The actual number of corona infections is difficult to record. A study by the Robert Koch Institute comes to the conclusion that around ten percent of adults in Germany have already been infected. The number is slightly higher for young people.
It is estimated that every tenth adult in Germany had been infected with Corona by the turn of the year 2021/22. This was announced by the Robert Koch Institute after evaluating the second wave of the nationwide Sars-CoV-2 antibody study. Around eleven percent of young people between the ages of 14 and 17 had been infected by the end of the year, and seven percent of those over 60. According to the RKI, the proportion of infected people could be underestimated. Most recently, the number of infections in Germany rose significantly after the turn of the year. Many people are currently also infected in summer.
For a nationwide study, the RKI, together with the Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP) at the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW), again examined the antibody status. After 2020, corresponding data from almost 11,200 people aged 14 and over was evaluated for the second time. Data was collected between November and February, with 80 percent of the serum samples tested being received by the end of the year. According to this, by the turn of the year, antibodies against Sars-CoV-2 were detectable in 92 percent of people aged 18 and over, and the proportion is estimated at 86 percent among 14 to 17 year olds.
From this antibody detection and questionnaires, the experts conclude that by the turn of the year around 90 percent of adults had been vaccinated at least once and had further antigen contact through a vaccination or infection - and were therefore basic immunized. Almost a third of those over the age of 18 are estimated to have been vaccinated at least twice at the turn of the year and had had another antigen exposure, either through a booster shot or an infection.
According to the Standing Vaccination Commission (STIKO), good protection against severe corona disease can only be achieved with three vaccinations or a combination of vaccinations and infection. The RKI conceded that "more people took part in the study who were vaccinated and also followed other measures to contain the pandemic than people who did not take part". It can therefore be assumed that the proportion of vaccinated people is “overestimated” and the proportion of those infected is underestimated. The RKI cannot determine to what extent this distorts the results.
The dark field of corona diseases was therefore also examined in the study. The number of infections detected in adults - based on the entire pandemic period up to the end of 2021 - was about 1.5 to twice higher than the number reported.
