Temporal trends of SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence during the first wave of the COVID-19 epidemic in Kenya.
Ifedayo M O AdetifaSophie UyogaJohn N GitongaDaisy MugoMark OtiendeJames NyagwangeHenry K KaranjaJames TujuPerpetual WanjikuRashid AmanMercy MwangangiPatrick AmothKadondi KaseraWangari Ng'ang'aCharles RomboChristine YegonKhamisi KithiElizabeth OdhiamboThomas RotichIrene OrgutSammy KiharaChristian BottomleyE Wangeci KaguciaKatherine E GallagherAnthony EtyangShirine VollerTeresa LambeDaniel WrightEdwine BarasaBenjamin TsofaPhilip BejonLynette I Ochola-OyierAmbrose AgweyuJ Anthony G ScottGeorge M WarimwePublished in: Nature communications (2021)
Observed SARS-CoV-2 infections and deaths are low in tropical Africa raising questions about the extent of transmission. We measured SARS-CoV-2 IgG by ELISA in 9,922 blood donors across Kenya and adjusted for sampling bias and test performance. By 1st September 2020, 577 COVID-19 deaths were observed nationwide and seroprevalence was 9.1% (95%CI 7.6-10.8%). Seroprevalence in Nairobi was 22.7% (18.0-27.7%). Although most people remained susceptible, SARS-CoV-2 had spread widely in Kenya with apparently low associated mortality.