Scientists are confident that Omicron carries an increased risk of reinfection. This means that the immunity acquired after surviving COVID-19 caused by the Delta variant may not be sufficient in an encounter with Omikron.
At the start of the pandemic, there was uncertainty about how much immunity acquired after surviving COVID-19 would last. The first official case of COVID-19 re-infection, reported on August 24, 2020, was reported in a 33-year-old Hong Kong man who first contracted coronavirus in March and then five months later. Tests showed that he had contracted two other mutations.
Omicron more contagious – it may be a threat to the recovering patients
Scientists are confident that Omikron is five times more capable of reinfecting the recovering population than previously dominant variants, research published by the World Health Organization (WHO) and Imperial College London has shown. This means that Omicron is more threatening to orchids than previous mutations.
Surviving COVID-19 caused by an Alpha or Delta mutation may not protect against Omicron infection. This is confirmed by UKHSA analysis conducted and published in December 2021, which showed that about one in ten people with the Omikron variant in England had previously contracted COVID-19.
How long does the immunity of the recovered patients last?
“There are people who think that after a natural infection they will be permanently protected from COVID-19, as if it were measles. The two viruses that cause both infections are very different from each other. Protection against coronavirus disappears naturally after a certain period of time,” – says William Schaffner, a prevention specialist and professor of infectious diseases at Vanderbilt University (USA), quoted by inews.co.uk.
A study conducted in October 2021 by the Yale School of Public Health found that unvaccinated recovered patients should have immunity to reinfection for between three and 61 months. However, these data were recorded and published before the Omicron variant emerged.
Is it possible to become infected twice with the Omikron variant?
Researchers believe that reinfection is indicated by positive tests after a period of 90 days from the previous illness. Earlier positive tests may be associated with an infection that has already occurred, not a new infection.
There is currently insufficient data to determine whether one can be reinfected with Omicron. This variant was identified in November, so so far this is too short a period to reliably determine whether reinfection is possible.
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