In Brazil, 17.9 million have been tested for COVID-19

Up to August, 17.9 million people—or 8.5 percent of the Brazilian population—had been tested to know if they had been infected with the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) in Brazil. Of these, 21.5 percent (3.9 million people) tested positive.

The data can be found in the monthly edition of the National Household Sample Survey (PNAD) COVID-19, published Wednesday (Sep. 23) by the government’s statistics agency IBGE.

According to the research coordinator Maria Lucia Vieira, the higher amount of tests available—and therefore the greater access to testing—can explain the increase in the number of people taking the test. “As the pandemic is not over, it’s natural that this number keeps rising, including among people who showed no symptoms, but were in contact with someone who had COVID-19, so they get tested to make sure,” she pointed out.

According to IBGE, the percentage of people who took the test for the diagnosis of the disease is higher among people with higher income—21.7 percent in the household income group of more than four minimum wages per capita, and below the five percent among those making up to half a minimum wage, which currently stands at $188.93.

“Those with the means to take the test to rule out the possibility [of having the disease] can do it at a lab. There are no signs there are more infections among those with higher income, but we have more people taking the tests among those who have higher income,” said the researcher.

The survey includes three kinds of tests: the swab test, where the material is collected with a cotton swab into the mouth and/or nose; the quick test with finger prick blood collection; and the blood test with collection from the vein. Of the 17.9 million people who took the test, 6.9 million did the swab type, of whom 25.2 percent tested positive.

The Federal District (19.4%) had the highest percentage of tests run among Brazilian states, followed by Piauí (14.4%) and Roraima (12%). “Of the 19.4 percent of those who took the test in the Federal District, only 4.1 percent tested positive. So this figure shows that more people are taking the tests than really being diagnosed with the disease,” Maria Lucia said.

Pernambuco (5.8%), Acre (6%), and Minas Gerais (6.1%) have the lowest test rates.

Despite the increase in the number of people getting tested, the group of those reporting to have some flu-like symptom decreased. In May, 24 million people stated they had some of the symptoms listed by the survey—like a cough, fever, and difficulty breathing. In August, this number dropped to 12.1 million—5.7 percent of the population.

“Now, the people who were in contact with others who were sick have more opportunities to ascertain whether they were contaminated. There are a lot of people who took the test without showing any symptoms,” Maria Lucia reported.