34 asymptomatic Covid-19 cases were detected in the second week of the University-wide asymptomatic screening program.

Along with these asymptomatic cases, 120 cases were detected from symptomatic testing. This brings the total number of positive cases to 154 amongst both staff and students, up from the first week of testing were the total number of positive cases equalled 34. 

The prevalence of asymptomatic infection in the university is currently estimated to be 1 in 109 students.

The 34 asymptomatic cases came from 27 testing pools. A further testing pool initially received a positive test result, but individual tests later revealed this result to be a false positive

Furthermore, 26 swabs processed were classified as void by the testing service.

The second week of screening saw the program continue to operate at a reduced scale, with 2 students contributing swabs per testing pool, resulting in 3,725 results being processed by the university.

However, from the third week of the scheme, the program will expand to cover half of the 12,100 students participating in the program, meaning that each week, half of the students in each testing pool will receive a test under this scheme.

As in previous weeks, the testing scheme is still facing operational difficulties. In an email sent to students last Friday (16/10), Dr Ben Warne, Clinical Lead for the Asymptomatic Screening Programme, and Dr Nicholas Matheson, Lead Principal Investigator for the Asymptomatic Screening Programme said: “We are still experiencing some operational issues, and the number of students with COVID-19 may change day-to-day, so please bear with us. Should we need to change our approach mid-week, we will let those students affected know as soon as possible.”

Participation in the scheme also remains incomplete, with 22% of eligible students still not taking part.