in early april, arruda was asked for his opinion on a small italian village, vò, that tested every single one of its roughly 3,400 residents, regardless of whether they showed any symptoms. the results showed that up to 75 per cent of those infected were asymptomatic.
he answered quebec will “probably” use similar random testing once “we get there in terms of priorities.”
“but also with serological studies to find out, at the end of the first wave, whether 30, 40, 50, 60 per cent of the population was affected and asymptomatic,” he added, “to help us better predict what will happen in the fall, in a second wave.”
serological testing could first be rolled out in sectors the government decides to reopen, to establish who can safely return to work.
for dr. caroline quach, a medical microbiologist and epidemiologist at ste-justine hospital, knowing how many people have been infected in quebec , and having a better understanding of how many people are asymptomatic , is key to an effective reopening strategy.
“as long as we don’t have an idea of what proportion of our population has been sick, it’s very hard to understand how to reopen,” quach said.
but quach also warned there are still “tons of questions” remaining around covid-19 antibodies, ranging from how long they protect people to the accuracy of the tests that will be used to detect them.