Highlights
- 27-year-old woman from Bengaluru had tested positive for COVID-19 in July
- After recovery the woman again reported symptoms of COVID-19, in August
- Test shows she had no antibodies against COVID-19 to develop an immunity
New Delhi: In the first week of July, a 27-year-old woman from Bengaluru developed fever and cough following which she tested positive for Novel Coronavirus. The woman had a mild infection and recovered soon without any complications. After testing negative for COVID-19 disease the woman was successfully discharged from the hospital. However, after one month of recovery, in the last week of August, the woman again contracted SARS-CoV-2 and tested positive for COVID-19. The case from Fortis Hospital on Bannerghatta Road is reportedly the first incidence of coronavirus reinfection in Bengaluru.
Explaining the case of reinfection , Dr Pratik Patil an Infectious Diseases Consultant at Fortis Hospital’s Bannerghatta Road facility said,
Immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibodies usually represents the immune response and test comes positive after 2-3 weeks of infection showing that the patient has developed COVID-fighting cells. However, in this patient, the antibody test has come out negative, which means she did not develop immunity following the first infection. The other possibility is that the antibodies disappeared within the months’ time, leaving her susceptible to reinfection.
Dr Patil also suggested that it may be possible that some patients don’t develop antibodies at all. However, there is not much literature about it but the development of antibodies varies from individual to individual.
Talking about the possibility of reinfections Dr Ravindra M. Mehta, Chief of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine at Apollo Hospitals, Bengaluru, suggested understanding that whether it is actually a case of reinfection or a suggestion of reinfection. He said,
In Hong Kong, coronavirus reinfection was confirmed only after a genomic study which showed that reinfection happened with a second strain of virus. That is something we have not done in this case.
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Elaborating on immunity and what can lead to reinfections, Dr Mehta added,
The possible reasons are, say, you got an infection but your immune system didn’t produce a response or enough response to have lasting immunity. A decay of immunity is a known case. Secondly, we cannot measure immunity. We have an antibody test but it a qualitative test and not a quantitative test so we don’t know how much antibodies have been developed by an individual and how many are required. Thirdly, the reinfection has been concluded based on a test. Low level of viral shedding goes on for weeks. Therefore, based on this case, we cannot assume that all of us with low antibodies or low immune response will get reinfected.
Dr Mehta also noted that patients reporting developing infection for the second time have mild symptoms only. Patients of coronavirus reinfections are not developing severe disease.
Contrary to this, Dr Patil said that currently, we don’t have enough information to state that the second round of infection will unifromly be weaker than the first one. He said,
This particular patient had a mild infection. In some cases of viral infection, the second infection is milder but in some, like dengue, the reinfection tends to be severe if you have had dengue once.
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The reinfection is a matter of concern especially when India has started to report over 90,000 fresh COVID-19 cases and is now the second worst-hit country in the world. It also raises a question about the duration for which a vaccine would remain effective. According to Dr Mehta, this may not have a bearing on vaccine development.
Talking about immune response and vaccine, Dr Patil said,
Not everybody who takes vaccine will develop an immune response. In the case of influenza, the vaccine gives protection IN 60 per cent of the cases. 30-40 per cent of cases do not develop antibodies. We will have to see the efficacy of the COVID-19 vaccine and the immunity it provides.
According to Dr Jayaprakash Muliyil, Ex. Principal, CMC Vellore and Leading Epidemiologist, there may not be a need for a different vaccine for the modified strain of virus causing reinfections because those viruses may not be too different in genetic sequence from the original virus. Having said that, Dr Muliyil emphasised on more evidence and information.
COVID-19 Reinfections Across The World
Earlier in August, researchers from the Hong Kong University revealed the first confirmed case of COVID-19 reinfection after a 33-year-old IT (Information Technology) worker who contracted the coronavirus in March this year and was cleared of Covid-19 and discharged from a hospital in April, tested positive for the virus again after returning from Spain in August. The findings also show that the viral strain in the reinfection is genetically varied from the virus contracted by him earlier.
