Investigation of COVID-19 antibody titers in health care workers

COVID-19 is the disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus that emerged in Wuhan, China in December 2019 and declared as a pandemic by the World Health Organization. SARS-CoV-2; it is the newest member of Coronaviruses, which are among the enveloped RNA viruses that cause infections in humans, other mammals and birds. SARS, which emerged in 2002, MERS, which emerged in 2013, HCoV-229E, HCoV-OC43, HCoV-NL63 and HCoV-HKU1 are other Coronaviruses that cause disease in humans. Molecular techniques are the accepted standard method in the diagnosis of COVID-19. However, the patient's history, radiological and biochemical findings, serological methods are used in for diagnosis, follow-up of the treatment process and in scientific research. Our study aimed to investigate the presence and level of antibodies with a method based on serological diagnosis in order to determine to what extent the health care workers who working in Gaziantep University Şahinbey Research and Application Hospital were affected by the pandemic. Serum samples obtained from volunteers between 29.06.2020-09.07.2020 were included in our study who have been working in our hospital since the first date of the pandemic in our country. Anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgA and Anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgG (Euroimmun Medizinische Labordiagnostika, Lübeck, Germany) kits were used in our study. The analysis of the study was performed using the Euroimmun Analyzer I (Euroimmun Medizinische Labordiagnostika, Lübeck, Germany). 186 volunteers, 71 female (38.2%), 115 (61.8%) male, with an average age of 34.22 (± 7.85) were included in our study. IgA antibody was positive in 8 (4.4%), borderline in 6 (3.3%) and negative in 166 (92.2%), IgG antibody was positive in 5 (2.7%), borderline in 2 (1.1%) and negative in 179 (96.8%) of the participants. IgA seropositivity rate was most common in lecturers (2/19, 10.5%), while there was no IgA positivity in cleaning staff, radiology technicians and EMT. IgG seropositivity rate was common in doctors (3/45, 6.7%), while there was no IgG positivity in lecturers, caregivers, cleaning staff, radiology technicians and EMT. The highest IgA seropositivity rate was observed in the pulmonology department (1/9, 11.1%), and the highest IgG seropositivity rate was observed in the otolaryngology department (2/15, 13.3%). Although the results of our study seem to be low, the pandemic rate and the number of infected people have increased since the date of the study to today. Therefore, we think that these rates may have increased in recent studies