Bengaluru: Woman tested Covid negative, discharged, turns out be positive a month later

BENGALURU: A 27-year-old woman from Bengaluru is suspected to be a case of reinfection of SARS-CoV2. The Covid positive woman who was discharged from a private hospital in July after she tested negative came back with similar symptoms of cough, fever, sore throat a month later, and tested positive again.
Fortis hospital, Bannerghatta road where she was treated in both the episodes claims that it is a case of reinfection. The patient was tested positive for Covid on July 6 and she was admitted to Fortis on July 7. She recovered well and she turned out to be negative on July 24, following which she was discharged on July 25.
She also returned to work once she was better post discharge. However, on August 25, she developed symptoms again and consulted doctors, followed by tests. She tested positive for a rapid antigen test. “After the rapid test gave positive results, we conducted the RT-PCR test as well and she turned out to be positive. We also did an antibody test for her, only to know that there were no antibodies present,” said Dr Pratik Patil, Consultant, Infectious Diseases, Fortis hospital.
According to the doctors, this can mean two things. “Either her body has not developed antibodies at all, or it didn't last for more than a month,” said Dr Prathik.
To declare a case of reinfection, it has to be proved that the genetic sequence of the virus was different in both the infections. However, in this case, the hospital does not have the swab sample taken in July when the woman was first infected. The swab sample was destroyed scientifically soon after her testing as it was biohazard. “We have not been able to do the genetic culture tests in her case, though,” says Dr Pratik.
So far, the first documented case of Covid-19 reinfection is of a 33-year-old man from Hong Kong, who was first tested positive in March and then after a gap of four and a half months in July. The scientists from the University of Hong Kong conducted genetic sequencing from the virus from the two infections and declared that they did not match, indicating the reinfection.
When the Bengaluru woman tested positive for the second time, the hospital said, the same was communicated to the health and family welfare department officials. “Our concern was to bring to the notice of the health department. But we were told that there were no such official channels to report cases of reinfection,” Dr Pratik said.
However, when contacted Dr Arundhati Chandrashekar, Mission Director, National Health Mission, whose team prepares the daily Covid bulletin said she was not aware of the case. “We will check,” she said.
The woman has recovered now and is all set to be discharged. No pre-discharge test is being done now, as per the current testing protocol which does not mandate a test if there are no symptoms.