‘Negative Test Result not Final for COVID-19 Survivors’

A medical expert, Dr. Arun Balaganga, asked Nigerians, especially those who tested negative for the coronavirus, to continue taking precautionary measures to avoid being infected a second time.

Balaganga, managing director of Indian International Healthcare Centre in Abuja, said this on Sunday in an interview with the Nigeria News Agency.

NAN reports that there are 318 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Nigeria, with 70 recoveries and 10 deaths since the virus outbreak in the country.

He said the negative test for COVID-19 after being infected with the virus does not make the survivor’s body system resistant to the pandemic.

“We don’t have 100% clear theories about the transmission dynamics of COVID-19 because the World Health Organization (WHO) said earlier that it is not so risky, but later declared it a global public health emergency.

“At some point, they said it was in the air and then said it was not in the air; therefore, we do not have a clear picture of this.

“Again, there may be different strains of this virus; a person who is actually infected and recovered can still be infected again, if the person is exposed to the virus.

“There are chances that the person may still be infected with the second strain of the virus, because he already has antibodies to the first strain.

“Therefore, it is unlikely that the person will be infected with the same strain or probably; in the case of immunocompromised people, recurrent infections can be common. It is as if someone has had a cold several times.

“All of these are hypothetical assumptions,” said Balaganga.

According to him, the myth that the hot temperature kills the Coronavirus was not proven by the rate of infection and transmission of the virus in Africa, particularly in Nigeria, with hot climate.

He said: “Nigeria is currently experiencing a hot climate, the same with India; this disqualifies the hypothesis of a relationship between temperature and the spread of the coronavirus “.

Balaganga, who was a program manager for primary health care in Cross River, explained that coronavirus recovery could differ from the body mechanism, just as the spread also differs because of those who are asymptomatic.

“Obviously, there is a situation where one group is treated with a specific drug, while another group can use plausible drugs like vitamin C and so on.

“So what happens is that all these drugs are working at different stages of viral replication and are spreading; the body also has its own defense mechanism to fight the virus, because it understands that it is a foreign body.

“So, if a person has a very good level of immunity, with simple support and the help of acetaminophen to reduce fever, the body automatically responds to it and fights the virus, which is why plausible medications are administered and people get better.

“When we are administering medication to a COVID-19 patient, it facilitates the body’s work against infection, and that is the difference between administering medication and administering plausible therapy,” added Balaganga.

The Indian doctor asked Nigerians to always follow the government’s directive on the virus, especially the lockdown order and other personal hygiene regulations.