More than half of Americans show signs of a previous Covid-19 infection, including three out of every four children, according to a new report released on Tuesday.
The findings from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) come after researchers examined blood samples from more than 200,000 Americans and looked for virus-fighting antibodies made from infections, not vaccines. They found that signs of past infection rose dramatically between December and February, when the more contagious Omicron variant surged through the US.
For Americans of all ages, about 34% had signs of prior infection in December. Just two months later, 58% did.
“I did expect it to increase. I did not expect it to increase quite this much,” said Dr Kristie Clarke, co-leader of a CDC team that tracks the extent of coronavirus infections.
In the CDC report, the most striking increase was in children. The percentage of those 17 and under with antibodies rose from about 45% in December to about 75% in February.
Source: The Guardian
