On Jul. 10, 2020, SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, has infected more than 3 million people in the U.S. and more than 12 million worldwide, resulting in more than 550,000 deaths. Despite the high number of confirmed cases, the true prevalence of COVID-19 infections is believed to be underestimated due to insufficient testing capacity and a high percentage of asymptomatic people. As of July 9, there have been about 230,000 confirmed COVID-19 cases in Texas, including nearly 30,000 in Dallas County and more than 16,000 in Tarrant County.

A major challenge to containing the spread of COVID-19 is a shortage of information about where the virus is spreading and why certain populations are affected more than others. To gain a better picture of the unfolding pandemic in Dallas and Tarrant counties, researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center and Texas Health Resources will conduct what is expected to be one of the nation’s largest studies on community prevalence of COVID-19 by testing tens of thousands of people who represent a cross-section of the North Texas population.

The DFW COVID-19 Prevalence Study aims to enroll approximately 45,000 Dallas and Tarrant County residents from across the entire spectrum of diversity in our community, as well as occupations at higher risk for exposure such as grocery store and airline employees. The range of socioeconomic status as well as diverse racial and ethnic communities will be surveyed and tested for active COVID-19 infection and evidence of past infection, then followed over time to provide insights into how individuals’ immune responses evolve and how hot spots emerge in the community.

UT Southwestern, the region’s top academic medical center, will collaborate with Texas Health Resources, the health system that cares for more patients than any other provider in North Texas, to set up testing sites across both counties.

A mailed study invitation letter will be sent to randomly selected, 30,000 Dallas and Tarrant county households in selected geographic areas. Separately, the study will examine the prevalence of COVID-19 infection among occupation groups at higher risk of being exposed to the disease. Approximately 14,000 subjects from various industries in both Dallas and Tarrant counties will be included for data collection