In an effort to better understand how COVID-19 spreads through communities, Arapahoe County is collaborating with the University of Colorado – Anschutz Medical Campus on a COVID-19 Arapahoe Surveillance Study (CASES) Project. The project’s goals are to understand who has been infected with SARS-CoV-2 and to learn more about the immune response to the virus.
The two-phase study has already begun to evaluate SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in first responders (Phase 1), and researchers are now turning their attention toward the general population of Arapahoe County for Phase 2. In early August, Phase 1 of the study found that approximately 4% of first responders had a previous COVID-19 infection. Phase 2 tests a randomly selected sample of the County’s general population, about 1,200 households, for antibodies to SARS-CoV-2, which confirms a prior COVID-19 infection.
The project’s managers are working with the Sun Bus, a mobile classroom and clinic to inform families about COVID-19. The randomly selected households, which are being notified of their selection via mail, can participate in a brief survey about prior exposures to COVID-19, any prior testing, and history of COVID-19 symptoms. Participants provide a quick finger stick blood sample to measure antibodies specific to SARS-CoV-2. After testing, results will be sent confidentially to participants.
If you’re one of the randomly selected households that have received a CASES Project postcard, we hope you’ll consider participating in this important research study. The CASES Project will measure participant’s antibodies in the future as well, which will help scientists discover more about how antibodies change over time and how the immune system reacts to the virus that causes COVID-19. For more information about the CASES Project please email CASESProject@cuanschutz.edu, or visit bit.ly/CASESPhase2.
image credit: University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Department of Immunology & Microbiology