A study co-led by the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal) analyzed the presence of antibodies in healthcare personnel who were infected with SARS-CoV-2 more than a year ago and proved that immunity is long-lasting.
The project started in the first wave of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic and it followed 173 workers from primary care centers in Catalonia that had been infected, carrying out serology analyses over the months:
- At 9 months, 92.4% were still seropositive (90% had IgG, 76% IgA, and 61% specific IgM)
- In April 2021 (after approximately one year from the start of the study), 96.88% of the 64 workers who had not yet been vaccinated were still seropositive (95.31% IgG, 82.81% IgA)
“Considering that the antibody levels achieved upon vaccination are usually higher than those generated upon natural infection, our results suggest that vaccine-induced immunity will also be long-lasting”
Carlota Dobaño, ISGlobal, first co-author of the study.
With the results that show that the IgG remain stable, the hope of a long-lasting immunity thanks to the COVID-19 vaccine increases.
Dobaño, C., Ramírez-Morros, A., Alonso, S. et al. Persistence and baseline determinants of seropositivity and reinfection rates in health care workers up to 12.5 months after COVID-19. BMC Med 19, 155 (2021).
