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Serologic surveys are important tools for estimating the true burden of COVID-19 in a given population. After the first wave of SARS-CoV-2 infections, a household-based survey conducted in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, estimated292 infections going undiagnosed for every laboratory-confirmed case. To ascertain the cumulative population exposure in Kinshasa after the second wave of COVID-19, we conducted a prospective population-based cross-sectional study using a highly sensitive and specific ELISA kit. The survey included 2,560 consenting persons from 585 households; 55% were female and 45% male. The overall population-weighted, test kit-adjusted SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence was 76.5% (95% CI 74.5%-78.5%). The seroprevalence was 4-fold higher than during the first wave, and positivity was associated with age, household average monthly income, and level of education. Evidence generated from this population-based survey can inform COVID-19 response, especially vaccination campaign strategies in the context of vaccine shortages and hesitancy.

The authors report five cases of costo-vertebral (CV) joint arthropathies, without osteo-arthritis. The patients had referred pain, with misleading irradiations to the loin or to the abdomen, so that the diagnosis was difficult. The authors have performed in these five cases an arthrography of T11 and T12 CV joints. In every case, the arthrography triggered pain at one of these levels. The arthrography was followed by intra-articular injection of corticosteroid derivative in the symptomatic joint. In these cases, this procedure was a valuable diagnostic and therapeutic method. CV joint arthropathies are frequent, but often lead to incorrect diagnosis. These preliminary results encourage further use of this procedure in CV arthropathies.