A day after the case of Coronavirus reinfection from Hong Kong came to notice, the Health Minister of Telangana announced that at least two cases of reinfection have taken place in the state.
Two patients in Europe have also been confirmed to have been re-infected with COVID-19.
Dr Muliyil said that reinfection is expected but rare and added,
For example, there is a 24 per cent chance that an adult who is fully vaccinated with poliovirus can establish the virus temporarily if given the poliovirus. But in the case of coronavirus, the human body is not easily permitting reinfections.
In a media briefing on September 7, while responding to journalists, the World Health Organisation (WHO) also addressed the issue of coronavirus reinfection. Talking about the behaviour of the virus in the case of reinfections, Dr Maria Van Kerkhove, Technical Lead COVID-19, WHO Health Emergencies Programme, informed that a number of studies are underway that are following individuals – the same individual over time and said,
The studies are looking at how strong that antibody response is depending on the type of disease you experience – whether you have asymptomatic infection, mild disease or all the way severe disease. We are seeing that people even with the asymptomatic infection still develop an immune response. What we need to understand how strong that is and for long it lasts.
Dr Maria noted that there are some very promising results from these studies showing that the antibody response lasts, it stays strong for a certain number of months. She added,
We are only eight months into this pandemic and we have not followed individuals for many, many months so we don’t know how long that robust immune response lasts.
Dr Maria also spoke about cases of coronavirus reinfections from Hong Kong and the United States that were confirmed by full genome sequencing and in those cases, health experts are trying to understand the immune response. She said,
We are looking at what type of immune response did they have on their first infection, if that was even measured and then at the time of the second infection, did they have measurable antibodies. In some individuals, the immune response may decline. But again, out of more than 26 million cases having some case reports of reinfection tells us that this is possible but it doesn’t tell us what’s happening at a population level.
NDTV – Dettol Banega Swasth India campaign is an extension of the five-year-old Banega Swachh India initiative helmed by Campaign Ambassador Amitabh Bachchan. It aims to spread awareness about critical health issues facing the country. In wake of the current COVID-19 pandemic, the need for WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) is reaffirmed as handwashing is one of the ways to prevent Coronavirus infection and other diseases. The campaign highlights the importance of nutrition and healthcare for women and