COVID-19 reinfection: the role of natural immunity, vaccines, and variants

The COVID-19 pandemic has altered innumerable lives. Although recent mass vaccinations offer a glimmer of hope, the rising death toll and new variants continue to dominate the current scenario. As we begin to understand more about SARS-CoV-2 infections, the territory of reinfections with COVID-19 re...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of community hospital internal medicine perspectives 2021-11, Vol.11 (6), p.733-739
Main Authors: Sciscent, Bao Y., Eisele, Caroline D., Ho, Lisa, King, Steven D., Jain, Rohit, Golamari, Reshma R.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Abbreviations
Complications
Coronaviruses
COVID-19
COVID-19 immunity
COVID-19 vaccination
COVID-19 vaccines
Disease control
Fatalities
Infections
Pandemics
reinfection
Respiratory diseases
Reverse transcription
Review
SARS-CoV-2
Severe acute respiratory syndrome
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2
Vaccines
Viral diseases
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Summary:The COVID-19 pandemic has altered innumerable lives. Although recent mass vaccinations offer a glimmer of hope, the rising death toll and new variants continue to dominate the current scenario. As we begin to understand more about SARS-CoV-2 infections, the territory of reinfections with COVID-19 remains unexplored. In this review, we will discuss several aspects of reinfection: (a) How is COVID-19 reinfection characterized? (b) Does prior literature differentiate between reinfection and reactivation? (c) What SARS-CoV-2 strains do the vaccines target and can they protect against new strains? Larger and longer timeline studies are needed to understand reinfection risks. With the ongoing distribution of the SARS-CoV-2 vaccines to provide protection, the understanding of the possibility for SARS-CoV-2 reinfection remains critical. Abbreviations CDC: Centers for Disease ControlSARS-CoV-2: Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2COVID-19: Coronavirus disease 2019RT-PCR: Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain ReactionPASC: Post-Acute Sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection
ISSN:2000-9666
2000-9666
DOI:10.1080/20009666.2021.1974665