The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), the Nigeria Institute for Medical Research (NIMR), will partner to conduct Covid-019 antibody household surveys in four states in Nigeria.
The Director General of NCDC, Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu who revealed this on Monday at the daily briefing of the Presidential Task Force on Monday in Abuja, said that the tests are being conducted to better understand the burden of COVID-19 infection in Nigeria.
He said; “These seroprevalence surveys, which will be carried out in Gombe, Enugu, Nasarawa, and Lagos states would provide the best evidence yet, on the extent of COVID-19 infection in the country.
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“The seroprevalence surveys are used to identify the occurrence of disease in a population by estimating the presence of antibodies in individuals who have had the disease.
“This is done by testing blood samples in randomly selected households in selected states.
“For Nigeria’s COVID-19 seroprevalence survey, household members will answer a brief questionnaire, be tested for the presence of COVID-19 antibodies, as well as for acute COVID-19, if they consent.
“In addition to this, study participants will also have a rapid malaria test and receive treatment if the test is positive,” Dr Ihekweazu added.
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