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Children can have both antibodies to COVID-19 and to the coronavirus that causes the disease, according to a study published in the Journal of Pedriatrics. Researchers have not yet determined whether the virus that is present with the antibodies can be transmitted to other people, this aspect will be determined at a later stage of the study, writes the EFE agency, assumed by Agerpres.
Nationwide Children’s Hospital in the United States conducted this study, initially with the goal of determining how long it takes pediatric patients to clear the virus from the body and when they begin to produce antibodies. But they found that “the virus and the antibodies can coexist in young patients.”
Of the 215 patients who participated in the study, 33 underwent tests for both antibodies and COVID-19 infection, and the presence of antibodies was detected in the blood of nine of them, after which they tested positive for the new coronavirus . the hospital in a statement.
The lead author of the research, Burak Bahar, notes that In most diseases caused by viruses, when the presence of antibodies is detected, the virus is no longer detected.. But in the case of COVID-19 infection, both are noticeable, meaning that pediatric patients have the opportunity to transmit the virus, even when they have developed antibodies. Therefore, in the next phase of the study, it will be verified whether the virus present together with the antibodies can be transmitted to other people, the statement shows.
As long as the virus is eliminated and the antibodies appear. Results vary
The researchers assessed the timing of virus shedding and immune response and found that the average time between viral positivity and negativity, when the virus can no longer be detected, was 25 days.
The mean time of The presence of antibodies in the blood ranged from 18 days to 36 days to achieve adequate levels of neutralizing antibodies., very important to protect a person from a new infection with the same virus, adds the statement.
The study involved 6,369 children, who were tested for the SARS-CoV-2 virus, and 215 patients who were tested for antibodies in the hospital from March 13 to June 21.
The researchers also found that patients aged six to 15 years needed more time to clear the virus (on average 32 days) compared to those aged 16 to 22 years (18 days).
The researchers also found that girls in the 6-15 year age group took longer to clear the virus than boys (an average of 44 days compared to an average of 25.5 days).
Read also: Patient in Romania. When children become victims of COVID-19: “I almost became polenta!”
Web edition: Luana Păvălucă
