, and the presence of comorbidities in Groups II and III independently predicted SARS-CoV-2 infection in school staff.

CONCLUSION

Critical information about the risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection in school workers during the whole pandemic is provided by our study. School operations in Qatar were made safer through initial and ongoing screenings, as well as widespread vaccination of school personnel.

Seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 Infection Among Working Women and Impact of Workplace Restrictions

Objective

To determine the prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 virus infection among female workers who were restricted to working from home compared with those who continued to attend in-person work.

Methods

As part of national surveillance program, serum samples for SARS-CoV-2 antibody testing and nasopharyngeal swabs for SARS-CoV-2 PCR were obtained on 1636 female school staff and salon/spa workers who were restricted to work remotely (restricted group) and 1190 female health-care workers who continued in-person work (unrestricted group).

Results

Seropositivity rate was 5.1% among the restricted and 22.7% among the unrestricted group (P < 0.0001). Presence of symptoms at baseline (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 2.88; 95% CI 2.09–3.97), contact with a confirmed case (aOR 2.34; 95% CI 1.37–3.98), and unrestricted work type (aOR 4.71; 95% CI 3.24–6.86) were associated with a higher risk of infection, while increasing age was associated with a lower risk of infection.

Conclusion

Prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 infection as determined by seropositivity was higher among women who were not subject to workplace restrictions.