A 27-year-old woman, who tested positive for the first time in July, is the first case of Covid reinfection in Bengaluru.
Bangalore:
Fortis Hospital reported the first case of Covid reinfection in Bengaluru: a 27-year-old woman with no history of comorbidities who tested positive for the first time in July and was discharged after full recovery from a mild form of the disease, according to the official hospital statement: and added that tests performed on the patient show that she did not develop any immunity against the new coronavirus.
“This is possibly the first reported case of Covid reinfection in Bangalore,” said Dr. Pratik Patil, infectious disease consultant at the Bannerghatta Road facility of Fortis Hospital, explaining how the woman developed the disease for the second time in a month.
“Normally, in case of infection, the Covid immunoglobulin G antibody test is positive after 2-3 weeks of infection (showing that the patient has developed cells that fight Covid). However, in this patient, the antibody test has been negative, which means that she did not develop immunity after the first infection. The other possibility is that the antibodies disappeared within a month, leaving her susceptible to reinfection, “said Dr. Patil, adding that her symptoms after reinfection they are mild.
“Cases of reinfection mean that the antibodies may not be produced by all individuals or, if they do develop, they may not last long enough, allowing the virus to enter the body and cause disease again,” he said. .
The finding raises troubling questions about controlling and ending the COVID-19 pandemic as cases continue to rise in India, Asia’s hardest-hit country, which recorded nearly 90,000 daily cases, surpassing the 41 lakh mark in the present.
It also raises questions about how long a vaccine would remain effective.
However, scientists in India and elsewhere have said that reinfections are rare and that there is still no cause for alarm. They added that more studies are needed for reliable inference, which will allay fears that herd immunity may not be enough to curb the COVID-19 pandemic.
Cases of reinfection have also been reported in Telangana and Maharashtra in India and in other countries, including Hong Kong, the US, the Netherlands and Belgium.
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