The study also found differences in antibody levels based on the severity of the disease. Those with a mild case of the virus tended to decline more rapidly in antibodies.
5 EYEWITNESS News has released the Minnesota Department of Health for statistics on reinfection rates in Minnesota.
Dr. Nick Lehnertz, a medical specialist at MDH, said: ‘The CDC’ gold standard ‘for SARS-CoV-2 reinfection from the first positive test obtains the entire genome sequence (WGS) on the sample and compares it with the sequence. from the subsequent positive test. This is the only way to definitively establish that the second positive test result is reinfection. To date, MDH has examined more than 130 cases of individuals with repeated positive tests from 91-180 days after the initial positive test. and has so far not been able to confirm re-infection. It is noteworthy that after an initial positive test, individuals may remain positive for a long period of time due to ‘residual’ non-infectious viral remnants of their initial infection. ‘
Lehnertz said that in the rare documented cases of re-infection around the world, people became ill a second time, one to six months after the initial infection.
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Minnesota has seen record infection rates, with nearly 300,000 people testing positive over the past 90 days.
State health officials are appealing to the Minnesotans not to assume they are being protected from the virus simply because they have recently tested positive.
Lehnertz said: “Our understanding is constantly evolving as we learn more about the virus and the immune response. Therefore, universal use of masks and appropriate social distance is still essential for everyone, regardless of whether you have been previously exposed to SARS-CoV-2, or received the COVID-19 vaccination. “
Georgiou added: “I hope people really take to heart that there is no ‘free pass’ that people get just because they HAVE DIVIDED. Because we do not yet have the science, it would be safest to wash your hands, social distance, wear a mask and assume that you are still vulnerable to becoming infected and infecting others. ‘