How Likely Is It To Test Positive For Coronavirus After Vaccination?

Nikki Attkisson | Last Updated : January 7, 2021

According to health experts, it is still possible to test positive for coronavirus after receiving the covid-19 vaccine. The CDC has said that it can take weeks for the body to build up immunity after receiving the covid-19 vaccine.

Given this situation, it is possible that a person can get infected with coronavirus just before or after receiving the vaccination.

The reason for this infection is that the vaccine has not had enough time to provide the required protection against the virus. For this reason, it is important to stay cautious for a few weeks even after receiving the vaccine.

How Likely Is It To Test Positive For Coronavirus After Vaccination?

Health experts say that as the covid-19 vaccines need to be taken in two doses, it is better to follow all precautions till the second dose is given to the person. In this way, complete protection from the virus will be available after taking both doses of the covid-19 vaccine.

According to the data from the clinical trials, the first dose of covid-19 is more than 50% effective in preventing the infection, and the second dose increases that protection to about 95% in a majority of cases.

Infectious disease experts say that it takes about two weeks for the average person to build the required number of antibodies to fight the virus.

However, it can vary from one person to another person by a huge margin depending on the overall health condition of the person.

The advantage of taking the vaccine is that the chances of getting infected reduce with each passing day and the individual will be better positioned to handle the virus in case of an infection.

A person who is vaccinated will be able to make a better immune response than the average person who has not received the vaccine.

One thing that should be clearly understood at this stage is that even after receiving the second dose of vaccine, a person does not become 100% immune to coronavirus.

The clinical trials have shown that the virus is 95% effective, which means that there is still a small chance of getting infected even after receiving the vaccine.

As it is difficult to pinpoint the time of exposure to the virus, patients sometimes display symptoms even after receiving the vaccine as they might be exposed to the virus before getting vaccinated.

Several people who have already been infected with coronavirus and recovered are wondering if they also need to take the vaccine.

According to infectious disease experts, it is better to take the vaccine even after recovering from covid-19 as the vaccine offers better protection than the natural infection.

The natural infection triggers the immune response to the virus as a whole, whereas the vaccine provides a direct immune response to that part of the virus that is necessary to mediate the infection.

As the covid-19 vaccines used do not contain the live virus, it does not infect people with coronavirus. On the other hand, it teaches the body how to fight the virus in case of an infection in the future.

Considering this situation, experts say that it is important to continue wearing masks and practice social distancing even after receiving the covid-19 vaccine.

Such precautions can be avoided only when the level of herd immunity is reached across the country. However, new variants of coronavirus are being discovered in other countries, and people should still be careful about exposing themselves in public even after getting the covid-19 vaccine.

Once the virus is not able to find susceptible people to survive, it will die on its own, and the transmission of covid-19 comes to an end. This stage can be achieved when close to 80% of the population is vaccinated.


Nikki Attkisson

With over 15 years as a practicing journalist, Nikki Attkisson found herself at Powdersville Post now after working at several other publications. She is an award-winning journalist with an entrepreneurial spirit and worked as a journalist covering technology, innovation, environmental issues, politics, health etc. Nikki Attkisson has also worked on product development, content strategy, and editorial management for numerous media companies. She began her career at local news stations and worked as a reporter in national newspapers.

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