Dr. Rauba assesses your immunity status after the second vaccination: the results of the antibody tests speak volumes

The Delfi portal wrote that in November, more than half a year after a quantitative antibody test was performed in early March, the doctor was surprised at how little immunity was left in the body.

Studies at the Santara clinics have shown that SARS-CoV-2 class G (IgG) immunoglobulin antibodies are almost non-existent. The antibody titer dropped to 0.17 when the rate, according to the doctor, is more than 1.4.

“It would have been better not to have done that research already, because I looked at all the patients with my own hands and was brave, like a green cucumber, who is not afraid of water. Well, I hope that my other internal and external defense mechanisms, already familiar with the virus, are ready for the second wave ”, wrote Dr. D. Rauba on the social network Facebook. You can read the full story here.

A 3.5-month-old doctor, along with other colleagues, was vaccinated with two doses of Comirnaty, BioNTech and Pfizer, and has now decided to retest it for coronavirus antibodies. Medical colleagues also performed quantitative antibody titers.

This time the results were pleasantly happy. If two weeks after the first dose of the vaccine, the antibody titer was 2961.5 kAU / L, after the second dose it was even 4080!

“As you can see, the fairly high level of antibodies is stable, so the body has responded appropriately to the spike of the viral protein, and I will monitor how long it will be in this condition.

Last week, the Santara clinics also performed quantitative antibody tests on their staff, more than 3 months later. after the second dose of vaccine. From what I asked my colleagues, it had between 2,000 and 5,000 relative units. antibodies, for some – up to 20,000.

The hair did not slip, no more sad, managed to take a vacation twice in the warm edges and return without any ties. So there are many advantages, I don’t feel any disadvantages.

Will I be vaccinated regularly? We will see what the situation will be, what the health will be, what the requirements will be, but otherwise I trust the memory of my immune system, which will remember the enemy if there is such a need ”, wrote D. Rauba on his Facebook account of the social network.

It’s hard to say what causes different people to develop different immune responses to a coronavirus vaccine.

Izabelė Juškienė, GP of the Vilnius MediCA Clinic, told the Delfi portal a little earlier: “Antibody titers depend on the peculiarities of the immune system. People who take immunosuppressive drugs and / or suffer from chronic diseases (eg, Oncology, autoimmune diseases, hepatitis, HIV, etc.) or are simply over 65 always have a weaker immune system and a slower immune response .

Does this mean that vaccinating a person will weaken their immunity? Yes, but without vaccinating that person, the disease will seriously damage the body because its protective mechanism is damaged. As a result, vaccination is a very important component in strengthening the immune system, not only for COVID-19, but also for other diseases controlled by vaccines (pneumonia, diphtheria, tetanus, tick-borne encephalitis, etc.). “

Raimonda Kungytė, director of the Center for Occupational Medicine at Antakalnis Polyclinic, noted that so far there is little data on what actually determines what immune response will occur after illness or vaccination.

“The extent of the immune response in vaccinated individuals ranged from 100 to 200 AU / ml. I could not say that it depended on age, gender or other personal characteristics. The amount of antibodies formed and the side effects observed after receiving the vaccine were independent.

Much more research would be needed to identify clearer trends. Of course, it is likely that people with immunodeficiency or taking immunosuppressive drugs have a weaker immune response, “said the doctor.

It is often said that fewer antibodies are formed in those with a milder form of the disease.

“I could not unequivocally agree with this statement. For many people this is the case, but we also have many cases where one or two days a person experienced mild symptoms and antibody titers developed high enough when others they had a symptomatic form of the disease, but little or no antibodies were formed.

There were also children who did not present any symptoms, but the prophylactic examination revealed that the titers were high and that their parents, who had a more severe course of the disease, had significantly lower levels of antibodies. The disease is new enough and the options are many. Many scientists and doctors around the world work every day to study both the disease itself and its cause, so we are constantly learning new facts. There will be even more of that knowledge in the future and it will change, ”noted R. Kungytė.

The interlocutor recalled that in addition to antibodies, there are also memory cells that would be able to recognize and destroy the virus when the body is exposed to it again. But they are not being investigated.

“The memory cells are, and it is probable, that if we become infected with coronavirus after vaccination or revaccination, they should respond,” explained the doctor.

Dr. D. Rauba himself also mentioned the role of memory cells in the body’s fight against coronavirus.

“There are not only antibodies produced by B cells, but also T cells. This is our cellular immunity, when the body responds to bacteria, viruses. They have even more memory and stimulate B cells to make these antibodies.

It is believed that although the antibodies in the blood are reduced or are no longer present, the T cells still retain the memory of that agent. Only now is it unclear how long that memory is retained. As studied from March to April, cells remain active for up to 6 months. But there are no more studies, it is not clear in principle if these cells can maintain the memory of the virus for longer ”, explained Dr. D. Rauba.

You can read more about when antibody tests are worth getting and when not, where these tests are done and how much it costs, and finally why the antibody titers of some infected people can differ so much from others.