Man gets Covid twice with second infection much more severe

[Chickenandrice]

Article in bbc. He is young -only 25. It does say reinfection is rare and let’s hope that remains the case. This virus has so many unknowns associated with it we just don’t know much about it all yet.

@Belle0705

Reinfection will be mn's new Long Covid I can see it now...

Yep!

We've already had the usual suspects with "relatives" assuring us it's actually quite common, even though there have only been a handful of confirmed reinfections, out of the hundreds of millions believed to have been infected with the virus worldwide.

@IcedPurple to be confirmed they have to sequence both times. That’s Incredibly rare! Doesn’t mean reinfection isn’t far more widespread. I am not making up the fact that I know of someone who’s had it twice.

[quote Oaktree55]@IcedPurple to be confirmed they have to sequence both times. That’s Incredibly rare! Doesn’t mean reinfection isn’t far more widespread. I am not making up the fact that I know of someone who’s had it twice.[/quote]
Well yeah, but given that the WHO estimates that maybe 10% of the world's population has had Covid - meaning about 700 million people - there is no reason to believe reinfection is 'common' in that context. Anecdotes on MN don't change that.

@IcedPurple I think you need to look at what the majority of virologists think which is that this coronavirus will behave similarly to the existing circulating coronaviruses ie immunity will be short lived.

@Belle0705 Reinfection will be mn's new Long Covid I can see it now...
Along with the many who knew at least 7 people under 40 with no underlying conditions who died from CV.

[quote Marcellemouse]**@Belle0705* Reinfection will be mn's new Long Covid I can see it now...*
Along with the many who knew at least 7 people under 40 with no underlying conditions who died from CV.[/quote]
Yes. Always marathon runners too

We need to be very cautious drawing conclusions from small samples - there are other studies of reinfection (also one or two individuals) which showed that the second infection was much less serious. With any virus, there will be both extremes. If you catch flu twice, one case may be worse or better than the other - but it doesn't mean anything at all.

I wouldn’t worry, this sometimes happens. You can only get chicken pox a certain amount of times but I had it one extra time than normal-what a kick in the teeth!

@Oaktree55

I have an extended family member infected twice 5 months apart. I think it’s happening a lot but under radar as young, mildly affected and get mild symptoms. My guess is young will prove to be a reservoir for this virus. It amazes me people say only handful of cases. What you mean to say is a handful of cases sequenced and documented.

If it isn't sequenced and documented then there is no evidence at all that it happened. C19 symptoms overlap with many viral infections, and without two confirmed tests, either or both infections could have been something else entirely. If the relative had two confirmed tests I am amazed they weren't immediately traced and asked for further tests - reinfections are something that medical professionals and the system are actively seeking out to try to understand it.

I think they've always said that having it doesn't mean you're immune - unless of course your Donald Trump!

There is a big gap between what is happening and what is being "officially confirmed" as happening with this virus.

Yes, surely we have all learnt that from February/early March.

@Moondust001 by that logic if we didnt do any testing no one would have coronavirus at all.

I'm sure there are a few teams of researchers looking at reinfection but most medical personnel arent at all. And its pretty easy to get cv and get no closer to a doctor than the call handler on the 111 service or a text from track and trace.

@Moondust001 yes I appreciate that thank you. However in this instance it’s pretty certain it was Covid. 18 yrs loss of smell, lab tested for antibodies all household positive (hence reduces chance it was false positive). Pcr positive September.

I don’t know why you find it surprising given circulating Cov’s have short immunity? Anecdotal evidence from Iran which was hit earlier than U.K. is showing loads of reinfections in prominent people there.

It is well documented that strenuous exercise can temporarily weaken your immune system. Back in March there was a lot of coverage of Italy's 'Patient 1', a 38 year old man known as Mattia, who ended up in ICU for over a month. He was a marathon runner.

Some people here are absolutely clueless.

[quote Oaktree55]@Moondust001 yes I appreciate that thank you. However in this instance it’s pretty certain it was Covid. 18 yrs loss of smell, lab tested for antibodies all household positive (hence reduces chance it was false positive). Pcr positive September.

I don’t know why you find it surprising given circulating Cov’s have short immunity? Anecdotal evidence from Iran which was hit earlier than U.K. is showing loads of reinfections in prominent people there.[/quote]
I also have been tested for anti-bodies and tested positive. The only period of symptoms I had was 22nd December onwards, I haven't been to China, and according to "science" I couldn't have had it then! Unless there is a test at the time that confirms it, then it cannot be verified. Sorry, but every single one of the symptoms for C19 - even in combination - can be symptomatic of other viral infections. It is not that I am saying it doesn't happen. I said that we have to to very very cautious about what it means if it happens. If you read what I said I actually said that instances of one or two people getting worse reinfections clash with other research saying the opposite - and the few verifiable cases of reinfection do not confirm this matter either way as a result. I certainly said nothing about reinfection not being possible, nor did I say that there is short or long immunity. Nobody can give any absolutes on either of those matters because there isn't enough evidence anywhere in the world yet. Anecdotes aren't evidence.

But the fact that I have been credited with saying two things I didn't say whilst nobody noticed what I did say is evidence of how easily people become misinformed by what they read.

[quote Porcupineinwaiting]@Moondust001 by that logic if we didnt do any testing no one would have coronavirus at all.

I'm sure there are a few teams of researchers looking at reinfection but most medical personnel arent at all. And its pretty easy to get cv and get no closer to a doctor than the call handler on the 111 service or a text from track and trace.[/quote]
It is also pretty easy to misinterpret common symptoms of many infections as C19 simply because that is what people think they have. I did not suggest that we shouldn't test - I have no idea where you got that from. But if there isn't a positive test it is equally possible that someone has one of the many other viral infections that cause the same symptoms and are equally as common and infectious.

Of course that's worrying news. However when I heard it reported on BBC 4 this morning it was followed immediately by a segment reporting that Trump says he's immune.

My first thought wasn't "oh crap we can get it twice" it was "blimey Trump is even more of a twit than I thought!!"

I won't worry about this until I know someone who has been infected twice. I know plenty of people who have had covid and none have caught it twice so far.

@Redolent

It is well documented that strenuous exercise can temporarily weaken your immune system. Back in March there was a lot of coverage of Italy's 'Patient 1', a 38 year old man known as Mattia, who ended up in ICU for over a month. He was a marathon runner.

Some people here are absolutely clueless.

So marathon runners should be added to the risk list as well then?

@Moondust001 was it a lab antibody test and did the rest of your household test positive too? This is the key to my story you’re conveniently missing out. Yes it’s not 100% but I’d put money on it!

@Moondust001 follow some virologists see whether they think this Cov will behave differently to circulating ones!

some of you dismissing the vaccine after reading the article - glad you’ve all studied the field extensively in order to state these things

Assuming the scientific consensus is that you don’t usually get it twice, it isn’t massively surprising that some people might. We are humans, not robots. Like others have said, it’s unusual to get chicken pox multiple times but it’s not impossible.

@Belle0705

No, engaging in strenuous exercise is not a health condition. You’re not the sharpest tool in the box are you?

I supposed they'll be looking to see if this was covid related or something specific to this man's immune system.

There were recent headlines about measles wipes out the body's immune memory make you wonder if there are other viruses out there that do similar, or if his immune system has deteriorate since first infection or if there a genetic reason he hasn't developed immunity or his immune system has responded incorrectly with second infection all on top of declining immunity to coronaviruses and how that might vary between individuals.

The poor man does seem to have been particularly unlucky.