The latest data from the UK suggests that Covid BA.4 and BA.5 variants are working. off a new wave of infections, specialists respond to key questions about reinfection and prevention.
How common re-infection with Covid?
Although rarely on start of pandemics, re-infections are becoming more common as the months and years wear on – especially since arrival of Omicron, resulting in a 15x increase in in rate of reinfection, data from the Office for National statistics suggest.
This is partly because of a decline in protective antibodies triggered infection and/or vaccination over time but the virus also evolved avoid some of these immune defenses, causing re-infection more probably.
” original The Omicron BA.1 variant was itself largely immune evading, resulting in a huge number of breakthrough cases, even in vaccinated,” said Danny Altmann, professor of Immunology at Imperial College London. “It also weakly immunogenic, which means that catching it offers a little more protection against catching it again. Upstairs of that now there is additional evidence of very marginal ability of to Omicron to prime any immune memory for BA.4 or 5, sub-options that seem to govern latest wave of infections.”
The virus has also evolved become more transmissible, that is, even fleeting contact with an infected person means that you can inhale enough viral particles to become infected yourself.
If I had an Omicron for Christmas or for start of 2022 I probably catch it again?
“Of course, a lot of people who contracted Covid in start of in year who get it again including some with BA.4/5 who had BA.1/2 just four months ago who thought they would be protected,” said Professor Tim Spector, who leads the Zoe Health Study (formerly known as the Zoe Covid Study).
“We still don’t have enough data to work out exactly when receptive periods [for reinfection] is what is one reason why are we need people keep recording your symptoms. We do know it’s still quite rare for three months and before also to be rare inside six months, but this is not the case more”.
Some people more susceptible to reinfection than others?
According to unpublished data from Denmark, where cases of reinfection were studied. with sub-option BA.2 Omicron within 60 days of catching BA.1, there were the most such re-infections. common among young unvaccinated people with mild illness. Other studies have also shown that vaccination against Covid-19 provides a significant added layer of protection against re-infection by enhancing people’s immune response.
However, Omicron infection in by itself seems like a bad amp of immunity, meaning that if you were infected during previous waves of the pandemic, your immune response is unlikely to have been boosted catching it again before that year.
Will my symptoms get better second time around?
The general infection should be less serious second third or fourth time because people should have some residual immunity, especially if they also have been vaccinated, which will further increase their levels of immune protection. However, there are always exceptions to this. “Oddly enough, some people get it for this time longer than they did last time,” Spector said.
this is also too early know about risk of long time associated with Covid with BA.4/5, he added.
Should we be wearing masks again?
As the UK approaches a period dominated by BA.4 and 5, the potential for re-infection seems to be high. “We in quite a serious situation due to the convergence of factors: a country in which a moderately successful third booster campaign now long past, with immunity weakened, and successive large waves of Omicron to nascent dominance of BA.4/5,” Altmann said.
“The bottom line is that we should everyone considers themselves essentially unprotected, except perhaps for admission to the intensive care unit and death, and then, as before, with increasing risks with age.”
Face masks and ventilation continue to provide important additional layers. of protection – especially in crowded settings. “I still wear a mask, but not a cheap mask — I wear a real FFP2 or 3 mask,” Spector said. “These new there are still a lot of options in the air and you need even less amount get infected so I think the mask is definitely good idea when as much as one in thirty people have it again”.