children to prevent maternal and child mortality, fight malnutrition, stunting, wasting, anaemia and disease prevention through vaccines. Importance of programmes like Public Distribution System (PDS), Mid-day Meal Scheme, POSHAN Abhiyan and the role of Aganwadis and ASHA workers are also covered. Only a Swachh or clean India where toilets are used and open defecation free (ODF) status achieved as part of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2014, can eradicate diseases like diahorrea and become a Swasth or healthy India. The campaign will continue to cover issues like air pollution, waste management, plastic ban, manual scavenging and sanitation workers and menstrual hygiene.
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State & District Details
State | Cases | Active | Recovered | Deaths |
---|---|---|---|---|
DistrictCases Mumbai45,478 Thane13,660 Pune9,920 Mumbai Suburban5,363 Aurangabad1,974 Nashik1,575 Raigad1,462 Palghar1,421 Solapur1,291 Jalgaon1,039 Akola757 Nagpur692 Kolhapur646 Satara629 Ratnagiri350 Amravati291 Dhule228 Hingoli208 Jalna201 Ahmednagar190 Nanded176 Yavatmal150 Sangli145 Latur139 Osmanabad125 Sindhudurg114 Buldhana88 Parbhani78 gondia69 Beed54 Nandurbar42 Gadchiroli42 Bhandara41 Chandrapur32 Washim13 Wardha11 | 21,21,119 8,807 | 60,559 5,955 | 20,08,623 2,772 | 51,937 80 |
DistrictCases Kannur357 Kasaragod333 Palakkad224 Malappuram119 Kollam118 Thrissur106 Thiruvananthapuram104 Pathanamthitta98 Kozhikode90 Alappuzha76 Kottayam73 Ernakulam60 Idukki40 Wayanad36 | 10,45,009 4,106 | 53,153 1,796 | 9,87,720 5,885 | 4,136 17 |
DistrictCases Udupi1,176 Kalaburagi669 Yadgir538 Bengaluru Urban529 Raichur369 Mandya346 Belagavi337 Bidar219 Hassan205 Davangere204 Vijayapura201 Dakshina Kannada179 Chikkaballapura149 Mysuru107 Bagalkote103 Uttara Kannada95 Shivamogga67 Dharwad61 Ballari60 Gadag45 Bengaluru Rural40 Tumakuru36 Kolar29 Haveri24 Chikkamagaluru19 Chitradurga14 Koppal5 Kodagu4 Ramanagara3 Chamarajanagara0 | 9,49,183 334 | 6,096 15 | 9,30,778 313 | 12,309 6 |
DistrictCases Kurnool795 Krishna557 Guntur511 Anantapur428 East Godavari356 Chittoor319 Sri Potti Sriramulu Nell*296 Y.S.R.205 West Godavari199 Srikakulam183 Prakasam104 Visakhapatnam103 Vizianagaram23 | 8,89,503 94 | 603 28 | 8,81,732 66 | 7,168 |
DistrictCases Chennai23,324 Chengalpattu1,314 Thiruvallur774 Villupuram509 Kanchipuram503 Tiruvannamalai496 Cuddalore477 Ariyalur444 Tirunelveli433 Tuticorin333 Kallakurichi324 Madurai322 Salem258 Coimbatore188 Virudhunagar185 Dindigul175 Perambalur133 Ranipet133 Thanjavur130 Theni129 Tiruchirappalli119 Ramanathapuram119 Tiruppur116 Kanniyakumari110 Tenkasi103 Nagapattinam99 Karur88 Namakkal83 Erode75 Vellore71 Thiruvarur67 Pudukkottai53 Sivaganga46 Tirupathur45 Krishnagiri43 The Nilgiris17 Dharmapuri15 | 8,49,629 463 | 4,062 12 | 8,33,089 469 | 12,478 6 |
