Infection

A recent study published in The Lancet medical journal suggests that natural infection with COVID-19 provides significant protection against severe disease, hospitalization, and death for at least 10 months after the initial infection. The study, which was conducted in Israel, analyzed data from more than 800,000 individuals who were tested for COVID-19 between June 2020 and January 2021. Of these, approximately 13% had tested positive for the virus during the first wave of the pandemic. Researchers found that those who had been infected with COVID-19 were significantly less likely to be reinfected with the virus during the second wave of the pandemic compared to those who had not been previously infected. Specifically, individuals with prior infection had an 84% lower risk of becoming reinfected with COVID-19 compared to those who had never been infected. Moreover, the study revealed that individuals with natural infection had an 88% lower risk of hospitalization and death due to COVID-19 during the second wave of the pandemic compared to those who had never been infected. This protection persisted for at least 10 months after the initial infection.