Man who had longest COVID infection finally cured. Here’s how
2 min read . Updated: 06 Nov 2022, 06:11 PM IST
PremiumDoctors were able to cure the man with a mix of neutralising antibodies known to be effective against early coronavirus variants
A Covid patient who testest for 411 days has finally been cured. This is the longest phase a patient has suffered from the infection anywhere in the world.
As per reports, 59-year-old British man patient first tested positive in December 2020 and he continued to test positive for Covid until January 2022. However, he had no symptoms of the infection. As per doctors, the patient had a weak immune system as he has been through a kidney transplant. Genetic analysis showed that the patient was infected with an early variant of the original Wuhan strain
Doctors at Guy's and St Thomas' Hospitals in London where he was treated told Sky News that there is no other documented case suggesting that anyone has suffered from the infection for such a long time.
How was the patient cured of the infection?
London medical experts were able to cure the man with a mix of neutralising antibodies known to be effective against early coronavirus variants, Independent reported. The experts said that such treatments would probably no longer work.
The team crushed up two antiviral treatments not previously used together -- Paxlovid and remdesivir -- and administered them to the unconscious patient via a nasal tube, according to the report. "Miraculously he cleared and perhaps this is now the avenue for how we treat these very difficult persistent infections," Luke Snell, a physician specializing in infectious diseases at Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust said, emphasizing that this treatment may not translate for normal COVID cases.
In cases of persistent infection, a patient can display symptoms for months or longer but does not test positive. This is different from long Covid. In UK, government statistics show that an estimated 2.1 million people – 3.3 per cent of the population – are suffering from long Covid, Independent reported.
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