What Doctors Want Patients to Know About Reinfection with COVID-19

At this point in the pandemic, almost everyone in the United States has COVID-19, whether they know it or not. But something even more alarming is happening. More and more people are getting reinfected with SARS-CoV-2.

Many people thought that being infected meant greater protection from future encounters with the virus, but the latest wave of COVID-19 cases is the result of new variants such as Omicron’s XBB.1.5 subvariant. This indicates that reinfection by species is becoming more common. Even the third infection. Doctors are also urging patients to stay vigilant as SARS-CoV-2 continues to evolve, causing the common cold and behaving like a cousin that repeatedly infects people throughout their lives.

of the AMAs What doctors want their patients to knowThe ™ series provides physicians with a platform to share what they want their patients to understand about today’s healthcare headlines, especially throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

In this article, two doctors spent time discussing what patients need to know about reinfection with COVID-19. they are:

• Nancy Crum, MD, Infectious Diseases Physician, Avita Health System, Garion, Ohio. Dr. Crum AMA House For the Infectious Diseases Society of America.
• Rambod A. Rouhbakhsh, MD, Faculty and Program Director of the Forrest General Hospital Family Medicine Residency Program and Principal Investigator of the Hattiesburg Clinic MediSync Clinical Research. The Hattiesburg Clinic AMA Health Systems Program.

“If you get re-infected, you’ll be in big trouble.” Dr. Loebafsch Said. “We know from quite elegant study recently published natural medicine Each subsequent COVID infection increases the risk of developing chronic health problems such as diabetes, kidney disease, organ failure, and even mental health issues. ”

Such evidence “dispels the myth that repeated exposure to the virus is mild and nothing to worry about,” he added, adding, “It’s like playing Russian roulette.” said.

That’s why “we want to avoid re-infection as much as possible. It shouldn’t be a mechanism for trying to get immunity from the virus,” Dr. Rouhbakhsh said.

“Viruses are constantly changing, like what flu viruses do and everything that causes the typical cold. They adapt, new variants emerge, and these can cause reinfection.” there is,” said Dr. Rouhbakhsh. “Omicron Its subvariants are particularly good at circumventing the protection we already have from previous infections and vaccines.

Now, at this stage of the pandemic, “we have epidemiological data that there are several BQ variants of Omicron in the United States, derivatives called BQ.1 and BQ.1.1,” he said. “These are the descendants of BA.5 Omicron A subvariant, it has several mutations in the spike protein that help evade the immunity created by both the vaccine and previous infections.

“This is also associated with reduced immunity. Whether you have had COVID-19 before or have been vaccinated, these new strains may not protect you against new strains. There is potential,” said Dr. Crum. “As we move from alpha to delta to omicron, our ability to prevent re-infection diminished, so we could get infected again.”

“There are some viruses, like hepatitis B, for example, and once you get a virus in your life, you’re protected for the rest of your life,” she said. Respiratory viruses like SARS-CoV-2 continue to mutate as strains change and are not always protected so that we can get these types of viruses over and over again, and we will continue to mutate into that new strain.

“If you’re not vaccinated, you’re more likely to get re-infected many times, because vaccines prevent some infections from occurring,” Dr. Crumb said, adding that if you’ve never been vaccinated no infections.

“This is not what vaccines were actually made for. They can prevent reinfection, but vaccines are made to prevent serious illness,” she added. It was made for a specific strain, and when that strain changes, the vaccine needs to be updated.”

“Every time someone is infected and re-infected, it gives the virus a chance to mutate,” Dr. Crumb said. “In my clinic, COVID he has seen many patients who have been infected three, four, five times.Almost all patients have not been vaccinated and do not want to be vaccinated. .”

“It is precisely these reinfection events that give the virus the opportunity to mutate, form new subspecies, and trigger further reinfection events,” she said.

Dr. Rouhbakhsh said: If you are infected and fully vaccinated. ”

A person’s chance of being reinfected “also depends on where they live and what the community levels of the circulating virus are,” Dr. Crum said. Furthermore, “it depends on what the subspecies are and whether the subspecies change and become more effective in infecting people.”

