Study of the spread of COVID-19 in St Petersburg, Russia

ISRCTN ISRCTN11060415
DOI https://doi.org/10.1186/ISRCTN11060415
ClinicalTrials.gov number NCT04406038
Secondary identifying numbers CDRU-001
Submission date
26/05/2020
Registration date
28/05/2020
Last edited
14/06/2023
Recruitment status
No longer recruiting
Overall study status
Completed
Condition category
Infections and Infestations
Prospectively registered
Protocol
Statistical analysis plan
Results
Individual participant data

Plain English Summary

Background and study aims
COVID-19 is a condition caused by the coronavirus (called SARS-CoV-2) that was first identified in late 2019. This virus can infect the respiratory (breathing) system. Some people do not have symptoms but can carry the virus and pass it on to others. People who have developed the condition may develop a fever and/or a continuous cough among other symptoms. This can develop into pneumonia. Pneumonia is a chest infection where the small air pockets of the lungs, called alveoli, fill with liquid and make it more difficult to breathe.
In 2020, the virus has spread to many countries around the world and neither a vaccine against the virus or specific treatment for COVID-19 has yet been developed. As of April 2020, it is advised that people minimize travel and social contact, and regularly wash their hands to reduce the spread of the virus.
Groups who are at a higher risk from infection with the virus, and therefore of developing COVID-19, include people aged over 70 years, people who have long-term health conditions (such as asthma or diabetes), people who have a weakened immune system and people who are pregnant. People in these groups, and people who might come into contact with them, can reduce this risk by following the up-to-date advice to reduce the spread of the virus.
As of late May 2020, Russia is one of the countries with the highest number of registered COVID-19 cases. Surveillance of specific antibodies (immunity) present in the blood will enable researchers to infer the extent of infection and its prevalence in the study population. The aim of this study is to estimate the prevalence of COVID-19 using blood tests for immunity, that will determine if the person was infected or not. This study also aims to determine the time period when this immunity lasts.

Who can participate?
At least 1000 individuals, 18 years old and older, both genders, will be invited at random. In this study, volunteers are not recruited, but are invited randomly from the population of St Petersburg. Random sampling is performed by a survey company on the list of mobile phone numbers with designated geography prefixes of St Petersburg.

What does the study involve?
This study involves an individual invitation to the clinic by mobile phone, one phone-based survey (takes about 10 minutes to complete), one paper-based survey (takes about 15-20 minutes to complete). The questionnaire for the computer-assisted telephone interview includes travel history, medical history, and socioeconomic status of the respondents. Sampled individuals are then invited to the clinic for blood sampling, their refusal to participate is recorded. Participants complete additional questionnaires in the clinic providing information on their medical history, history of allergies, chronic disease, smoking, and medication taken regularly. Contact tracing data and environmental conditions of the household are reсorded. The study involves blood samples collected from the vein and then testing for SARS-CoV-2-specific antibodies.

What are the possible benefits and risks of participating?
There are no clear benefits for the participants of the study. No clinical decision is made based on the test result. The knowledge of prior COVID-19 is acquired but it cannot be interpreted as immunity against future SARS-CoV-2 infection. In general, participants will contribute to the knowledge of disease spread and immune response dynamics. Blood sampling is a procedure that involves skin puncture and may be uncomfortable, it can cause mild bruising, and in rare cases infections. However, serious adverse events associated with this procedure are extremely rare.

Where is the study run from?
Clinic “Scandinavia” (LLC Ava-Peter) (Russia)

When is the study starting and how long is it expected to run for?
April 2020 to October 2020

Who is funding the study?
1. European University at Saint Petersburg (Russia)
2. Clinic “Scandinavia” (LLC Ava-Peter) (Russia)

Who is the main contact?
Dr Dmitriy Skougarevskiy
dskougarevskiy@eu.spb.ru

Contact information

Dr Dmitriy Skougarevskiy
Scientific

6/1A Gagarinskaya ul.
St. Petersburg
191187
Russian Federation

ORCiD logoORCID ID 0000-0002-4022-6210
Phone +7 (0)8123867637
Email dskougarevskiy@eu.spb.ru

Study information

Study designObservational longitudinal cohort study
Primary study designObservational
Secondary study designCohort study
Study setting(s)Other
Study typeScreening
Participant information sheet Not available in web format, please use contact details to request a participant information sheet
Scientific titleA population-based seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2-specific antibodies among adults in St Petersburg, Russia: a longitudinal cohort study
Study hypothesisThis is an observational epidemiological study seeking to evaluate the spread and dissemination of SARS-CoV-2 in a major Russian city with alleviated sample selection problems arising out of volunteer bias in the midst of the pandemic.
Ethics approval(s)1. Approved 20/05/2020, Commission on Academic Planning of the European University at St Petersburg (6/1A Gagarinskaya ul., 191187 St Petersburg, Russia; no tel; knp@eu.spb.ru), no ref
2. Approved 26/05/2020, Local Ethics Committee of Scandinavia clinic (LLC AVA-PETER, 4 korp. 1 Ilushina ul., 197372 St Petersburg, Russia; +7 (0)8126007870; Udina-NM@avaclinic.ru), no ref
ConditionCOVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2 infection)
InterventionClinically asymptomatic adults are sampled from the population using random digit dialing and tested for the presence of SARS-CoV-2-specific antibodies in the blood serum. Additional data is collected on travel history, medical history, and socio-economic status of participants.
Intervention typeOther
Primary outcome measureCurrent primary outcome measure as of 14/08/2020:
Prevalence of the SARS-COV-2 infection in St Petersburg, Russia measured by SARS-CoV-2–specific antibodies serial testing (Abbott Architect SARS-CoV-2 IgG) and adjusted for volunteer bias and test validity (sensitivity and specificity). The prevalence is measured at the baseline and every 2 weeks from the start of the trial, each measurement spans 4 weeks.