DistrictCases North West5,463 Central4,817 West4,768 New Delhi3,405 North3,059 East2,472 South East2,446 South West2,391 South2,329 North East1,914 Shahdara1,580 | 6,38,373 200 | 1,137 128 | 6,26,331 70 | 10,905 2 |
DistrictCases Gautam Buddha Nagar1,119 Agra933 Ghaziabad794 Meerut504 Lucknow386 Saharanpur298 Kanpur Nagar286 Moradabad252 Varanasi243 Hapur225 Aligarh215 Basti214 Amethi206 Rampur203 Jaunpur194 Firozabad190 Barabanki168 Gorakhpur166 Bulandshahr166 Siddharth Nagar159 Ghazipur159 Bijnor157 Deoria143 Azamgarh138 Sant Kabeer Nagar132 Mathura129 Ayodhya120 Muzaffarnagar117 Sambhal116 Sultanpur97 Ambedkar Nagar92 Maharajganj85 Amroha80 Rae Bareli78 Bahraich73 Kheri72 Kannauj69 Baghpat68 Kushi Nagar67 Bhadohi60 Ballia60 Gonda59 Etah52 Hardoi49 Balrampur49 Mau48 Mainpuri46 Etawah46 Hathras43 Unnao42 Jalaun41 Jhansi41 Shamli40 Chandauli38 Auraiya37 Farrukhabad36 Sitapur32 Prayagraj30 Banda27 Shahjahanpur25 Shravasti23 Budaun23 Mirzapur22 Bareilly17 Kasganj16 Pratapgarh15 Pilibhit15 Sonbhadra10 Kaushambi6 Kanpur Dehat4 Chitrakoot4 Lalitpur3 Hamirpur3 Mahoba3 Fatehpur3 | 6,03,103 128 | 2,190 78 | 5,92,192 203 | 8,721 3 |
DistrictCases Kolkata2,777 Howrah1,435 24 Paraganas North1,031 Hooghly604 24 Paraganas South281 Maldah235 Dinajpur Uttar216 Coochbehar210 Birbhum206 Medinipur West159 Medinipur East153 Nadia139 Purba Bardhaman130 Murshidabad125 Bankura116 Darjeeling97 Jalpaiguri88 Paschim Bardhaman70 Purulia66 Dinajpur Dakshin50 Alipurduar39 Kalimpong18 Jhargram9 | 5,74,301 202 | 3,377 22 | 5,60,668 221 | 10,256 3 |
DistrictCases Ganjam581 Jajapur322 Khordha238 Baleshwar190 Kendrapara164 Cuttack155 Bhadrak137 Balangir129 Puri103 Sundargarh102 Jagatsinghapur91 Nayagarh86 Mayurbhanj73 Nuapada69 Gajapati61 Dhenkanal36 Boudh34 Kendujhar34 Deogarh33 Kalahandi33 Sonepur29 Kandhamal28 Anugul26 Malkangiri20 Bargarh16 Koraput16 Sambalpur16 Jharsuguda8 Nabarangpur2 Rayagada2 | 3,36,835 68 | 588 22 | 3,34,333 90 | 1,914 |
DistrictCases Jaipur2,177 Jodhpur1,748 Udaipur724 Bharatpur563 Kota503 Nagaur500 Ajmer379 Dungarpur374 Pali352 Jhalawar329 Bhilwara250 Sikar231 Chittorgarh188 Tonk171 Jalore164 Rajsamand140 Sirohi130 Bikaner112 Banswara91 Alwar90 Churu81 Jhunjhunu64 Dausa61 Dholpur60 Baran59 Jaisalmer53 Barmer34 Hanumangarh31 SawaiMadhopur26 Karauli17 Pratapgarh14 Ganganagar8 Bundi5 | 3,19,801 99 | 1,204 9 | 3,15,812 90 | 2,785 |
DistrictCases Bilaspur100 Korba100 Mungeli87 Baloda Bazar85 Jashpur77 Janjgir-Champa56 Mahasamund54 Rajnandgaon52 Kabirdham52 Raigarh47 Raipur46 Balod41 Korea39 Durg31 Bemetara21 Kanker19 Balrampur17 Surguja14 Gariyaband10 Surajpur9 Dhamtari6 Bijapur2 Bastar2 Dantewada0 Kondagaon0 Narayanpur0 Sukma0 | 3,11,680 247 | 2,911 66 | 3,04,956 309 | 3,813 4 |
