Covid Antibodies Are You Immune Amidst This Pandemic

Are you immune amidst this pandemic?
COVID-19 positive! A phrase, not even a year ago, implied definitive death and doom. The pandemic has brought to light that not everyone has the same immunity level, not everyone gets infected by the virus and not every infection ends in mortality. But this set of thoughts lead to several doubts
Am I prone to get COVID-19 infection again?
What are the chances of me getting infected?
Has my immune system developed sufficient antibodies to fight the infection?
Has the vaccine worked for me?

To simplify, all viruses are like parasites that only reproduce within cells. Thus, they are very different from bacteria, which are often found in soil, water or within organisms and are self-multiplying.

SARS-CoV-2- As we all know Viruses are classified into two general categories, those in which the genetic material is DNA and those in which the genetic material is RNA. Among the viral family, Coronaviruses possess RNA molecules as their genetic material. Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus2 (SARS-CoV-2), the virus that causes Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID19), belongs to the same family as SARS-CoV, which was responsible for the SARS outbreak in 2003.

SARS-CoV-2- What more you need to know?
SARS-CoV-2 shows the tendency for mutation and there are at least 10 variants of this virus have been identified and subsequently named by World Health Organization (WHO).

Speaking of statistics, SARS-CoV-2 virus has infected more than 17.6 crore people globally. In India alone, more than 2.96 crore people have been infected and more than 3 lakh lives have been lost.

Prevailing Doubts about COVID Testing
As we have learned in previous articles, whenever any antigen is recognized by the body, an immune response is developed in the form of antibodies, specifically against either of the viral components like nucleocapsid, surface proteins or fragments. The developed Antibodies like IgA, IgG, IgM that confer immunity, can be measured for estimating the extent of immune response generated.

There are overwhelming number of techniques for determining the immune response developed against COVID-19, along with ample vaccine choices. These technological advancements and the new-found information add to the already peaked anxiety and uncertainty pertaining to COVID-19. It is puzzling to understand which test to go for.

About COVID-19 test About The constant worry about our safety plaques our peace of mind. Now, more than ever before, it is better to be safe than to be sorry. To begin with, available tests for COVID-19 are broadly classified into two categories

Viral Test It aids in detecting a current infection. Two types of viral tests that can be used RT-PCR test
Antigen Test

Covid Antibody Total - Elisa Tests
It can give you information about your past infection, by assessing the antibodies produced to combat the infection. Antibody test is not used for diagnosing an ongoing infection. However, it can be used to check the immunity status of an individual by knowing the type of antibodies produced against the virus.

Why to Measure COVID Antibodies?
Inferences from the tests act as an indirect assurance of protection by antibodies against the COVID-19 infection. The antibodies could be produced by the immune system as an adaptive immune response when exposed to the virus or after the COVID-19 vaccine is injected.

Different vaccines develop antibodies against different epitopes of the virus. Thus, it is better to assess yourself with technologies that evaluate antibodies against various viral epitopes to gain confidence of protection.

COVID Antibody Testing @ HealthcareOnTime In Thyrocare, there are collection of antibody tests that can give you a better picture of your immunity against the virus. These tests are performed using multiple technologies and brands to detect specific class of antibodies produced in the body against the virus.