What happens if we pass the antibody test?

[FaFoutis]

I have seen mention of people being able to go back to work if they have recovered from the virus, so immunity is being assumed. Or was, on that day by that person.
If we pass do we get different rules, and a certificate or similar?

@Postspecific
How long did you have the breathlessness.
I've had similar not cough yet. Day 19 still breathless though

That is crap flamingo.
You generally only get cp once. Shingles is reactivation like a cold sore. Contagious to others by touch but you haven't caught it again.
Though hopefully covid doesn't reactivate!
You can get the other strain of covid though as someone had both...

I heard an interview with someone from a company developing this kind of test. It has 2 markers: one for the antigens (I think), which shows you're currently infected, and the other for the antibodies, which shows you have had the infection. However, what is not known yet is how much immunity the antibodies give you, and for how long. This will only become apparent over time (I don't know how long). Also, I thought that if you have the antibodies, the virus is not reproducing in you so it's very unlikely that you'd pass it on to someone else. But I'm not a epidemiologist so might be making that up completely

Maybe it’ll be like the film Contagion and we’ll get green bracelets that get scanned before we’re allowed back in shopping malls etc

Still knackered but breathless for about 3/4 days (although even now I can’t do too much) The aches started in legs, then back and chest and now thankfully seem to have gone. Thought I was just really unfit until DH felt the same a few days later.

@Keepdistance

I've possibly had coronavirus, and I was just about better after a fortnight, but the breathlessness comes on every two or three days quite randomly still. I read somewhere that lungs can take a while to fully recover. It's improving, just quite slowly.

Even on Contagion those bracelets were misused. (I think, if I understood the end of it at all, in fact it didn't seem to end except with the pig and bat from the start.)
There will be fakes on ebay instantly.

That test result will be valuable currency. Could get nasty.

I'm almost completely sure I have had the virus, caught it off someone who was tested in the early days of it (via Italy). I still get breathless moments and I'm still coughing - this must be 3 weeks for me.

I've two questions about the antibody test.

1. How long immunity lasts. Wouldn't you have to keep doing the test every month or two until scientists knew for sure what the minimum was.

1. You could still carry the virus on your hands etc when you went out and about so could pass it on to vulnerable family members even if you yourself were safe couldn't you?

From The Telegraph today:
German researchers plan to introduce coronavirus ‘immunity certificates’ to facilitate a proper transition into post-lockdown life, as Chancellor Angela Merkel’s handling of the crisis has led to a boost in the polls.
The antibodies will indicate that the test participants have had the virus, have healed and are thereby ready to re-enter society and the workforce. The researchers plan to test 100,000 members of the public at a time, issuing documentation to those who have overcome the virus.

At the moment surely they can only show immunity lasts 3 months? It hasn’t been around long enough unless there is some clever science. Also as it has split in at least 2 strains, does it protect from both.

Also as others have said you can still spread it physically from surfaces etc

I don't think it will make any difference other than tracking the disease. Our only 'out' is a vaccine.

@EightNineTen Did you have the cough? I didn’t so I’m not sure... crazy back and leg pain though and felt like dry drowning when lying down.

I’m keen to see if we’ve already had a huge proportion of people recover from it - it will make the death rate that much less terrifying.

I wonder how sensitive and specific the tests are - if they are being rushed out.

Sensitive - if 100 people have antibodies, then 99% sensitivity means that 99 of those people will test positive -

i.e. Given the patient has antibodies, what are the chances of them testing positive

Specificity - if it's 99% specific, then out of 100 people who test negative, then 99 of them are actually negative

Given a test is negative, what are the chances of that person actually being negative

So getting the test right and the testing right is really important - otherwise you'll have people who think they have antibodies and are immune who aren't

And you'll have people who don't think they have antibodies so worry and they actually do have immunity.

This is why test development takes time.

There's going to be a huge black market for fake certificates!

Right so in Germany you get this certificate.. Get out of lockdown. Resume some sort of normality.

What if you never get the virus?? What if it just passes you by.. You dont get a certificate.. You stay in till when??

That's partly why I think this will be for statistics rather than individuals at first choma. If you know the test is only 90% accurate you can allow for that in calculations.
I do want a certificate / wristband though.

You can get the other strain of covid though as someone had both

Oh god, what is the other strain?

Interesting on the antibody tests:

As is typical for such a test, it detects both immunoglobulin (Ig) M and IgG antibodies, which are released during the initial and later stages of an infection, respectively.

It has conducted validation studies that compared its test with PCR, using samples from 114 infected patients and 126 uninfected controls. The test scored highly in terms of specificity. “We had a true negative rate of 100% — zero false positives,” says Gunther Burgard, medical director at Pharmact. Its sensitivity was lower, however, as the IgM response does not offer a strong initial signal. During the early stage of the infection (days 4–10), the IgM component of the test provides a sensitivity of just 70%. This rises rapidly to 92.3% between days 11 and 24, and the IgG component of the test offers a sensitivity of 98.6% during this phase of the infection. Overall, the test has a false negative rate of 13%, Burgard says

www.nature.com/articles/d41587-020-00010-2

You stay in until there's a vaccine I suppose frasers. It all sounds unworkable really.

And now I'm getting adverts for antibody tests
Sometimes I miss my old life....

They won't give immunity 'passes'. A few more weeks of this I think a lot of us will be desperate enough to risk deliberate infection to be able to resume normal life 2 weeks later. The government will realise this surely.

@Postspecific - no, no cough. Many people don't have the cough. I had high temperature, breathlessness, the first day my hands ached so much I could hardly move them, a sore throat, headache, fatigue, and at the beginning diarrhoea. Also had the feeling of something pressing on my chest.