Patient who recovered from COVID-19 can contract new strain

A patient who has had the coronavirus infection in the past can also contract the new virus strain immediately upon recovery, Russian infectious diseases specialist Svetlana Ishchenko said.

Report informs, citing TASS, that, according to the expert, this is because the virus is continuously mutating.

"After the sustained infection, the protective immunoglobulin C or antibodies are preserved for about six months. However, the coronavirus is constantly mutating. Therefore, it turns out that a person is protected from one strain but can contract another immediately after recovery," she said.

All the same, the reinfection will likely be milder, the doctor said.