Coronavirus was present in US earlier than initially thought: CDC scientists

The coronavirus was in the United States as of mid-December 2019, a period earlier than that officially identified in China or the United States, according to a new study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The study, published Monday, found evidence of the virus in 106 of 7,389 Red Cross blood donations in nine states.

These donations were collected between December 13, 2019 and January 17, 2020, with the Red Cross later submitting them to the CDC to test for antibodies.

Antibodies were detected in 39 samples on the west coast of Washington state, Oregon and California, all collected between December 13 and 16. Antibodies were detected in 67 other samples in Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, Michigan, Rhode Island and Wisconsin. These samples were collected between December 30 and January 17.

The researchers said the antibodies were specific for COVID-19 and had excluded other coronaviruses. COVID-19 specific antibodies were detected in 84 of the 90 samples tested.

“The results of this report suggest that SARS-CoV-2 infections may have been present in the United States in December 2019, earlier than previously recognized,” the researchers wrote.

“These results also underscore the value of donated blood as a source of SARS-CoV-2 surveillance,” they added, noting that such screening methods were previously used to monitor the Zika virus outbreak.

“The CDC continues to work with federal and non-government partners to conduct ongoing surveillance using donated blood and clinical laboratory samples for SARS-CoV-2 infection at multiple sites across the United States. United States, ”they wrote.

The first case of the virus in the United States was officially reported on January 19 in a man who recently returned from China. Two more people later diagnosed in the United States experienced symptoms in the middle of the month.

The latest findings follow an earlier CDC study that found no more than 23% of the United States has antibodies to the virus, according to a study published in JAMA Internal Medicine.