Rebound in medical terms refers to symptoms of an illness that return after we reduce, or cease medication. Back in September 2020 scientists were wondering whether the new disease, COVID-19 might reappear after recovery. Fast forward to 2022 we now know with near certainty COVID rebound is a distinct possibility.
COVID Rebound Possible Within Days Of Starting PAXLOVID
Internet magazine Popular Science posted an update on June 6, 2022. They say some COVID patients taking PAXLOVID find their symptoms bouncing back within days, despite following the directions. However, we should not lose faith in the medication they say.
That’s because clinical trials demonstrate five-day treatments reduce hospitalization and death by 90 percent. COVID rebound typically presents as a flare-up of fever, cough, or other symptoms according to the Popular Science post.
However, they point out rebound patients may also be asymptomatic, in which case the returning condition may only become evident after a positive test at the end of treatment. That said, the returning symptoms are often less serious.
How Does Medical Science Explain the Rebound?
Kami Kim is director of the Division of Infectious Disease and International Medicine at Florida University Morsani College of Medicine. She described her personal experience to Popular Science during an interview that was the basis for their article.
If you think about how the drug works, it sort of mechanistically makes sense, she begins. Unlike monoclonal antibodies, which stop the virus from infecting cells, PAXLOVID prevents SARS-CoV-2 from replicating.
But the virus is still there of course, unless your immune system killed off every cell with the disease. In theory, the virus could go silent, Kami Kim concedes.
But if the infection wasn’t completely knocked out, and your immune system hadn’t killed off all the infected cells, then it could start replicating again in theory,. Or potentially rebound, as doctors put it.
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