According to the CDC, antibody tests check your blood for antibodies to know if you’ve been infected with the COVID-19 in the past. It is known as the serology tests, and unlike other COVID tests, it isn’t used to find out if you have COVID-19.
Your body starts to produce these antibodies two weeks after you’re free from COVID, and it can stay in your body for months.
People take antibody tests if they want to undergo a procedure and have been diagnosed positive in the past. Or people who thought they had the virus in the past because they saw symptoms and wanted to be sure.
Talk to a healthcare professional to get more information about the right test for you.
What Are Antibodies?
According to LiveScience, antibodies are proteins that search and destroy viruses, bacteria, fungi, and parasites in the body. They activate the complement system to kill bacterial cells by punching holes in the cell wall.
What Does Your Antibody Tests Result Mean?
Testing positive in an antibody test means that you have antibodies from the infection that causes COVID-19. In simpler terms, this means that you have antibodies that will protect you from contracting the virus again. Although there have been cases where people get re-infected, it’s quite rare.
Note that if someone tests positive for SARS-COV-2 antibodies and doesn’t have specific antibodies, the result is a false positive. In contrast, in situations where someone tests negative for SARS-COV-2 antibodies has the antibodies, the result is a false negative.
When taking a test, you might get a negative result because it takes about two weeks on average for your body to get antibodies. And you can still get sick if you’re exposed to a virus.
Whether positive or negative, the tests don’t show if you can spread the virus or not. So, ensure that you follow the COVID safety procedures.
Where Can You Get Antibody Tests?
An antibody test can be prescribed to you by a health provider, and the test can be done in testing sites near you.
At BestCovidTesting, we have vetted many antibody tests and are proud to offer one of the most accurate tests available: Roche Elecsys ANTI-SARS-CoV-2 total antibody test.
Our Norco testing site is located on 5555 Hamner Ave, Norco CA 92860, and is open Sunday-Monday from 7:30 am-9:45 pm, making it easy to find an appointment time that works with your schedule. We now take walk-in appointments, so feel free to stop by anytime within our hours. If you would like to make an appointment or learn more about our offerings, visit our website.
Sources:
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/testing/serology-overview.html
https://wearelifelinehealth.com/tests/
https://www.livescience.com/antibodies.html