Can you really get Covid-19 more than once?

Once an infected patient recovers from a virus, the chances of being reinfected by the same strain are slim as their bodies would supposedly have built up enough immunity to prevent it from recurring – but the jury is still out on whether this is the case with the coronavirus.

According to the Worldometer, a statistics website with up-to-date figures on the virus, 95 South Africans have so far recovered of the nearly 1,700 infected patients in South Africa.

Out of 1,287,112 worldwide infections, 271,882 had recovered.

While the world’s doctors, scientists and clinicians are working on a vaccine and a cure for the global pandemic, it is currently solely up to a person’s healthy immune system to contribute to the recovery rate.

No one is immune to the virus, but once a person is infected, their immune system starts to develop antibodies that fight off the virus. These could remain in the body for years, says Doctors Without Borders’ infectious disease doctor Gilles van Cutsem.

“That is how we recover from viruses. When your immune system is completely on, then the immune system, antibodies and white blood cells cure you. It happens to most virus infections with the exception of HIV. Coronavirus, like Ebola, it either kills you or you become immune.

“It is likely to last several months or even years. For a lot of viruses, immunity is lifelong. But we don’t have enough data yet to know exactly when one becomes immune to it and for how long this immunity lasts,” he said.

A large majority of confirmed cases are reported to be mild, meaning symptoms were flu-like and could be treated with flu medication for the symptoms. Those who are hospitalised are provided with supportive care with the most important being oxygen. Those who are critically ill require ventilators and might need intubation.

“The majority have mild and flu-like symptoms. About 14% are severely ill and require oxygen and the rest of the people who survived developed immunity.”

But there have been reports of recovered patients in China, Japan and South Korea being re-hospitalised after again testing positive for Covid-19.

“China, Japan and South Korea have patients who have recovered and been readmitted because they have tested positive again. There is still a need for more evidence on this but it is concerning,” said health researcher Dr Shakira Choonara.

Antibodies can also be used to confirm if a person is infected. South Africa is looking to procure rapid antibody test kits which can produce results in between 10 and 20 minutes.

South Africa is currently using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests where results can take up to 48 hours. Antibody test kits could rapidly increase the number of tests per day.

– rorisangk@citizen.co.za

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