Health Ministry says SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence study to be carried out June-September

The seroprevalence study for the SARS-CoV-2 infection, coordinated by the National Public Health Institute (INSP) will be carried out between June and September, according to an order of the Health Minister.

"We are seeking to determine the degree of SARS-CoV-2 spreading among Romania's population, in order to properly substantiate the future protection measures of the population's health. The National Public Health Institute will technically coordinate the project, it will process and analyse the data, so that we can have the first results in September. According to estimations, a number of 29,019 residual sera is to be collected and investigated. In this regard, we will earmark 1.6 million lei to the institute, in order to purchase kits, reagents," Health Minister Nelu Tataru said, according to a release sent on Tuesday.

According to the quoted source, the Health Ministry completed the order for approving this study, which will include residual sera collected from people of all age groups, who present themselves conjuncturally for analysis samples at laboratories in each county during the enrollment period and whom will be selected using a sampling method.

There will be persons without signs or symptoms of infectious disease, in agreement with the legal provisions and who will express their informed consent to participate in the study.

"The Public Health Directorates will select, at the level of each county and Bucharest City, a number of 3-5 laboratories to participate in the study. There are county hospitals own laboratories and/or external laboratories, which serve the specialised ambulatory, other public or private laboratories which provide services for non-hospitalised patients, laboratories with high addressability (over 1,000 samples / week or over 40,000 samples / year). There won't be selected for this study the external laboratories or those owned by infectious disease hospitals, the transfusion centers, the COVID hospitals or the TB pneumophthisiology hospitals or the laboratories which primarily serve these types of hospitals," the Ministry explained.

This study, which is cleared by the Scientific Council of the National Public Health Institute - the Research Ethics Committee, will be carried out with the "full" observance of principles and rules of ethics and confidentiality of personal data, the Ministry of Health conveyed.

According to the release, the order approving the SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence study on Romania's soil is to be published in the Official Journal.