DistrictCases Hyderabad2,475 Ranga Reddy183 Suryapet87 Jagitial77 Nizamabad76 MedchalMalkajgiri75 Mancherial43 YadadriBhuvanagiri40 Jogulamba Gadwal40 Vikarabad40 Nalgonda33 Warangal Urban32 Mahabubnagar30 Sangareddy26 Khammam26 Adilabad22 Nirmal21 Karimnagar17 RajannaSircilla16 Medak11 Kamareddy11 Mahabubabad10 Jayashankar Bhupalapally9 Nagarkurnool8 Kumuram Bheem Asifabad8 Jangoan8 Siddipet7 Peddapalli5 Bhadradri Kothagudem5 Warangal Rural4 Mulugu3 Narayanpet3 Wanaparthy1 | 2,98,264 207 | 1,852 107 | 2,94,782 99 | 1,630 1 |
DistrictCases Gurugram2,950 Faridabad867 Sonipat404 Rohtak145 Palwal120 Jhajjar114 Karnal104 Hisar98 Ambala93 Panipat78 Nuh68 Bhiwani60 Rewari56 Kurukshetra55 Sirsa50 Kaithal48 Mahendragarh47 CharkiDadri43 Panchkula39 Fatehabad38 Jind38 Yamunanagar19 | 2,70,097 130 | 955 47 | 2,66,099 82 | 3,043 1 |
DistrictCases Ahmadabad17,125 Surat2,311 Vadodara1,555 Gandhinagar410 Mahesana159 Banas Kantha147 Bhavnagar146 Rajkot135 Arvalli134 Mahisagar125 Anand107 PanchMahals107 Patan105 SabarKantha101 Kachchh99 Kheda98 Jamnagar63 Bharuch56 Botad55 Surendranagar55 Valsad47 GirSomnath45 Dohad43 Chhotaudepur37 Naysari35 Junagadh31 Narmada25 DevbhumiDwarka22 Amreli16 Porbandar11 Tapi6 Dang5 Morbi4 | 2,68,147 380 | 1,869 83 | 2,61,871 296 | 4,407 1 |
DistrictCases Patna279 Bhagalpur266 Rohtas256 Khagaria253 Begusarai243 Madhubani199 Munger188 Jehanabad178 Katihar175 Darbhanga143 Samastipur139 Siwan139 PurbiChamparan138 Purnia135 Banka134 Buxar134 Nalanda123 Gopalganj123 Nawada122 Sheikhpura118 Gaya115 Kaimur (bhabua)105 Bhojpur103 Saran101 Muzaffarpur96 Saharsa88 Supaul87 Vaishali87 Madhepura82 Kishanganj75 Aurangabad75 Sitamarhi73 Lakhisarai72 Araria68 Pashchim Champaran57 Arwal52 Jamui47 Sheohar20 | 2,62,357 54 | 509 39 | 2,60,310 92 | 1,538 1 |
DistrictCases Indore3,839 Bhopal1,880 Ujjain799 Burhanpur351 Neemuch319 Jabalpur276 East Nimar266 Sagar228 Gwalior211 Khargone196 Dewas140 Dhar132 Mandsaur112 Morena109 Bhind87 Raisen71 Barwani60 Ratlam51 Rewa39 Shajapur39 Hoshangabad37 Vidisha37 Chhatarpur35 Betul35 Rajgarh31 Dindori29 Sheopur26 Damoh26 Satna24 Anuppur22 Panna20 Tikamgarh18 Sidhi17 Narsinghpur17 Chhindwara16 Agar Malwa15 Mandla15 Shivpuri15 Jhabua14 Shandol14 Singrauli13 Ashoknagar13 Datia12 Sehore12 Umaria10 Balaghat9 Guna8 Harda4 Alirajpur3 Katni3 Seoni2 Niwari0 | 2,60,313 344 | 2,270 119 | 2,54,186 223 | 3,857 2 |
DistrictCases Kamrup Metro276 Golaghat203 Nagaon143 Hojai89 Dima Hasao86 Karimganj85 Tinsukia84 Cachar80 Dibrugarh61 Hailakandi57 Lakhimpur57 Marigaon50 Dhemaji47 Kamrup42 Kokrajhar37 Dhubri30 Charaideo29 Barpeta28 Udalguri28 Sonitpur27 Jorhat24 Nalbari23 Darrang20 Sivasagar20 Goalpara19 Biswanath16 Baksa14 KarbiAnglong13 Bongaigaon12 Chirang6 West KarbiAnglong5 South SalmaraMancachar4 Majuli2 | 2,17,454 27 | 1,606 2 | 2,14,757 25 | 1,091 |
DistrictCases Amritsar485 Jalandhar297 Ludhiana293 Tarn Taran163 Gurdaspur154 Hoshiarpur140 S.A.S Nagar137 Patiala132 Sangrur107 Shahid Bhagat Singh Nagar (Nawanshahr)99 Pathankot86 Rupnagar (Ropar)74 Faridkot74 Sri Muktsar Sahib71 Moga65 Bathinda60 Fatehgarh Sahib57 Fazilka53 Firozepur50 Kapurthala44 Mansa31 Barnala25 | 1,79,819 558 | 3,598 303 | 1,70,435 248 | 5,786 7 |
