COVID-19: '22.1 per cent blood sample in Coimbatore's 42 clusters have antibodies', says survey

COIMBATORE: 263 blood samples out of the 1,260 ones extracted by the health department in 42 clusters in Coimbatore as part of the Serum Surveillance Study have antibodies in them. Therefore, the positivity ratio is 22.15 per cent.

Of the 42 clusters where study was conducted, Karamadai to Mettupalayam stretch has a maximum number of people with antibodies. District Public Health Laboratory Microbiologist P Krishnaveni said, "The level of IgG, which is the most common antibody, was screened for. The conclusion might show that only a few people in the district have been affected by the viral infection."

She added Karamadai block, which has Mettupalayam, had more people with antibodies. “It may be because of the group of men from Mettupalayam who contracted COVID-19 after attending a religious conference in New Delhi in March.”

Symptoms persisted: US survey

A survey conducted in the USA, published in the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, highlights
that among those aged 18 to 34 with no health conditions, one in five (20 per cent) were still experiencing Covid- 19 symptoms after two to three weeks of discharge.

The symptoms ranged from cough, fatigue to body aches. Doctors who conducted the survey observed that COVID-19 can sometimes result in prolonged illness even in young adults and children without any underlying chronic medical condition. The survey has also been published in WHO website.