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Research Article
Mireia Jané
Agència de Salut Pública de Catalunya
Corresponding Author
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In the context of the Covid-19 pandemic in Catalonia (Spain), the first SARS-CoV-2 case confirmed was notified to the Catalonia Epidemiological Surveillance Network (RVEC) on 25 February 2020. The present study describes and analyses the respiratory samples obtained in primary care using PIDIRAC epidemiological sentinel surveillance system to complement the pandemic surveillance system activated, and describe whether SARS‑CoV-2 was circulating before the first case detected in Catalonia, between October 2019 and April 2020.
During this period, 878 respiratory samples from patients with acute respiratory infection or influenza syndrome obtained by PIDIRAC epidemiological sentinel surveillance system were analysed. Of the total sample, 51.9% tested positive to influenza virus and 48.1% to other respiratory viruses, with SARS-CoV-2 being present in 6 samples. The first SARS‑CoV‑2 positive case showed the first symptoms on 2 March 2020. These were 3 men and 3 women aged between 25 and 50 years old (mean age 44.5 years old). Fever, general discomfort, coughing, chills, and arthromyalgia were the most frequent symptoms in the SARS-CoV-2 cases.
Likewise, 44 samples that had tested positive for coronavirus during 2018-2019 were typed. They were all typed as one of the regular CoV, none of them being SARS-CoV-2.
The acute respiratory infections sentinel surveillance system (PIDIRAC) reinforces the global epidemiological surveillance, allows to corroborate whether there is virus circulation or not, and helps confirm that generalised community transmission in Catalonia took place in mid-March.
Keywords
SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19, PIDIRAC, Catalonia
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A new preprint design is coming!
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This is a preprint, a preliminary version of a manuscript that has not completed peer review at a journal. Research Square does not conduct peer review prior to posting preprints. The posting of a preprint on this server should not be interpreted as an endorsement of its validity or suitability for dissemination as established information or for guiding clinical practice.
Research Article
Mireia Jané
Agència de Salut Pública de Catalunya
Corresponding Author
Badges
Prescreen
This manuscript passed our Prescreen assessment
Complete author information
Appropriate declaration statements
Potential risks to human health
Prescreen
History
CURRENT STATUS: Posted
Version 1
Posted 02 Dec, 2020
No community comments so far
Metrics
Comments: 0
PDF Downloads: ...
HTML Views: ...
License:
This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License. Read Full License
In the context of the Covid-19 pandemic in Catalonia (Spain), the first SARS-CoV-2 case confirmed was notified to the Catalonia Epidemiological Surveillance Network (RVEC) on 25 February 2020. The present study describes and analyses the respiratory samples obtained in primary care using PIDIRAC epidemiological sentinel surveillance system to complement the pandemic surveillance system activated, and describe whether SARS‑CoV-2 was circulating before the first case detected in Catalonia, between October 2019 and April 2020.
During this period, 878 respiratory samples from patients with acute respiratory infection or influenza syndrome obtained by PIDIRAC epidemiological sentinel surveillance system were analysed. Of the total sample, 51.9% tested positive to influenza virus and 48.1% to other respiratory viruses, with SARS-CoV-2 being present in 6 samples. The first SARS‑CoV‑2 positive case showed the first symptoms on 2 March 2020. These were 3 men and 3 women aged between 25 and 50 years old (mean age 44.5 years old). Fever, general discomfort, coughing, chills, and arthromyalgia were the most frequent symptoms in the SARS-CoV-2 cases.
Likewise, 44 samples that had tested positive for coronavirus during 2018-2019 were typed. They were all typed as one of the regular CoV, none of them being SARS-CoV-2.
The acute respiratory infections sentinel surveillance system (PIDIRAC) reinforces the global epidemiological surveillance, allows to corroborate whether there is virus circulation or not, and helps confirm that generalised community transmission in Catalonia took place in mid-March.
Figure 1
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