Researchers in Qatar come to that conclusion after studying infection rates in the country. Because a large part of the population (about 40 percent) was already infected with the corona virus during a first wave last spring, the country became the perfect testing ground for research into reinfections.
As a side note, the scientists note that the delta variant was not yet circulating in Qatar during the study. It is also not clear how long a corona infection offers protection.
Endemic disease
The investigation was published this week in The New England Journal of Medicine. Pediatrician-epidemiologist Patricia Bruijning calls the researchers’ results ‘good news’ for the future of the coronavirus as an endemic disease (such as the flu, ed.).
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The researchers compared the more than 353,000 residents of Qatar who became infected with the corona virus from the beginning of last year to April this year. More than 87,000 of them were vaccinated in that period (but still became infected), they were not included in the study.
1304 grassesmettingen
In only 1304 cases (out of more than 265,000 infections), someone was infected with the corona virus twice. The researchers counted a reinfection if someone tested positive for the corona virus again more than 90 days after the first infection.
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None of the 1,304 patients who became infected for the second time had to be admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU). No one died as a result of the infection. Only four people were hospitalized, all other patients had mild symptoms.
90 percent lower chance
Those who contract the coronavirus for the second time have a 90 percent lower chance of hospitalization or death from the virus than those who become infected for the first time, the scientists concluded.
The RIVM assumes that you will remain protected for six months after an infection, although this is not certain:
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RIVM: reinfections are rare
On the website of the RIVM states that you can become infected with the coronavirus again, but that chance is small. It happens in about 1 to 2 percent of people.
People who become re-infected generally seem to get less seriously ill. Most people in good health build up immunity to the virus after being infected. We do not yet know exactly how long someone is protected. It is unclear whether the built-up defenses also offer protection against the different variants of the virus. We also do not know to what extent people are contagious if they get another infection.
Source: RIVM
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