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Officials from the World Health Organization (WHO) warned on Friday that recent data suggests that in rare cases a reinfection with the new coronavirus is possible in people who have already contracted the virus, as the reaction of the acquired antibodies is attenuated, CNBC reports. .
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“We’ve seen the number of infected people continue to increase, but we’ve also seen data that protection may not be for life, so we may see reinforcements appear,” said Dr. Mike Ryan. , director general of WHO’s health emergency programs, during a press conference at the organization’s headquarters in Geneva, reports News.ro.
He added: “The question is what is the level of protection in society?”
Re-infection is defined as a person who was infected with the virus who recovered and then becomes re-infected, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Based on the CDC’s experience with other viruses, reinfections with Covid-19 are expected, according to the agency.
However, researchers are trying to determine the likelihood and frequency with which reinfections can occur, among other considerations, such as how serious reinfections can be and how soon they can occur after the first infection.
Maria Van Kerkhove, head of the WHO’s division of zoonoses and emerging diseases, said researchers are trying to determine how long the antibody reaction lasts after a person has been infected with the virus.
“What we understand is that between 90% and 100% of people infected with the new coronavirus develop an antibody reaction, whether it be a moderate, asymptomatic or severe infection,” he said. Ongoing research shows that the immune response can last for at least six months, Van Kerkhove said.
In a recent Oxford study, researchers found that it was “extremely unlikely” that people who contracted the virus would contract it again for at least six months.
The study, conducted between April and November with 12,180 healthcare workers employed at Oxford University hospitals, found that 89 of the 11,052 employees without antibodies developed a new symptomatic infection. None of the 246 employees with antibodies developed a symptomatic infection.
“In some people, it may decrease after a few months, but we have a good indication that the natural immune response to the infection lasts for several months,” Van Kerkhove said.
“We are about a year from the start of this pandemic, so we still have a lot to learn.” In late August, Hong Kong researchers reported what appeared to be the first confirmed case of Covid-19 reinfection after a 33-year-old man who became infected with the virus in late March appeared to have contracted a new virus after more than four months.
The WHO recognized at the time that, although rare, reinfection could be possible. “It doesn’t mean that it happens very often, but we know it is possible,” Van Kerkhove said during a question and answer session on August 26.
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