Scientists have come to a common unit of measurement for antibodies to protect against coronavirus infection. However, not all Ukrainian laboratories issue analyzes with this unit.
Tests to determine the level of antibodies to coronavirus today are almost as popular as PCR tests. If the latter are now needed to go to the subway, go to McDonald's or go to work, then, based on the results of the former, Ukrainians often decide whether they need to be vaccinated against COVID-19. Until recently, however, our antibody tests have caused skepticism among virologists. After all, each laboratory gave the result in its own units of measurement, and it was very difficult to understand the real level of its protection against the "corona". In the summer, WHO adopted uniform standards for changing the level of antibodies and approved a separate unit for this. And recently a "scale of immunity from covid" appeared, taking into account the content of these units in human blood.
How to know your protection against coronavirus
All laboratories measure antibody levels differently / istockphoto.com
To begin with, a brief educational program: the presence of protection against any disease (including coronavirus) can really be determined by the results of an analysis for antibodies to this disease. Antibodies are of two types: igM and igG. The first, so-called "early antibodies" appear at the onset of the disease (in the case of covid, 5-7 days after infection) and indicate that the body has entered the fight against the infection. The latter appear at the height of the disease or in the convalescent stage (in the case of covid, three weeks after infection) and provide protection against re-disease. Based on the results of an analysis for antibodies to coronavirus, it is possible to accurately find out at what stage of the disease a person is today.
- there is only igM - a person has recently become ill (even with an asymptomatic course of the disease)
- there is igM and igG - a person is in an acute stage of the disease or on the way to recovery
- there is only igG - the person recovered and received natural immunity
- no igM or igG - the person is not infected and has not been infected with covid, and there is no immunity
As for the level of immunity, until recently, Ukrainian virologists were very skeptical about the attempts of Ukrainians to calculate it using an antibody test. At the beginning of summer, Leading Researcher, Laboratory of Epigenetics, NAMSU Alexander Kolyada explained very clearly why it is pointless to measure antibodies. In short, our laboratories usually do this test for Ukrainians not in quantitative, but in qualitative terms (it's cheaper this way). In this case, the level of antibodies in the test results is very, very conditional.
In addition, each laboratory has its own units for measuring the level of antibodies and depend on the reagents that were used in the analysis. Therefore, the results in the two laboratories can differ significantly from each other. And finally, until recently, scientists did not have a single "vision": how many antibodies can actually protect against infection with coronavirus, because the strains are constantly mutating and immunity from "Alpha" is unlikely to be effective against Deltas.
Coronavirus Immunity Scale
Only recently did the "confusion and hesitation" with the level of antibodies in the test results lead to a common denominator. In July, the WHO approved the BAU (binding antibody units) indicator for this purpose. Based on a number of studies, doctors have calculated the amount of BAU per milliliter of blood that can really protect against the Delta strain of coronavirus (as the most common in the world on present day). Based on these data, the Chief Clinical Research Specialist at the International Contract Research Organization (CRO) Kirill Skripkin I posted the following table on my Facebook page:
What level of antibodies gives protection against coronavirus / facebook photo Kirill Skripkin
The problem is that not all Ukrainian laboratories today issue results to BAU. If in neighboring countries (for example, in Poland or in Russia), the local Ministries of Health, after the WHO decision, adopted resolution on the compulsory recalculation of the test results into an international unit, then in Ukraine such a document not yet. Therefore, before passing an analysis for antibodies, it is imperative to clarify in what form you will receive the result, and whether it will be interpreted in BAU.
Also note that the result of the analysis (even with the maximum protection against coronavirus) cannot be used as a medication against vaccination. Not only WHO, but also many other reputable medical organizations still advise vaccinating after suffering covid, despite the amount of antibodies in the blood. For those who have had a coronavirus, in Ukraine, a time lag is given before vaccination of only 90 days here. And after that, you, with any level of protection, will still find yourself outside the "vaccination law".
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