70% karachiites may carry COVID-19 antibodies by September: study

ISLAMABAD: A new study has claimed that around 65-70 percent of Karachi’s population would be carrying COVID-19 antibodies by September.

A study was conducted by a top Pakistani health expert, Dr. Tahir Sultan Shamsi stated that as Pakistan is moving towards herd-immunity within the next two months, the third week of July this year, almost 40 percent of the Karachi’spopulation have already been exposed to the COVID-19 infection.

According to the expert, the number of coronavirus infection will expand by September 2020. Dr. Tahir said while giving the example of neighbouring country India, that less than 1 percent of the population has tested positive, but a survey by the Indian government has revealed that one in four persons have already been exposed to the virus in New Delhi.

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“In Karachi, based on antibody tests conducted by us at the National Institute of Blood Diseases (NIBD), through five different FDA-approved kits and methods indicate that around 40 percent of the city’s population has already contracted coronavirus infection asymptotically,” Dr. Shamsi notified.

“We expect that by the first week of September 2020, around 65-70% population in Karachi would be carrying COVID-19 antibodies, which is required for herd immunity in a population,” he added.

According to the hematologist said that the results are not a population-based study as was the case in the idea.