tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
BMC Res Notes
. 2021 Sep 26;14(1):375.
doi: 10.1186/s13104-021-05784-5.
Socioeconomic inequalities in the prevalence and perceived dangerousness of SARS-CoV-2 infections in two early German hotspots: findings from a seroepidemiological study
Benjamin Wachtler[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Stephan Müters[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Niels Michalski[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Carmen Koschollek[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Stefan Albrecht[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Sebastian Haller[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Osamah Hamouda[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Claudia Hövener[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Jens Hoebel[SUP] 3 [/SUP]
Affiliations
Abstract
Objective: Evidence on socioeconomic inequalities in infections with the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) is still limited as most of the available studies are ecological in nature and individual-level data is sparse. We therefore analysed individual-level data on socioeconomic differences in the prevalence and perceived dangerousness of SARS-CoV-2 infections in local populations. Data were obtained from a population-based seroepidemiological study of adult individuals in two early German SARS-CoV-2 hotspots (n = 3903). Infection was determined by IgG antibody ELISA, RT-PCR testing and self-reports on prior positive PCR tests. The perceived dangerousness of an infection and socioeconomic position (SEP) were assessed by self-reports. Logistic and linear regression were applied to examine associations of multiple SEP measures with infection status and perceptions of dangerousness.
Results: We found no evidence of socioeconomic inequalities in SARS-CoV-2 infections by education, occupation, income and subjective social status. Participants with lower education and lower subjective social status perceived an infection as more dangerous than their better-off counterparts. In successfully contained local outbreaks of SARS-CoV-2 in Germany, infections may have been equally distributed across the socioeconomic spectrum. But residents in disadvantaged socioeconomic groups might have experienced a higher level of mental distress due to the higher perceived dangerousness of an infection.
Keywords: COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; Seroepidemiological study; Social determinants; Social epidemiology.
. 2021 Sep 26;14(1):375.
doi: 10.1186/s13104-021-05784-5.
Socioeconomic inequalities in the prevalence and perceived dangerousness of SARS-CoV-2 infections in two early German hotspots: findings from a seroepidemiological study
Benjamin Wachtler[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Stephan Müters[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Niels Michalski[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Carmen Koschollek[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Stefan Albrecht[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Sebastian Haller[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Osamah Hamouda[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Claudia Hövener[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Jens Hoebel[SUP] 3 [/SUP]
Affiliations
- PMID: 34565448
- DOI: 10.1186/s13104-021-05784-5
Abstract
Objective: Evidence on socioeconomic inequalities in infections with the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) is still limited as most of the available studies are ecological in nature and individual-level data is sparse. We therefore analysed individual-level data on socioeconomic differences in the prevalence and perceived dangerousness of SARS-CoV-2 infections in local populations. Data were obtained from a population-based seroepidemiological study of adult individuals in two early German SARS-CoV-2 hotspots (n = 3903). Infection was determined by IgG antibody ELISA, RT-PCR testing and self-reports on prior positive PCR tests. The perceived dangerousness of an infection and socioeconomic position (SEP) were assessed by self-reports. Logistic and linear regression were applied to examine associations of multiple SEP measures with infection status and perceptions of dangerousness.
Results: We found no evidence of socioeconomic inequalities in SARS-CoV-2 infections by education, occupation, income and subjective social status. Participants with lower education and lower subjective social status perceived an infection as more dangerous than their better-off counterparts. In successfully contained local outbreaks of SARS-CoV-2 in Germany, infections may have been equally distributed across the socioeconomic spectrum. But residents in disadvantaged socioeconomic groups might have experienced a higher level of mental distress due to the higher perceived dangerousness of an infection.
Keywords: COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; Seroepidemiological study; Social determinants; Social epidemiology.