American statistics based on a blood survey released today, Tuesday, indicate that approximately 58% of the overall population in the United States and more than 75% of younger children have been infected with COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic, largely due to the record increase in cases during the Omicron wave.
The study of blood samples sent to laboratories between December and February, during the peak of Omicron cases, showed that infection rates among children, many of whom have not been vaccinated, were the highest during that surge, while infection rates among individuals aged 65 and older, the demographic prioritized for vaccination, were the lowest.
Researchers sought specific antibodies produced in response to the virus, which only appear after infection and are not generated by COVID-19 vaccines. Among children under the age of 11, the presence of infection-related antibodies was found in about 75.2% of them from December to February, up from 44.2% in the preceding three months.
