For the persons who suffered from COVID-19, the general recommendation is to get a vaccine when the concentration of antibodies decreases and the virus becomes again dangerous for the body. Studies on patients whose antibodies were measured showed that the optimal period is between the third and sixth months of the recovery, Minister of Health Ala Nemerenco stated in a meeting with the press. She noted that the Republic of Moldova follows the recommendations of international institutions, such as the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention, IPN reports.
Ala Nemerenco said it is important not to standardize these things as they are individual. It depends on the form of the disease – mild, moderate or severe. “There are two immunoglobulins that form and should be determined by an antibody test: IgG and IgM. Doctors should interpret the results and say what the body’s capacity to keep antibodies produced naturally, not by vaccination is. The period for which the body produces antibodies should be established. When the patient has a severe form, the fight against the disease is much harder. It seems unbelievable, but the immunity acquired in the case of a severe form is weaker than in the case of a mild form, when the body calmly produces antibodies,” stated the minister.
The Ministry of Health will work to train the doctors so that they can determine the level of antibodies when the vaccination for persons who had the disease is recommended so as to help the patients understand when they should get a vaccine.
Ala Nemerenco noted that there are no state budget funds available for doing antibody tests in the policlinics of the public health system. “The two tests (IgG and IgM) are rather expensive and not even all the private centers can afford to do them. If others determined the most optimal period when the vaccine should be administered, can we afford in Moldova to do this test to each person who had the disease? We should better do other tests and other investigations,” stated the minister.
Sources in the Ministry of Health said that no country has a protocol indicating antibody testing before vaccination.
