Almost one in ten Scots over the age of 16 had been infected with Covid-19 by the end of last month, scientists have calculated.
Fresh figures from the Office of National Statistics show that an estimated 1 in 11 people would have tested positive for antibodies against the disease if they had undergone a blood test in December.
This is the equivalent of 8.9 per cent of the population, or 398,000 people. The figures are based on those who either have the disease or who have had it in the past.
As many cases of Covid are asymptomatic - people do not show signs of the disease - the number of people who have been infected is greater then those who have tested positive.
The study also took into account people who may have shown mild symptoms, but not come forward.
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Scotland had the second lowest prevelance of the disease, according to ONS. In England, it was estimated that 1 in 8 people would have tested positive for antibodies against the disease, while in Wales the number was 1 in 10.
In Northern Ireland, scientists said 1 in 13 people may have had the disease. However, they also said there was "uncertainty" in regional estimates.
ONS said: "The analysis ... is based on blood test results taken from a randomly selected subsample of individuals aged 16 years and over, which are used to test for antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19). This can be used to identify individuals who have had the infection in the past.
"It takes between two and three weeks for the body to make enough antibodies to fight the infection but once a person recovers, antibodies remain in the blood at low levels, although these levels can decline over time to the point that tests can no longer detect them.
"Having antibodies can help to prevent individuals from getting the same infection again."
ONS added: "We measured the presence of antibodies to understand who has had coronavirus (COVID-19) in the past, although the length of time antibodies remain at detectable levels in the blood is not fully known.
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"It is also not yet known how having detectable antibodies, now or at some time in the past, affects the chance of getting COVID-19 again."
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