A new study claims that those who previously had COVID-19 may be less likely to spread the virus and will experience less severe side effects if they are reinfected.
The study, which was conducted by the U.K.’s Office for National Statistics, researched nearly 200 people who previously contracted COVID-19 again more than three months after their first positive test or after four negative tests. Scientists concluded that patients maintained lower viral loads during their second battle with the virus than during their initial infection. This is why symptoms are milder during the second bout with the disease. Researchers stated that people likely had a “stronger immune response” to the first infection, which makes for a mild reinfection if any.
This latest analysis was conducted between late April and mid-July In partnership with the University of Oxford.
Luckily, the risk of reinfection was modest, with a “strong positive” test occurring at a rate of 3.1 per 100,000 individuals.
Currently, in the U.K., the highly contagious Delta strain remains the dominant variant. On Tuesday, Britain reported its highest COVID-19 deaths and hospitalizations since March, with 131 new fatalities.
