Most people who have received Covid-19 have been protected from catching the virus again for at least six months, but elderly patients are more likely to relapse, according to a new study from the Denmark published in the medical journal The Lancet.
Although the modern coronavirus has killed nearly 121 million people and killed more than 2.67 million worldwide, the extent of SARS-CoV-2 infection is not well reported. provides protection from subsequent relapse.
In 2020, approximately 4 million people (69% of the population) underwent 10.6 million RT-PCR tests for the virus in Denmark. After analyzing these data, the researchers have reported that only a small proportion of people (0.65%) returned a twice-advanced positive PCR test.
However, while preexisting disease protected people under 65 years of age against relapse, for people aged 65 and over it provided only 47% protection, indicating that they are more likely to have Covid -19 capture again.
The researchers found no evidence that protection against relapse decreased within six months thereafter.
The findings reinforce the importance of measures to protect the elderly at the time of the pandemic, such as improved social distance and priority for vaccines, even for those who have undergone Covid-19. The analysis also suggests that people who have contracted the virus should still be vaccinated.