Blood sample is required for the COVID-19 antibody test. The test can reveal details on how your body responded to a coronavirus infection that caused severe acute respiratory syndrome. The virus that causes coronavirus sickness in 2019 is known as SARS-CoV-2.
It may also reveal how your body responded to the COVID-19 vaccination. Serology testing is another name for antibody testing. A negative serology test indicates that there were no antibodies found in your blood.
You cannot determine whether you are currently having COVID-19 virus infection with the help of an antibody test. Additionally, it is not recommended to employ antibody tests to determine your COVID-19 protection. A test for antibodies cannot determine whether a vaccine is necessary.
Your spike protein antibody levels can be checked by doctors or nurses at Health Clic who can come to your home and do a quick intravenous blood test with findings available in 24 hours. The doctor will advise having this test done in conjunction with the T-Cell Immunological Response Test if you want to evaluate your immune response to COVID-19.
When is Antibody Testing is Usually Done and Why it is so Important?
After a patient has fully recovered from COVID-19, antibody testing, also known as serology testing, is typically performed. As per the availability of these tests, eligibility may often change. A medical professional will take a blood sample, usually by pricking the finger of the patient or by taking blood out of an arm vein.
The sample is then further tested to check if you have produced any antibodies against the virus causing COVID-19. These proteins, called as antibodies, are actually created by the immune system and are necessary for battling and also eliminating the virus.
If test results reveal that you have antibodies, this may indicate that you have had prior COVID-19 infections or that you have developed antibodies as a result of vaccination. You might also be immune to some things.
However, having antibodies, may not guarantee that you will never contract COVID-19 again. But they can aid in averting serious illness. The degree of immunity and the duration of immunity are still being researched.
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Accuracy will depend on your timing and also kind of antibody test. The test may not also reveal antibodies, in case you undergone test too early during the course of your infection, when your immunological response of your body is still developing.
Hence, antibody testing is not recommended until at least 2 to 3 weeks after the onset of your COVID-19 symptoms. Specific antibody tests were approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), however tests with dubious accuracy are still available.
Accurate antibody testing can also make it possible for the survivors of COVID-19 to donate plasma, which is a component of their blood, after their recovery. This plasma may be utilised to treat other people who have severe illness and strengthen the body’s defences against the virus. Convalescent plasma is the term used by physicians.
Antibody test results show how many persons had COVID-19 and recovered even those who had no symptoms. This helps identify potential recipients of immunity, albeit it is currently unknown how much immunity exists and for how long.
