COVID-19 in Iceland

Screening of 6% of the Icelandic population showed that 0.8% were infected, and a majority were adolescent or adult males.

As a small nation with a single international airport, Iceland is in a unique position to track and control the spread of SARS-CoV-2. Following reports of COVID-19 in China and Italy, targeted surveillance for the infection began in Iceland on January 31, 2020. Subsequently, investigators undertook two population screening studies between March 13, 2020, and April 4, 2020, using reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assays on nasopharyngeal and oropharyngeal samples, supplemented by genomic sequencing of selected isolates.

The first identified COVID-19 case in Iceland was detected on February 28, 2020. Through April 4, 9199 individuals underwent targeted screening, of whom 1221 (13.3%) were COVID-19 positive. Of an additional…

Reviewing Author

Richard T. Ellison III, MD

Disclosures

Consult/Advisory BoardAcurx Pharmaceuticals, LLC;

Grant/Research SupportDoctors Company Foundation, Massachusetts Department of Public Health

Richard T. Ellison III, MD

Disclosures

Consult/Advisory BoardAcurx Pharmaceuticals, LLC;

Grant/Research SupportDoctors Company Foundation, Massachusetts Department of Public Health

COVID-19 in Iceland

Topics

Reviewing Author