Recurrent SARS-CoV-2 infections and their potential risk to public health - a systematic review

To inform quarantine and contact-tracing policies concerning re-positive cases-cases testing positive among those recovered. We systematically reviewed and appraised relevant literature from PubMed and Embase for the extent of re-positive cases and their epidemiological characteristics. In 90 case r...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:PloS one 2021-12, Vol.16 (12), p.e0261221-e0261221
Main Authors: Abrokwa, Seth Kofi, Müller, Sophie Alice, Méndez-Brito, Alba, Hanefeld, Johanna, El Bcheraoui, Charbel
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biology and life sciences
Case reports
Contact Tracing
Coronaviruses
COVID-19 - pathology
COVID-19 - virology
COVID-19 vaccines
Databases, Factual
Disease transmission
Diseases
Epidemiology
Forecasts and trends
Health risks
Herd immunity
Humans
Infections
Medicine and health sciences
Public Health
Quarantine
Recovery
Recurrence
Relapse
Research and Analysis Methods
SARS-CoV-2 - isolation & purification
Severe acute respiratory syndrome
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2
Systematic review
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Summary:To inform quarantine and contact-tracing policies concerning re-positive cases-cases testing positive among those recovered. We systematically reviewed and appraised relevant literature from PubMed and Embase for the extent of re-positive cases and their epidemiological characteristics. In 90 case reports/series, a total of 276 re-positive cases were found. Among confirmed reinfections, 50% occurred within 90 days from recovery. Four reports related onward transmission. In thirty-five observational studies, rate of re-positives ranged from zero to 50% with no onward transmissions reported. In eight reviews, pooled recurrence rate ranged from 12% to 17.7%. Probability of re-positive increased with several factors. Recurrence of a positive SARS-CoV-2 test is commonly reported within the first weeks following recovery from a first infection.
ISSN:1932-6203
1932-6203
DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0261221