A good set of bookend articles are out assessing the likelihood of long term immunity for SARS Cov-2, the virus cause of COVID-19.
In the first, a recent NEJM correspondence shows rapid declines in antibody levels following infection.
A good explainer in the New York Times provides important context on the results.
What we know: antibody levels decline after infection. But this may be a normal finding and in line with other infections that do have long term immunity.
And these studies don’t tell us much about cell mediated immunity, which is another important component of the long term response to infection.
Our current reality is much like other areas with this new era: there isn’t enough data or long term follow up to really know, yet. Each new study adds important evidence that will provide more certainty.