Studying the effects of COVID-19 and vaccination in a representative-sample of the Luxembourgish Population

The present study is part of the EU-wide ORCHESTRA project, a three-year international research project co-ordinated by the University of Verona (Italy) and aimed at understanding and finding solutions to the coronavirus pandemic.

WHAT IS ORCHESTRA LUXEMBOURG?

The ORCHESTRA project aims to deliver sound scientific evidence to understand the immune response to the COVID-19 vaccination over time and to analyse the prevention and treatment of infections caused by SARS-CoV-2. These aims will be achieved within ORCHESTRA Luxembourg with the help of participants from the CON-VINCE study.

WHY IS THE FOLLOW-UP OF PARTICIPANTS FROM THE CON-VINCE STUDY SO IMPORTANT?

The CON-VINCE study successfully captured the dynamics and impact of the virus spread in the Luxembourgish population from April 2020 until June 2021. As the pandemic continues, ORCHESTRA Luxembourg will provide an important opportunity to study the long-term consequences of COVID-19 in the general population, with a focus on post-vaccination monitoring of participants, and the mid-to-long-term psychosocial impact of the pandemic on Luxembourg residents.

Who can participate in ORCHESTRA Luxembourg?

Anyone who has taken part in the CON-VINCE study and agreed to be contacted for future studies.

What does the participation entail?

Your participation is needed for overall 4 time points that extend over up to 21 months from study start. The time-points have been selected to achieve long-term monitoring of immune responses and vaccination efficacy, as well as to understand the long-term effects of the pandemic on residents of Luxembourg. You will be asked to do the following immediately after enrolment and then on months 3, 9 and 21.

Fill out a questionnaire (which takes approximately 30 minutes to complete) that addresses the following aspects:

• SARS-CoV-2 Vaccine
• Epidemiological factors and travel history
• Demographics and socioeconomic questions
• Comorbidities and current medication
• Symptom’s onset and initial clinical signs of SARS-CoV-2
• Knowledge, perception of risks related to SARS-CoV-2
• Current clinical symptoms
• Psychological questionnaires

Provide a dried blood spot sample and an optional stool sample through easy-to-use collection kits that you will receive at home.

What happens to the collected samples?

As part of this research project, specific tests are foreseen on the samples (e.g. serology – analysis of blood antibodies that indicate if the immune system reacted against the coronavirus and/or the vaccine). New knowledge about the SARS-CoV-2 infection is gained daily through the efforts of researchers world-wide. For this reason the methods applied to test your samples may vary according to state of the art. Overall, all future analysis and testing on these samples will be limited to projects focusing on infectious diseases and immunology.

What difference will my participation make?

Your participation is key, because volunteers are the source of the information that we need to improve our understanding of the long-term impact of COVID-19. By offering a little bit of your time across the next two years, you can make a highly valuable contribution to determining how well people are protected from COVID-19 by getting vaccinated, and help both to control the current pandemic and to prepare for potential future pandemics.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)