Adaptation of Russian population to SARS-CoV-2: Asymptomatic course, comorbidities, mortality, and other respiratory viruses – A reply to Fear versus Data: Short Communication to International Journal of Antimicrobial Agents

Sharov, Konstantin S.

In the current research, we report results of our studying SARS-CoV-2 spread in Russia and adaptation of Russian population to it in March-June 2020. Two groups of people have been investigated: 1) 12,082 persons already proven positive for SARS-CoV-2 (clinical information is studied); 2) 7,864+4,458 persons with respiratory suspicions (PCR tests and clinical information). In the latter, SARS-CoV-2 positive persons comprised 5.37% in March and 11.42% in June 2020. A number of viral co-infections was observed for SARS-CoV-2. Rhinoviruses accounted for the largest co-infection part (7.91% of samples tested positive for SARS-CoV-2); respiratory syncytial virus 7.03%; adenoviruses 4.84%; metapneumoviruses 3.29%; parainfluenza viruses 2.42%; enterovirus D68 1.10% and some other viruses (entero-, echo-, parecho-) less than 1%. In the group of 12,537 humans, SARS-CoV-2 case fatality rate was determined to be 0.6% on average (in contrast with official Russian governmental statistics that reports 1.5% mortality). It is within range of mortality caused by other common seasonal respiratory viruses (0.01-2.21% in Russia in 2012-2020 range). Most of deaths were of people with other comorbidities, also similar with different respiratory viruses. Proportion of SARS-CoV-2 asymptomatic carriers was 56.68% in March and 70.67% in June 2020. Obviously, this new pathogen presents a substantial risk to human population, as it was not contained at the very beginning of its outbreak in Wuhan and spread to the whole world. However, measures of its surveillance, prevention and treatment must be strictly evidence-based and not dictated by fear.