There is no evidence that people who test positive for the new coronavirus are immunized and protected against reinfection, warned WHO on Saturday, saying that the issuance of "immune passports" may promote the continued spread of the pandemic. "There is currently no evidence that people who have recovered from Covid-19 and who have antibodies are immune to a second infection," the World Health Organization (WHO) said in a statement.
"As of April 24, 2020, no study has evaluated whether the presence of antibodies to SARS-CoV-2 confers immunity against future infection by this virus in humans," she said. Some governments have put forward the idea of issuing documents attesting to the immunity of people on the basis of serological tests revealing the presence of antibodies in the blood, so as to deconfinate and allow little by little their return to work and the resumption of economic activity.
Serological tests not powerful enough
But the effectiveness of an immunization thanks to antibodies is not established at this stage and the available scientific data do not justify the granting of an "immune passport" or a "certificate of absence of risk" , warns the WHO. "People who think they are immune to a second infection because they have tested positive may ignore the public health recommendations. The use of this type of certificate could therefore increase the risk that the transmission will continue, ”she insists.
WHO also believes that the serological tests currently used "need additional validation to determine their accuracy and reliability". They must in particular make it possible to distinguish the immune response to the new coronavirus from the antibodies produced during an infection by another of the six known human coronaviruses, four of which are widespread, causing mild colds. The other two are responsible for MERS (Middle East Respiratory Syndrome) and SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome).
However, emphasizes the WHO, "people infected with one or the other of these viruses are capable of producing antibodies which interact with antibodies produced in response to the infection caused by SARS-CoV-2", and it is therefore imperative to be able to identify them.
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