"Recovered but Tested Positive Again?" Anxiety Spreads Over 'COVID-19 Reinfection Cases'

Total of 290 COVID-19 Reinfections in Korea... Over 120 Cases This Year
Recovered from COVID-19? Don't Be Complacent: 10% of UK Cases Are Reinfections

Citizens waiting for COVID-19 testing at a hospital designated as a respiratory specialty clinic in Seoul. The photo is unrelated to specific expressions in the article. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Midam] # Recently, office worker Yoon Mo (28), who was diagnosed with COVID-19, has been refraining from gatherings with acquaintances even after being released from quarantine. Yoon said, "When I had COVID-19, my whole body hurt. The muscle pain was severe, and I couldn't sleep at night because of a sore throat. It was much worse than a common cold or flu." He added, "Even after the quarantine ended, I kept having a lingering cough, so I went to the hospital and got prescribed medication." He continued, "COVID-19 is definitely not a disease to take lightly. I never want to go through such pain again," and added, "I'm worried because there seem to be many reinfection cases these days."

As the Omicron variant continues to spread, concerns are rising due to cases of reinfection after being declared recovered from COVID-19. There had been a belief that after vaccination and recovery from COVID-19, one would gain 'super immunity,' but this has been proven false.

Given this situation, confirmed patients who have experienced various symptoms after COVID-19 infection are worried about the possibility of reinfection. However, health authorities have judged that the proportion of reinfection cases among all confirmed cases in Korea is still minimal.

According to data released by the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) on the 20th, from January 2020 to the 16th of this month, 290 confirmed cases were classified as suspected reinfections.

By period, there were only 2 suspected reinfection cases from February 2020 to June 2021, before the Delta variant became dominant. However, in the second half of last year when the Delta variant was dominant domestically, 159 cases occurred, and from January this year to the 16th of this month, when the Omicron variant became dominant, 129 cases were reported. In other words, as the highly transmissible Omicron variant continues to spread, reinfection cases have surged this year.

There are also opinions that the number of reinfected individuals may be higher than the statistics indicate. Currently, the domestic reinfection diagnosis standard is based on polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test results. However, since the 14th, if a rapid antigen test is positive, the person is classified as confirmed without a PCR test, so it is pointed out that many reinfections may be missing from the statistics.

Former basketball player and broadcaster Ha Seungjin also revealed his reinfection on YouTube on the 11th. He confessed, "I had COVID-19 once last year. It's embarrassing to say, but I got COVID-19 once more." He added, "It was very hard to get COVID-19 again. I had received all three vaccine doses and got infected once, but I got infected again."

Recently, posts expressing concerns about COVID-19 reinfection have been continuously appearing on online communities. Photo by Naver screen capture.

As a result, concerns about reinfection are growing mainly among those who have been confirmed with COVID-19. Health authorities classify cases as suspected reinfections if a PCR test is positive 90 days after the initial confirmed date. Also, if a PCR test is positive 45 to 89 days after the initial confirmation and the person has symptoms, contact with a confirmed case, or a history of overseas travel, it is also considered a suspected reinfection case.

Office worker Ahn Mo (26), who was recently diagnosed with COVID-19, said, "These days, the word 'recovered' seems meaningless. There are so many confirmed cases that I can't feel safe," and criticized, "At this rate, the end of COVID-19 won't come. Seeing the number of confirmed cases keep rising, I wonder why I even got vaccinated."

Voices worrying about reinfection are also high in online communities. One netizen said, "It's scary that getting COVID-19 is not the end. I thought it would be okay after getting it once," and added, "In the end, we have no choice but to wear masks thoroughly and boost our personal immunity."

In other countries, the reinfection rate is much higher than in Korea. Recently, the UK health authorities announced that during the Delta variant period, reinfection cases accounted for about 1% of all COVID-19 confirmed cases, but after the Omicron variant spread, it increased to about 10%. The UK defines reinfection cases as those infected again after three months from the previous confirmation.

Given this situation, domestic experts are also concerned about the high reinfection rate of Omicron. Professor Kim Min-kyung of the Infectious Diseases Department at the National Medical Center said at an expert briefing hosted by the KDCA in January, "According to UK data, the reinfection rate during the Omicron wave is 16 times higher than during the Delta wave," adding, "However, the numbers may vary by country depending on the number of infected patients."

However, health authorities maintain that the proportion of reinfection cases among all confirmed cases in Korea is still minimal.

Lee Sang-won, head of the Epidemiological Investigation and Analysis Team at the Central Disease Control Headquarters, said at a briefing on the 17th, "It is known that reinfections occur frequently with Omicron," and added, "In Europe, reports indicate that the reinfection rate has reached up to 10%." He continued, "However, in Korea, the scale of reinfections is still considered minimal in proportion to the total confirmed cases."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.