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This is an unprecedented study in France : For the first time, scientists have examined the circulation of Covid-19 particularly in neighborhoods with a large population of Gypsy origin. The Perpignan hospital center and Public Health France were responsible.
Almost one in two inhabitants in Saint-Jacques in contact with the virus
Between 30 June and 17 July, blood samples they were carried out on 700 people (adults and children over six) in three districts of Perpignan: Saint-Jacques, Haut-Vernet and Nouveau Logis (also called Cité Bellus). Three neighborhoods often considered the poorest in the city.
These three areas, populated by about 10,000 inhabitants, had been last March a large group of patients. “It seemed important to us to measure the impact of Covid in this community and to better understand how it is transmitted“explains Dr Hugues Aumaître, head of the department of infectious and tropical diseases (SMIT) at the Perpignan hospital.
And the first results are unequivocal: in the Gypsy community the virus circulated much more actively than elsewhere. Of all respondents, 35.4% had been in contact with the virus identified as causing the pandemic, SARS-CoV-2.
Analyzes prove it in the Saint-Jacques district, made up almost essentially of members of the Gypsy community, many of whom are in a very precarious situation, is close to an inhabitant out of two who have been in contact with the virus: 46.7%. They were 13.9% in the Haut-Vernet and 17.1% in the Nouveau Logis district.
Furthermore, among the people surveyed as positive in the three neighborhoods, one in five (21.7%) was asymptomatic. This is likely to strengthen the transmission of the virus.
Data well above average
How point of comparison, the study is based on another survey conducted in May in the Occitania region. The contrast is stark: the seroprevalence rate has been estimated at 1.9%.
For Damien Mouly, head of the Occitanie unit of public health France, these results demonstrate “the need to continue efforts towards vulnerable populations with the aim of reducing the risk of contamination, arranging targeted prevention actions adapted to this population living in a community way“.
The affected population is younger
Another point raised by this study which mobilized 80 people: in these neighborhoods the virus is more present in the under 65s. Only 14.7% of those over 65 were exposed to the infection. According to the poll, this suggests “less contact with the sick, respect for barrier measures and greater isolation of those people who are perceived as more fragile by the community.“
However, this shows that a large part of the population considered at risk has therefore not yet been affected by the disease. “It is more necessary than ever that the population of these neighborhoods maintains or even increases respect for barrier gestures and preventive measures“says the study.
Other expected results to be understood
In parallel with the blood tests, the researchers conducted interviews with the people questioned.
This could help you understand in detail because the virus circulates more in these very disadvantaged neighborhoods and with very often very degraded homes. Among the questions posed to the participants, many concern housing: how many live under the same roof, in how many rooms, and under what conditions.
Finally, the questionnaires will make this possiblestudy the link between infections and the existence of clinical symptoms. The gypsy community in fact identifies a “high prevalence of some diseases” (especially obesity and diabetes) which are known to worsen the risk of severe coronavirus cases.
The results of this second part of the study will be presented by the end of 2020.
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