Most COVID patients have ongoing symptoms

Public Health England, which analyzed the results of coronavirus and antibody tests taken by almost 21,000 healthcare workers from June to November, found past infection resulted in a 83% lower risk of contracting COVID-19 compared with those who had no coronavirus antibodies, suggesting they were never infected.

But early evidence from the next stage of the study suggests some people carry high levels of the virus and could transmit it to others.

According to the latest figures from the British government, more than 3.2 million people have tested positive for COVID-19 in the four nations since the outbreak began. "It allows people to feel that prior infection will protect them from future infections, but at the same time it is not complete protection, and therefore they still need to be careful when they are out and about."PHE recruited healthcare workers from hospitals across the United Kingdom and divided them into two groups: those who had coronavirus before and those who had not".

"This study has given us the clearest picture to date of the nature of antibody protection against COVID-19 but it is critical people do not misunderstand these early findings", said lead author Susan Hopkins, senior medical advisor at Public Health England and the SIREN study lead.

"It is what you expect because that is what you'd expect for many other viral infections for which we have vaccinations", Dr Hilary said. Crucially, we believe people may still be able to pass the virus on, she said.

Most of all, what long haulers say is that their symptoms-no matter how small or big can impair daily functioning and present problems in resuming normal life.

PHE said in a statement that the study had not been able to explore antibody or other immune responses to the COVID-19 vaccines being rolled out in Britain. But they could also develop neurological symptoms like brain fog, short-term memory loss and insomnia, researchers have found.

The study also looked at 94 patients whose blood antibody levels were recorded at the height of the infection as part of another trial.

Julian Tang, honorary associate professor/clinical virologist at the University of Leicester, said the study suggests natural infection protection rates "are comparable to the current COVID-19 vaccines" adding that immunisation would likely boost natural immunity.

Its researchers found that people can be up to 83 per cent protected against the virus after being previously infected with Covid-19.

Healthcare workers are among those most exposed to the SARS-Cov-2 coronavirus, as countries across the world have grappled with waves of infections in the year since it first emerged.