Think you may have already had Coronavirus?

[Colleen27]

I wonder what the antibody test will cost.

The one that is being developed in the UK is expected to cost about £6, and from the article I saw this morning it looks like it is built on a pregnancy test style cartridge using a finger-prick blood sample, similar to the type used for a blood sugar monitor.

I think the real question, for us here in the States, is if we'll be able to get access to the test being developed for global use or if we'll have to wait around for an American manufacturer to play catch up on producing one here. Because if it is the latter, the cost elsewhere isn't likely to be predictive of what we'd pay.

 

[DuskKodesh]

We suspect here we may have had it. Our Disney trip was Jan 28-through Feb 4th. We were all good the first four days then something hit us both at once. If you know me and my hubs nothing ever hits us at once, it's always one of us then the other as we have different fitness levels and tend to react to colds and flu differently (Plus hubs had the flu shot just in case a few weeks before the trip). No, this was the exact same thing for each of us. Dry cough, slight fever, lethargy. No chest pain, no nausea. We were stuck in the hotel two days recovering but this was before anyone was talking about this thing on the news and it really wasn't thought to be stateside so we thought we just had an airport bug. We recovered and headed back home, during the week after recovery everything tasted weird to me which was my biggest complaint. The entire time I was in Florida I was wishing to get my beloved orange soda back, I finally get it and it tastes like water. -_-

 

[halfpintpeggy]

I wonder if I had it in January into February. I had a cough that wouldn't go away, fever, aches, and it started with a sore throat. I wasn't sure what it was because it kind of felt like a very bad cold but never got the runny or stuffy nose. Didn't have flu like stomach issues though either. I do remember thinking if I should maybe call a doctor because my chest was killing me (I never got to the doctor so for me to think about it means it was bad). My symptoms felt like something I've never had before.

When this thing got big I said to people I know that I bet I had it. Only reason I'm unsure is because the two people I live with didn't catch it from me which would be surprising for how contagious it seems.

According to the experts, many people who contract this virus are asymptomatic. So who knows? You may have had it & the folks you live with could have also but showed no symptoms.

 

[focusondisney]

First, this past winter was very bad for respiratory illnesses from October on. I work in a pediatric hospital & we have been at or over capacity since then. I have heard so many “ I think I had it in December , January, February “ comments it’s not funny. I don’t believe it. This was NOT prevalent in the US then.

Think about it seriously folks.... if so many people had it back then, why is it just affecting & KILLING!!! so many people, including health care workers now??? Why did hundreds of seniors not die in January? Why did regular MDs not catch it if they were seeing so many cases in the office? Why were there not hundreds of people needing intubation then?? You did not have covid -19 in January, unless you had contact from Asia. If there was any strong chance the majority of people already had this, the experts would be saying that.

 

[HeatherC]

It's winter in North America, when all kinds of bugs go around. Just because you were sick doesn't mean you had COVID-19. It could have literally been anything, even a mild case of influenza if you weren't tested.

Yes most of us understand that. All I was asking if others “thought” they may have had it and people are responding to that. Not asking for proof just people’s own observations.

 

[spiders]

I have one guy at work that thinks he may have had it in January. He went to the doctor and he tested negative for the flu and they never really were sure what it was. That guy does hang out a lot with this other guy who was also very sick in early January and was hanging out with someone who came back from China during New Year's.

Who knows. Maybe they'll ramp up testing to see how many have already had it or are asymptomatic. The local flight surgeon said they are beginning to run a test to see if there is some IGNN antibody in your blood or something like that and that's how they'll know. Well above my pay grade but it sounded good.

 

[disneychrista]

I wonder what the antibody test will cost.

I’m wondering what the point of getting it is. Just so you know you had it? At this point they aren’t even sure if having it once makes you immune to getting again.
I know they say knowledge is power but in this case I’m not sure that’s true.

 

[Searc]

Yes most of us understand that. All I was asking if others “thought” they may have had it and people are responding to that. Not asking for proof just people’s own observations.

See the comment above yours.

 

[disneydreamer1980]

I’ve been saying this! Back in late January (I know, supposedly before it was here) I had the absolute strangest and worst illness ever. I lost my sense of smell, severe body aches and fevers, dry cough, shortness of breath, all the symptoms, and I tested negative for flu. My kids just got mild colds. I think it’s been here longer then anyone knows.

 

[robinb]

The one that is being developed in the UK is expected to cost about £6, and from the article I saw this morning it looks like it is built on a pregnancy test style cartridge using a finger-prick blood sample, similar to the type used for a blood sugar monitor.

I think the real question, for us here in the States, is if we'll be able to get access to the test being developed for global use or if we'll have to wait around for an American manufacturer to play catch up on producing one here. Because if it is the latter, the cost elsewhere isn't likely to be predictive of what we'd pay.

