Repeated Antigen-Based Rapid Diagnostic Testing for Estimating the Coronavirus Disease 2019 Prevalence from the Perspective of the Workers’ Vulnerability before and during the Lockdown

Ourania S. Kotsiou, Ioannis Pantazopoulos, Dimitrios Papagiannis, Evangelos C. Fradelos, Nikolaos Kanellopoulos, Dimitra Siachpazidou, Paraskevi Kirgou, Dimitra S. Mouliou, Athanasios Kyritsis, Georgios Kalantzis, Georgios K. D. Saharidis, Efthymios Tzounis and Konstantinos I. Gourgoulianis
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Ourania S. Kotsiou: Department of Nursing, School of Health Sciences, University of Thessaly, GAIOPOLIS, 41110 Larissa, Greece
Ioannis Pantazopoulos: Department of Respiratory Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Thessaly, BIOPOLIS, 41110 Larissa, Greece
Dimitrios Papagiannis: Public Health & Vaccines Lab, Department of Nursing, School of Health Sciences, University of Thessaly, GAIOPOLIS, 41110 Larissa, Greece
Evangelos C. Fradelos: Department of Nursing, School of Health Sciences, University of Thessaly, GAIOPOLIS, 41110 Larissa, Greece
Nikolaos Kanellopoulos: Department of Respiratory Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Thessaly, BIOPOLIS, 41110 Larissa, Greece
Dimitra Siachpazidou: Department of Respiratory Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Thessaly, BIOPOLIS, 41110 Larissa, Greece
Paraskevi Kirgou: Department of Respiratory Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Thessaly, BIOPOLIS, 41110 Larissa, Greece
Dimitra S. Mouliou: Department of Respiratory Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Thessaly, BIOPOLIS, 41110 Larissa, Greece
Athanasios Kyritsis: Department of Respiratory Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Thessaly, BIOPOLIS, 41110 Larissa, Greece
Georgios Kalantzis: Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Thessaly, Leoforos Athinon, 8 Pedion Areos, 38334 Volos, Greece
Georgios K. D. Saharidis: Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Thessaly, Leoforos Athinon, 8 Pedion Areos, 38334 Volos, Greece
Efthymios Tzounis: Volos Health Center, Thrakon 20, 38333 Volos, Greece
Konstantinos I. Gourgoulianis: Department of Respiratory Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Thessaly, BIOPOLIS, 41110 Larissa, Greece

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 4, 1-12

Abstract: Background: No previous study has investigated the SARS-CoV-2 prevalence and the changes in the proportion of positive results due to lockdown measures from the angle of workers’ vulnerability to coronavirus in Greece. Two community-based programs were implemented to evaluate the SARS-CoV-2 prevalence and investigate if the prevalence changes were significant across various occupations before and one month after lockdown. Methods: Following consent, sociodemographic, clinical, and job-related information were recorded. The VivaDiag™ SARS-CoV-2 Antigen Rapid Test was used. Positive results confirmed by a real-time Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction for SARS-COV-2. Results: Positive participants were more likely to work in the catering/food sector than negative participants before the lockdown. Lockdown restrictions halved the new cases. No significant differences in the likelihood of being SARS-CoV-2 positive for different job categories were detected during lockdown. The presence of respiratory symptoms was an independent predictor for rapid antigen test positivity; however, one-third of newly diagnosed patients were asymptomatic at both time points. Conclusions: The catering/food sector was the most vulnerable to COVID-19 at the pre-lockdown evaluation. We highlight the crucial role of community-based screening with rapid antigen testing to evaluate the potential modes of community transmission and the impact of infection control strategies.

Keywords: antigen rapid test; employment; job; lockdown restrictions; screening (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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