What are the Clinical Implications of a Positive RT-PCR Test 6 Months after a Mild SARS-CoV-2 Infection?

What are the Clinical Implications of a Positive RT-PCR Test 6 Months after a Mild SARS-CoV-2 Infection?

Joao Gabriel De Carvalho, Kateryna Hvozdara

We present the case of an 84-year-old female patient hospitalized for surgical treatment of a hip fracture who re-tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 with an RT-PCR nasopharyngeal swab approximately 6 months after presenting mild respiratory symptoms with confirmed COVID-19 in April 2020. We discuss the possibility of reinfection, long-term viral shedding and residual positivity, the limitations of RT-PCR swab tests, and the necessity for new testing methods as the COVID-19 pandemic spreads and long-lasting immunity is uncertain.

2021

covid-19, RT-PCR, swab test

10.12890/2021_002463

Epidemiology and Health

Korean Society of Epidemiology

Medicine