Changing Patterns of SARS-CoV-2 Seroprevalence: A Snapshot among the General Population in Kuwait

Wadha Alfouzan; Haya Altawalah; Ahmad AlSarraf; Walid Alali; Talal Al-Fadalah; Fahad Al-Ghimlas; Saud Alajmi; Mubarak Alajmi; Ebtehal AlRoomi; Ahlam Jeragh; Rita Dhar

doi:10.3390/vaccines11020336

Changing Patterns of SARS-CoV-2 Seroprevalence: A Snapshot among the General Population in Kuwait

Vaccines (Basel). 2023 Feb 2;11(2):336. doi: 10.3390/vaccines11020336.

Authors

Wadha Alfouzan^{1

2}, Haya Altawalah^{1

3}, Ahmad AlSarraf⁴, Walid Alali⁵, Talal Al-Fadalah⁶, Fahad Al-Ghimlas⁷, Saud Alajmi⁸, Mubarak Alajmi⁸, Ebtehal AlRoomi⁹, Ahlam Jeragh¹⁰, Rita Dhar²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, Kuwait University, Kuwait City 46300, Kuwait.
² Microbiology Unit, Department of Laboratory Medicine, Farwania Hospital, Ministry of Health, Kuwait City 85000, Kuwait.
³ Virology Unit, Department of Laboratory Medicine, Kuwait Cancer Control Center, Ministry of Health, Kuwait City 20001, Kuwait.
⁴ Biochemitry Unit, Department of Laboratory Medicine, Kuwait Cancer Control Center, Ministry of Health, Kuwait City 20001, Kuwait.
⁵ Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Faculty of Public Health, Kuwait University, Kuwait City 13110, Kuwait.
⁶ Quality and Accreditation Directorate, Ministry of Health, Kuwait City 13001, Kuwait.
⁷ Public Health Directorate, Ministry of Health, Kuwait City 20001, Kuwait.
⁸ Ahmadi Hospital, Administration Chief Clinical Services and Chief Supportive Clinical Services, Kuwait City 13126, Kuwait.
⁹ Microbiology Unit, Department of Laboratory Medicine, Jahra Hospital, Ministry of Health, Jahra 00020, Kuwait.
¹⁰ Microbiology Unit, Department of Laboratory Medicine, Adan Hospital, Ministry of Health, Kuwait City 46969, Kuwait.

Abstract

We sought to assess pre-vaccination and post-vaccination seroprevalences of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in Kuwait and to compare antibody levels between vaccine types. In phase 1 (pre-vaccination period, n = 19,363), blood samples were collected before the launch of COVID-19 vaccination in Kuwait between 1 September and 31 December 2020. Blood samples for phase 2 (post-vaccination period, n = 4973) were collected between 1 September and 30 November 2021. We tested subjects for anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies using the DiaSorin LIAISON^® SARS-CoV-2 IgM and Trimeric S IgG tests. In the pre-vaccination period, the prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 IgM and IgG was 14.50% (95% CI: 14.01-15.00) and 24.89% (95% CI: 24.29-25.50), respectively. The trend of seropositivity increased with age and was higher for females and non-Kuwaiti participants (p < 0.0001). Interestingly, seroprevalence was significantly higher for those who had received one dose of BNT162b2 (95.21%) than those who had received one dose of ChAdOx1-nCov-19 (92.86%). In addition, those who reported receiving two doses had higher seroprevalence, 96.25%, 95.86%, and 94.93% for ChA-dOx1-nCov-19/AstraZeneca, mix-and-match, and BNT162b2 recipients, respectively. After the second dose, median spike-specific responses showed no significant difference between ChAdOx1-nCov-19 and BNT162b2. Furthermore, statistical analysis showed no significant difference between median anti-trimeric S antibody levels of vaccinated individuals according to sex, age, or nationality (p > 0.05). In contrast, a negative correlation between age and anti-trimeric S IgG titers of BNT162b2-vaccinated subjects was observed (r = -0.062, p = 0.0009). Antibody levels decreased with time after vaccination with both vaccines. Our findings indicate that seroprevalence was very low during the pre-vaccination period (25%) in the general population and was greater than 95% in the vaccinated population in Kuwait. Furthermore, ChAdOx1-nCov-19 and BNT162b2 are effective in generating a similar humoral response.

Keywords: COVID-19 vaccination; Kuwait; SARS-CoV-2; general population; hybrid immunity.

Grants and funding

CORONA PROP 136-PN20-13I-07/KUWAIT FOUNDATION FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF SCIENCE