Previous primary outcome measures:
Prevalence of the SARS-COV-2 infection in St Petersburg, Russia measured by SARS-CoV-2–specific antibodies serial testing (Abbott Architect SARS-CoV-2 IgG) and adjusted for volunteer bias and test validity (sensitivity and specificity). The prevalence is measured at the baseline and every 2 weeks from the start of the trial for 18 weeks.
Secondary outcome measuresCurrent secondary outcome measures as of 14/08/2020:
1. Adjusted prevalence odds ratios by sex and age groups, socioeconomic status measured at the baseline and every 2 weeks from the start of the trial, each measurement spans 4 weeks
2. Cumulative seropositivity, seroreversion and seroconversion measured using Abbott Architect SARS-CoV-2 IgG at the baseline and every 2 weeks from the start of the trial, each measurement spans 4 weeks, and by the end of the study

Previous secondary outcome measures:
1. Adjusted prevalence odds ratios by sex and age groups, socioeconomic status measured at the baseline and every 2 weeks since the start of the trial for 18 weeks
2. Cumulative seropositivity, seroreversion and seroconversion measured using Abbott Architect SARS-CoV-2 IgG at the baseline and every 2 weeks since the start of the trial for 18 weeks and by the end of the study
3. Antibody dynamics: mean geometric titers of antibodies IgG measured using Abbott Architect SARS-CoV-2 IgG at the baseline and every 2 weeks since the start of the trial for 18 weeks and by the end of the study
Overall study start date29/04/2020
Overall study end date28/10/2020

Eligibility

Participant type(s)All
Age groupAdult
Lower age limit18 Years
SexBoth
Target number of participants1000
Participant inclusion criteria1. Individuals sampled from the population of St Petersburg, Russia using random digit dialling
2. Aged 18 and older of both genders
3. Asymptomatic at the time of blood draw
4. Written informed consent for a blood draw, SARS-COV-2 antibody test, and data collection
Participant exclusion criteria1. Presence of fever or cough or respiratory distress at the time of blood test not attributable to other known chronic disease
2. Age under 18
3. Any health condition that may be a contraindication towards blood sampling in outpatient clinic
4. Residence in Kolpinskiy, Kurortniy, Krasnoselsky, Kronshtadtskiy, Petrodvorcoviy, Pushkinskiy districts of St Petersburg
Recruitment start date27/05/2020
Recruitment end date10/06/2020

Locations

Countries of recruitment

  • Russian Federation

Study participating centre

Clinic “Scandinavia”
Moskovskiy pr., 73/4
St Petersburg
196084
Russian Federation

Sponsor information

European University at Saint Petersburg
University/education

6/1A Gagarinskaya ul
Saint Petersburg
191187
Russian Federation

Phone +7 (0)8123867637
Email rectors_office@eu.spb.ru
Website https://eusp.org/en/
ROR logo "ROR" https://ror.org/04p2rkp70

Funders

Funder type

University/education

European University at Saint Petersburg

No information available

Clinic “Scandinavia” (LLC Ava-Peter)

No information available

Results and Publications

Intention to publish date10/07/2020
Individual participant data (IPD) Intention to shareYes
IPD sharing plan summaryStored in publicly available repository
Publication and dissemination planThe researchers intend to submit the results from the first wave of the study to a peer-reviewed public health journal within 1 month after completion of participant recruitment. They intend to submit the results of the cohort study within 5 months of the overall trial end date.
IPD sharing planAnonymized individual-level phone survey data and paper-based survey data, anonymized test results, and analytic code are available in a designated repository at https://github.com/eusporg/spb_covid_study20 under Creative Commons License Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) license.

Study outputs

Output type Details Date created Date added Peer reviewed? Patient-facing?
Protocol file version V2 15/07/2020 14/08/2020 No No
Preprint results non-peer-reviewed results in preprint 04/11/2020 16/03/2021 No No
Dataset 14/06/2023 No No
Results article 12/06/2021 14/06/2023 Yes No
Results article 21/06/2021 14/06/2023 Yes No
Results article 15/06/2022 14/06/2023 Yes No
Results article 22/09/2022 14/06/2023 Yes No

Additional files

ISRCTN11060415_PROTOCOL_V2_15Jul20.pdf
Uploaded 14/08/2020

Editorial Notes

14/06/2023: Publication references and dataset added.
16/03/2021: Preprint reference added.
21/08/2020: IPD sharing statement added.
14/08/2020: The following changes were made to the trial record:
1. The target number of participants was changed from 1550 to 1000.
2. The primary and secondary outcome measures were updated.
3. Uploaded protocol Version 2, 15 July 2020.
26/05/2020: Trial's existence confirmed by Commission on Academic Planning of the European University at St Petersburg.