About 75% of the population under the age of 18 contracted the virus, according to the study, with a colossal jump in cases – especially among children – during the wave of the Omicron variant last winter.
An increasingly immune population
The nationwide survey looked for the presence of antibodies against the nucleocapsid protein of the Sars-CoV-2 virus, which the immune system only creates in response to contamination. Current vaccines train the immune system to create antibodies against the Spike protein.
Each month from September 2021 to January 2022, the study examined nearly 75,000 blood samples across the country, as well as 45,000 in February. The researchers then produced national estimates using statistical methods to weight age, gender and geographic distribution.
Vaccine efficacy
“Previous infection has been found to provide some protection against severe disease and hospitalizations – and vaccination, either before or after infection, provides additional protection,” said Kristie Clarke, co-lead of the national serology task force du Covid-19. It remains essential to be up to date with your vaccination against Covid-19, she added.