JUNE - JULY 2022
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s we head further from the peak of the vaccine campaign and the Omicron outbreak, people’s immunity will eventually start to wane. The coronavirus is also continuing to mutate, with subvariants like BA.4 potentially making it easier for people to be reinfected.
Does reinfection increase the risk of Long Covid?
University of Auckland Dr Anna Brooks says “we are hearing from our international partners that anecdotally, repeat infections, especially in children and adolescents may lead to a higher chance of long term health complications, including Long Covid. “We know that vaccinations are excellent at protecting against severe illness, however they aren’t great at reducing the risk of Long Covid. Protective immunity will also wane over time. Symptomatic infections, even while triple vaccinated are common. 66 safetynews.co.nz
What you need to know about Covid-19 reinfection New Covid-19 variants and waning immunity could see more New Zealanders catching the virus for a second time “In addition, surviving one infection unscathed does not mean you will be out of the woods with getting Long Covid. It might be a 2nd or 3rd exposure that triggers this illness. “Many also don’t seem to realise that there are no treatments to reverse the debilitating symptoms experienced (shortness of breath, brain fog/cognitive impairment, extreme fatigue to name a few). “Limiting exposure to the virus, even if previously infected and/or fully
vaccinated is the best way to avoid the risk of developing long term health complications.”
If you’ve already had Covid-19, how well are you protected from getting it again?
The figure of three months of immunity is largely a generalisation, Brooks says. “Cases of reinfection are definitely occurring within this time frame. Even if you’ve had Covid, you may have fairly decent immunity for at least a month or
so, but you’re certainly not immune to further infections in the near future. The best approach is to avoid exposure, regardless of your vaccination or preinfection status.” University of Otago Dr Dianne Sika-Paotonu says many who’ve recovered from Covid-19 will have developed immunity at least for the initial months following infection, however re-infection risk with the SARS-CoV-2 virus remains. “Although previous infection with the SARS-
