History of COVID-19 Symptoms and Seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 Antibodies in HIV-Infected Patients in Northern France after the First Wave of the Pandemic

Agnès Meybeck; Thomas Huleux; Macha Tétart; Pauline Thill; Vincent Derdour; Laurence Bocket; Enagnon Kazali Alidjinou; Pierre Patoz; Olivier Robineau; Faiza Ajana

doi:10.3390/microorganisms9122491

History of COVID-19 Symptoms and Seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 Antibodies in HIV-Infected Patients in Northern France after the First Wave of the Pandemic

Microorganisms. 2021 Dec 1;9(12):2491. doi: 10.3390/microorganisms9122491.

Affiliations

¹ Service des Maladies Infectieuses et du Voyageur, Centre Hospitalier de Tourcoing, 59200 Tourcoing, France.
² Laboratoire de Virologie, CHRU de Lille, 59000 Lille, France.

Abstract

To assess the prevalence of COVID-19 in people living with HIV (PLWHIV), we performed an epidemiological survey from 1 April through 1 August 2020 in an HIV reference center in Northern France. PLWHIV completed a questionnaire about risk exposures and symptoms consistent with COVID-19 and performed a SARS-CoV-2 serology. Among the 600 PLWHIV included, 16 have been infected with SARS-CoV-2. Symptoms consistent with COVID-19 were frequent both in SARS-CoV-2 positive and negative patients (67% vs. 32%, p = 0.02). Among SARS-CoV-2 infected patients, one (6%) has been hospitalized and five (31%) have been asymptomatic. Close contact with a confirmed COVID-19 case was the only factor associated with COVID-19 acquisition (40% vs. 13%, p = 0.01). The prevalence of COVID-19 in PLWHIV was 2.5%, half of the overall population estimate after the first wave of the pandemic in France. In conclusion, proportion of asymptomatic COVID-19 was high in PLWHIV. The prevalence of COVID-19 in PLWHIV was two times lower than in the general population.

Keywords: COVID-19; HIV; SARS-CoV-2; epidemiology; prevalence; risk factors.