There is no way the american medical and pharmaceutical industry will only charge $7.50 US .

 

[pryncess527]

I’m wondering what the point of getting it is. Just so you know you had it? At this point they aren’t even sure if having it once makes you immune to getting again.
I know they say knowledge is power but in this case I’m not sure that’s true.

The knowledge of who has it has been instrumental in controlling the disease in SK without a need to shut down society. Quick easy testing, both antigen & antibody, could help us do the same.

immunity may not last forever, but my understanding of antibodies is that if the right ones are active in your body right now, you are immune right now. Measles antibodies last a really long time. The common cold antibodies don’t.

 

[StitchesGr8Fan]

I’m wondering if it is possible to have the flu and covid-19 simultaneously. My daughter tested positive for Influenza A, but she had the long-lasting high fever, dry cough and headache associated with covid-19. The was mid-February. The cough lasted for 4 weeks. It was probably just the flu, but I wish we had gotten this over with.

 

[disneychrista]

The knowledge of who has it has been instrumental in controlling the disease

Yes knowing who CURRENTLY has it is important. Knowing you had it 3 months ago not so much.

 

[Christine]

The knowledge of who has it has been instrumental in controlling the disease in SK without a need to shut down society. Quick easy testing, both antigen & antibody, could help us do the same.

immunity may not last forever, but my understanding of antibodies is that if the right ones are active in your body right now, you are immune right now. Measles antibodies last a really long time. The common cold antibodies don’t.

Plus, there are over 100 different variants of the common cold (rhinovirus) so you only build up immunity to the ones you have had before.

 

[pryncess527]

Yes knowing who CURRENTLY has it is important. Knowing you had it 3 months ago not so much.

If they are still making antibodies, then yes it is

 

[Feralpeg]

As I mentioned in another thread, I think my daughter, sister and I all had it. My daughter had direct contact with a student from South Korea who was ill. He had contact with other students who had recently arrived from South Korea who were ill. We had fever, body aches, dry cough, and diarrhea. My daughter vomited. My sister and I did not. My sister didn't really run a fever. I had it the worst, but I am doing chemo, so that may have played a factor. I also had shortness of breath. My oncologist put me on a z-pack and steroid. It's been almost a month and I am still coughing, but feel much better. I guess we'll never know, so we are staying in and playing safe.

 

[traces7]

We still think my DH had it back in February maybe and DD in the beginning of March.

My 20 year old DD had a dry cough and her chest hurt, no other symptoms. She went to urgent care and they said it was bronchitis, which was going around her college at the time. She didn't have a fever when she went to urgent care, but felt feverish for a couple days after going. She's been ok since then.

DH was sick for a month back in February with a horrible cough, his chest hurt, headache, lost his sense of taste and smell, had sinus issues and probably a fever here and there. They told him he had a sinus infection.

Wouldn't be surprised if both of them had a touch of it, if that's possible. Will be interesting to see if eventually they can test to see if you have built up antibodies for it, if either of them do.

I had felt a weirdness in my chest for a couple weeks. Felt like I had to cough, but didn't really have one. I was worried about that and thought I might be coming down with it, but this week it has seemed to be better. Very scary times!

 

[pryncess527]

Plus, there are over 100 different variants of the common cold (rhinovirus) so you only build up immunity to the ones you have had before.

Right, cold antibodies actually last two or three years, but there are so many varieties that it doesn’t feel that way.

how long Covid-19 antibodies last is relevant information & home tests could be a helpful tool in knowing when your immunity wears off

 

[Colleen27]

I’m wondering what the point of getting it is. Just so you know you had it? At this point they aren’t even sure if having it once makes you immune to getting again.
I know they say knowledge is power but in this case I’m not sure that’s true.

They aren't sure... but they don't have any solid evidence suggesting it doesn't either. At this point, with so many unknowns, it makes sense to proceed cautiously while using what we know about how viruses typically work. And what we know about viruses is that those who have recovered usually have immunity. It may wear off over time, but that time is not generally measured in days or weeks or even months so immunity still matters in the short term. And while we know natural immunity is of limited usefulness against fast-mutating viruses, the data so far suggests that COVID19 is relatively stable so that is not likely to be an immediate concern.

But even if there were no protective value of past exposure, being able to count cases where people have had it and recovered would still be important to understanding the true scale of the virus's spread and getting an accurate picture of the case fatality rate.

 

[Wendy5055]

I was very sick in the fall and have wondered...it was a nasty chest/flu type infection. I lost a week of work. They had to give me a breathing treatment at the clinic and I had an inhaler. Looking back...possibly but who can ever know for sure how long this has been circulating? I just feel if it were here earlier than expected then wouldn't we have had this situation earlier? It just seems too contagious.