The possibility of coronavirus reinfection has been a concern since the first reports of people becoming ill in 2020 began to appear, while many people around the world were still isolated. But so far there has been relatively little data on the spread of a phenomenon.
The first large-scale research to address this issue was published this week in The Lancet, and found that the vast majority of in fact, people who have had COVID-19 are protected from taking it again for at least six months. However, people 65 and older are much more likely than younger individuals to have a recurrent infection.
The researchers analyzed data from Denmark’s national testing program COVID-19, which has offered free PCR testing to approximately 4 million people living in the country. Overall, they found that a very small percentage of the population (0.65%) experienced reinfection.
For those over 65, obtaining the coronavirus once provided approximately 80% protection against reinfection. But for people 65 and older, it only provided about 47% protection against COVID-19 recovery, further highlighting how dangerous this disease can be for older adults.
“Because older people are also more likely to suffer severe symptoms of illness and, unfortunately, die, our findings demonstrate the importance of implementing policies to protect the elderly during the pandemic,” said Steen Ethelberg , the author of the study by Statens Serum Institute in Denmark, said in a statement. “Given what’s at stake, the results emphasize the importance of people complying with the measures put in place to keep themselves and others safe, even if they have already had COVID-19.”
“Given what is at stake, the results emphasize the importance of people adhering to the measures implemented to protect themselves and others.”
– Steen Ethelberg, researcher at Statens Serum Institute in Denmark
What this study means to us (and the future of the pandemic)
Overall, this news is positive, but it also highlights the need for continued monitoring. Many factors can play a potential role in getting sick.
One of them is the appearance of different variants. Coronavirus reinfection has become a special concern in recent months as new variants have begun to circulate around the world.
A vaccine study in South Africa, which circulates a variant that experts fear is more contagious and may make current vaccines less effective, found new infections in 2% of people who had previously been infected with a vaccine. variant different from the coronavirus.
The large new Danish study did not examine the role of variants in reinfection, given the time frame of the research. Therefore, it does not offer any clue as to whether the variants make it more likely that someone will show up with COVID-19 more than once.
Previous case studies of people who have been reinfected were worrisome because they suggested that it was possible to get sick a second time. This was the case of a 25-year-old who, on the other hand, was healthy, in Nevada, who tested positive for COVID-19 last spring, recovered and became ill again. It required hospitalization the second time. But even when these first reports emerged and attracted significant news coverage, researchers were careful to point out the rarity of this result.
Since the new reinfection study was not conducted in the United States, it is unclear whether the results apply the same way here. But overall, researchers are optimistic that most people receiving COVID-19 will not experience reinfection soon after. And they continue to study immunity, both after infection and after vaccination. It is unclear at this time how long immunity lasts after a person receives a COVID-19 vaccine.
All this highlights the continuing need for basic preventive measures, although coronavirus cases are beginning to fall across the country.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that people who have had COVID-19 should be vaccinated once they are available, in large part because they are unlikely to become infected again if they come in contact with the virus.
Monitoring the use of masks is also essential, as qThe issues remain to the extent that those who have recovered from COVID-19 are able to disseminate it to others if they are exposed again. In addition, wearing masks helps decrease the small chances that a person can get the virus more than once.
Earlier this month, the CDC released new guidelines that say fully vaccinated Americans can safely gather indoors without wearing masks or socially distancing themselves, providing a promising insight into how they will likely relax. restrictions as more shots are fired at more arms. But for now, it’s a race against the clock to ensure the vaccination of millions of Americans as variants continue to spread.
Experts are still learning about COVID-19. The information in this story is what was known or available from the publication, but guidelines may change as scientists find out more about the virus. Consult your disease control and prevention centers for the most up-to-date recommendations.