Long term persistence of coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 infection

• Main Author: Pinho,João Renato Rebello
• Publication Date: 2021
• Other Authors: Oliveira,Ketti Gleyzer de, Sitnik,Roberta, Maluf,Maira Marranghello, Rodrigues,Pedro Henrique Sebe, Santana,Rúbia Anita Ferraz, Welter,Eliane Rosseto, Irony,Ophir
• Format: Report
• Language: eng
• Source: Einstein (São Paulo)
• Download full: http://old.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1679-45082021000100504
• topic: COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; Infecções Coronavírus; Coronavírus

ABSTRACT During the COVID-19 pandemic, a case of a long-term persistence of SARS-CoV-2 infection (from March 26 to May 20, 2020) was identified at a private hospital in São Paulo, SP, Brazil. The long-term positivity for SARS-CoV-2 in reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction tests of a patient diagnosed with COVID-19 suggests, at least part of patients who recovered, may still carry and transmit the SARS-CoV-2 virus. This fact emphasizes the importance of having at least two negative reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction test results for SARS-CoV-2. Serological assays were not particularly helpful in the case described, since the patient had very low antibodies titers at the end of the follow-up period. Low viral loads may not be detected by current molecular methods, leading to wrong conclusions regarding viral clearance.