Scientists from all over the world have been hard at work on the development of a vaccine since COVID-19 was classified as a pandemic by the WHO. The use of a functional vaccine would boost herd immunity and minimize the number of new cases and deaths related to the virus.
Some researchers are also looking for any clues related to the appearance of immunity among patients who contracted the disease and recovered. Such information is essential as it could play a critical role in the development and deployment of vaccination protocols.
Reinfection chances
According to to some health experts, it is not currently known if persons who contract COVID-19 are immune to reinfection since the number of conclusive studies is low. A comprehensive study would involve participants who had the virus in the past and are willing to be exposed to it so researchers can observe if they can be reinfected.
However, a recent study does mention that antibodies against the virus will remain active in the body for at least three months, even in the case of patients with mild symptoms as memory B and memory T cells feature information related t the virus.
Potential immunity
The study mentioned above suggests that in the case of exposure to the virus, the body would be able to prevent the the development of symptoms and the capacity to transmit the virus to other people. Immune memory can last for several years, and it could offer the same benefits in the case of COVID-19.
Despite the positive approach, it is important to follow social distancing rules and guidelines even if you were infected in the past, since there are a lot of factors which may determine if you have become immune or not, and these factors have to be explored by additional studies which should take place in the following months