By late March, more than 2 million New York residents were infected with the new coronavirus, a large antibody study indicates.
The study, published in the journal Annals of Epidemiology, is based on the analysis of antibody tests conducted using 15,101 samples collected throughout New York state. A total of 1,887 samples showed evidence of reactive antibodies to the new coronavirus.
Based on that data, researchers estimated that cumulative incidence of coronavirus infection through March 29 was 14 percent in New York, corresponding to 2.1 million infected adults.
The cumulative incidence was higher among Hispanic/Latino residents (29.2 percent), Black residents (20.2 percent) and Asian residents (12.4 percent) than white residents (8.1 percent).
Antibody tests have limitations, including the risk of false positives and the fact that the tests cannot be used to determine immunity to the new virus, according to the CDC. Read more about its limitations here.