In Hong Kong, researchers claim to have discovered a first case of covid-19 reinfection. However, it would be too early to draw conclusions about the outcome of the pandemic.
According to the Department of Microbiology at the University of Hong Kong, this case proves that covid-19 reinfection can occur only a few months after a first infection.
People who have been ill with covid-19 are not immune. They need to be aware that they can be reinfected and should follow measures to control the spread of the coronavirus such as social distancing, wearing masks and frequent hand washing. It is also evidence that the removal of this virus may not be easy.
Genetic analysis showed that these two successive infections of the same patient were caused by two different strains of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, responsible for covid-19. Kelvin Kai Wang-To, one of the researchers, concluded that this was a new infection that appeared only four months after the first one.
“Because immunity cannot last long after infection, vaccination should be considered even for people who have been infected,” the Hong Kong researchers say.
This study contradicts the theory that herd immunity could eliminate CoV-2-SARS.
Gérard Rugambwa