“It depends on your exposure. Do you stay home away from people all the time, or do you work at a busy grocery counter?” changes over time and is highly geographically dependent.”

Additionally, “the older you are, the younger you are, and the more chronic conditions you have, the higher your risk,” says Dr. Rouhbakhsh. “We know there is a complex relationship with people who are obese and diabetic, not just getting sick, but the worse outcomes associated with it.”

“You don’t have to rule your life like you did last year or the year before, but it makes sense to consider personal risk factors,” he said.

“There are many things that come into long covid We don’t really know or are still learning about it…we can’t really say what that means just yet,” Dr. Rouhbakhsh said. We believe it is less likely to take longer.”

“There are some studies that suggest that the more times you get reinfected, the more likely you are to develop long-lasting COVID,” Dr. Crum said. A recent study from the University of Washington School of Medicine In St. Louis I saw this question. Through his VA system he surveyed over 5 million veterans and dependents.

“They looked at people who had COVID-19 once, or who had COVID-19 multiple times, and compared the medical outcomes of those groups,” she added. “And what we do know is that the more times we get COVID, the more likely we are to develop complications, such as lung complications, heart complications, or mental health issues.

“The more times people get infected, the more likely it is that their health will be compromised by conditions that can involve practically any organ system in the body, so we need to prevent reinfection whenever possible,” Crumb said. said Dr.

“We know that an updated vaccine should reduce the chances of reinfection and developing long-term COVID or long-term complications from the virus,” Dr. Rouhbakhsh said. That means you’re less likely to get sick and less likely to end up in the hospital.”

Unfortunately, about 70% of qualified people in the United States have completed the primary series. COVID-19 bivalent booster “We are very far behind other countries,” he explained. “About 11% got a bivalent booster. compared to the UK which is about 70% Who got a bivalent booster. “

“Obtaining a bivalent vaccine is something we recommend everyone to do to prevent re-infection because it is close to the virus currently circulating,” Dr. Crumb said. For those who don’t, I encourage you to get vaccinated without waiting.”

“If applicable, get vaccinated. That’s probably the best thing you can do to protect yourself and others,” emphasized Dr. Rouhbakhsh.

Dr. Rouhbakhsh said: “Now that we have more knowledge about how this virus works, we shouldn’t worry too much.”

“We encourage you to take extra precautions and take care of yourself when attending high-risk events,” he said. If you travel, it’s a good time to get a tight-fitting mask like a KN95 or N95 to reduce your risk of infection.”

“Masks can really help. If you find yourself in a high-risk situation, it’s worth considering masking, or at least pre-screening yourself and your participants with tests,” said Dr. Rouhbakhsh. rice field.

“As the virus continues to circulate…it continues to mutate, putting immunosuppressed patients at higher risk of adverse outcomes if they are reinfected,” Dr. Crumb said.

“We also know they don’t respond well to vaccines,” she said, adding, “We still need to worry about immunosuppressed people, even if they’ve been vaccinated.

“It’s also a good idea to get tested and ask people to get tested if you’re gathering for a large gathering, such as a wedding, graduation, or a big holiday event with many families,” says Dr. Rouhbakhsh. “Now that testing is everywhere, if you don’t want to gather with your mask on, you can pre-screen yourself before gathering.”

COVID-19, flu, RSV infection, “It’s important to get tested if you have symptoms,” said Dr. Crumb. There are flu treatments, there are COVID-19 treatments. “

“Knowing what you have and how long you need to isolate yourself to protect others is really important,” Dr. Crumb said. There’s no clinical way to tell, the way you define what you have is based on PCR or other laboratory tests.”

“We all want to forget the last few years, but we really can’t,” Dr. Crumb said. It certainly deserves to be there, so this needs to stay at the forefront of our attention.”

“There’s momentum to forget it and move on, but it’s not the safest or healthiest thing for our country, ourselves, or our patients. We need to keep talking about it.”

“We are moving into a space where we can have more freedom in place, and that is great. I would like to,” said Dr. Rouhbakhsh.