Case Reports
25 January 2021
Vol. 15 No. 1 (2021)
https://doi.org/10.4081/itjm.2021.1393

Recurrence of COVID-19 related symptoms and viral detection in a patient discharged after complete recovery and test negativization

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COVID-19, viral test, pneumonia, viral clearance.
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Authors

Chiara Vassallo
chiaravsl@gmail.com
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8723-9863
Department of Clinical Immunology, IRCCS-San Martino University Hospital, University of Genoa, Italy.
Francesca Pupo
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1149-888X
Department of Clinical Immunology, IRCCS-San Martino University Hospital, University of Genoa, Italy.
Luca Marri
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0614-2950
Department of Clinical Immunology, IRCCS-San Martino University Hospital, University of Genoa, Italy.
Chiara Schiavi
Department of Clinical Immunology, IRCCS-San Martino University Hospital, University of Genoa, Italy.
Francesca Giusti
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5517-8074
Department of Clinical Immunology, IRCCS-San Martino University Hospital, University of Genoa, Italy.
Monica Greco
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5311-4296
Department of Clinical Immunology, IRCCS-San Martino University Hospital, University of Genoa, Italy.
Simone Negrini
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1267-4320
Department of Clinical Immunology, IRCCS-San Martino University Hospital, University of Genoa, Italy.
Raffaele De Palma
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9070-8878
Department of Clinical Immunology, IRCCS-San Martino University Hospital, University of Genoa, Italy.
Andrea Guastalla
Department of Clinical Immunology, IRCCS-San Martino University Hospital, University of Genoa, Italy.

Since the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has been declared a pandemic, the possibility of recurrence of the disease after recovery has become a debated issue. We report a case of an 84-years-old male patient who was admitted to our hospital for dyspnea and fever. Lab and clinical workout showed that he had COVID-19. After a full recovery of symptoms and a double negative nasopharyngeal swab of severe acute respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) by realtime polymerase chain reaction assay, he was discharged from the hospital. One month later, he developed dyspnea and fever again with lung involvement. Surprisingly, the nasopharyngeal swab of SARS-CoV-2 was positive. Since he denied contacts with confirmed or suspected cases of COVID-19, he probably experienced a reactivation of a persistent infection. The failed eradication of the virus could depend on both virus' escape mechanisms and dysfunctional immune response. Further studies are needed to confirm the hypothesis of viral reactivation and identify signs of an incomplete clearance.

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How to Cite



Recurrence of COVID-19 related symptoms and viral detection in a patient discharged after complete recovery and test negativization. (2021). Italian Journal of Medicine, 15(1). https://doi.org/10.4081/itjm.2021.1393

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