In Aachen, 3,000 test subjects will be examined again
Once again, several thousand people from Aachen, Eschweiler, Stolberg, Herzogenrath and Würselen have received an invitation from the Helmholtz Center for Infection Research (HZI) to voluntarily take part in the “MuSPAD” corona antibody study. Sampling will take place from January 27th to February 23rd. MuSPAD stands for “multilocal and serial prevalence study on antibodies against SARS-Coronavirus-2 in Germany”. In autumn 2020, more than 2,000 people from the Aachen city region were tested at random.
From this group of participants, people will now be invited – again at random – to a new examination. In addition, other people who did not take part in the first round are written to. A total of up to 3,000 people should be tested in this way. The results are intended to show how infections and the immune status in the population have developed over time. The Aachen City Region supports this study. “The results can help us to better assess the incidence of infection,” says health department head Dr. Michael Ziemons. “Antibody tests allow reliable conclusions to be drawn about Covid-19 infections that have already been overcome, even if they were mild or even asymptomatic and therefore may not have been noticed at all. This also gives us an orientation, for example, as to how high the number of unreported infections in the urban region is.
The main aim of this study is to determine the proportion of the population who have antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 in their blood and were therefore probably already infected with the virus. In addition, reports from different age groups on symptoms of SARS-CoV-2 infection are analyzed. Another part of this study is the tracking of the infection process over a year and the multiple determination of the antibody concentration in the blood of COVID-19 patients who have actually reported positive. This should provide insights into how long a person has been immune to the virus. Comparisons are also made between the participating districts.
The Helmholtz Center for Infection Research carries out the investigations nationwide in eight selected cities and districts. The test subjects are selected at random and invited to the study center to have their blood drawn. Extensive hygienic precautions are taken on site to prevent possible infection with the new coronavirus during the visit. If it is not possible to come to the study center, for example because the person is not mobile, a mobile team will be available for a home visit. The laboratory and survey data are pseudonymized and scientifically evaluated. Further information can be found online at https: // hzi-c19- antikoerperstudie.de/.
The invitation to participate in a survey by the Office for Inclusion and Social Planning of the Aachen City Region on the social effects of the COVID-19 pandemic was sent with the letter of invitation to participate in the study. It is a stand-alone project that is independent of the MuSPAD study. If you have any questions, please contact the Office for Inclusion and Social Planning directly. Information and contact details are available at www.staedteregionaachen. de / covid19-Sozial2.