DistrictCases Anantnag395 Srinagar300 Kulgam295 Baramulla271 Shopian255 Kupwara231 Bandipora175 Udhampur155 Ramban151 Jammu138 Budgam110 Pulwama108 Kathua53 Rajouri39 Ganderbal37 Poonch35 Doda27 Reasi26 Samba25 Kishtwar10 Mirpur0 Muzaffarabad0 | 1,26,093 74 | 771 5 | 1,23,367 69 | 1,955 |
DistrictCases East Singhbum170 Ranchi148 Hazaribagh110 Garhwa80 Ramgarh75 Koderma58 Simdega48 Dhanbad32 Gumla28 Palamu27 West Singhbhum21 SaraikelaKharsawan20 Giridih19 Bokaro16 Latehar14 Khunti10 Lohardaga8 Deoghar5 Dumka5 Pakur4 Jamtara2 Godda2 Chatra1 Sahebganj0 | 1,19,719 32 | 431 16 | 1,18,201 47 | 1,087 1 |
DistrictCases Dehradun370 Nainital323 Tehri Garhwal110 Haridwar94 Udam Singh Nagar83 Almora71 Champawat45 Pithoragarh43 Chamoli36 PauriGarhwal36 Bageshwar31 Rudraprayag30 Uttar Kashi24 | 97,031 | 491 0 | 94,850 | 1,690 |
DistrictCases Hamirpur117 Kangra105 Una41 Solan32 Chamba29 Bilaspur21 Mandi21 Sirmaur11 Shimla10 Kullu4 Kinnaur2 Lahaul And Spiti0 | 58,457 34 | 229 11 | 57,233 23 | 995 |
DistrictCases South Goa69 North Goa57 | 54,700 52 | 495 16 | 53,416 35 | 789 1 |
DistrictCases Pondicherry111 Mahe4 Karaikal2 Yanam0 | 39,656 28 | 189 10 | 38,801 17 | 666 1 |
DistrictCases Dhalai196 Sepahijala174 Gomati74 South Tripura53 Unakoti49 West Tripura45 Khowai24 North Tripura14 | 33,400 | 25 22 | 32,984 22 | 391 |
DistrictCases Churachandpur32 Kangpokpi26 Imphal West21 Thoubal18 Imphal East10 Tengnoupal9 Bishnupur7 Senapati6 Chandel5 Kamjong5 Ukhrul4 Jiribam3 Pherzawl3 Kakching2 Tamenglong2 Noney1 | 29,250 7 | 41 5 | 28,836 2 | 373 |
DistrictCases Chandigarh313 | 21,541 41 | 250 23 | 20,940 17 | 351 1 |
DistrictCases Changlang31 Papum Pare8 Lohit3 Namsai2 West Siang1 East Siang1 Upper Siang1 Tawang1 PakkeKessang1 West Kameng0 Upper Subansiri0 Tirap0 Siang0 Shi Yomi0 Anjaw0 Lower Subansiri0 Lower Dibang Valley0 Longding0 Leparada0 KurungKumey0 KraDaadi0 Kamle0 East Kameng0 Dibang Valley0 Lower Siang0 | 16,836 | 4 0 | 16,776 | 56 |
DistrictCases East Khasi Hills22 West Garo Hills5 South West Garo Hills4 North Garo Hills1 West Jaintia Hills1 West Khasi Hills1 East Garo Hills0 East Jaintia Hills0 Ribhoi0 South Garo Hills0 South West Khasi Hills0 | 13,958 3 | 18 2 | 13,792 5 | 148 |
DistrictCases Dimapur20 Mon8 Kohima7 Kiphire3 Tuensang3 Peren2 Phek1 Longleng0 Mokokchung0 Wokha0 Zunheboto0 | 12,192 | 8 4 | 12,093 4 | 91 |
DistrictCases Kargil77 LehLadakh43 | 9,807 11 | 53 8 | 9,624 3 | 130 |
DistrictCases East District3 South District3 North District0 West District0 | 6,132 | 47 0 | 5,950 | 135 |
DistrictCases South Andamans33 Nicobars1 North And Middle Andaman1 | 5,016 | 4 1 | 4,950 1 | 62 |
DistrictCases Kolasib11 Aizawl10 Mamit8 Lawngtlai2 Lunglei2 Saitual1 Champhai0 Hnahthial0 Khawzawl0 Saiha0 Serchhip0 | 4,413 | 23 1 | 4,380 1 | 10 |
DistrictCases Dadra And Nagar Haveli20 | 3,404 2 | 4 2 | 3,398 | 2 |
DistrictCases Lakshadweep District0 | 322 6 | 86 6 | 236 | 0 |