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10 signs that you've already had Covid and may be 'protected for 5 months'
A big Public Health England study published this week found that many asymptomatic coronavirus patients still had antibodies protecting them from re-infection, meaning many may be immune without knowing it.
This week Public Health England released a study which had followed almost 21,000 NHS workers for close to five months.
It found that those who suffered from the coronavirus and had symptoms had a 90 per cent chance of avoiding falling unwell again with the disease over the next five months.
When people who had caught the virus but had been asymptomatic were taken into account, that number fell to 83 per cent.
PHE's Siren Study will now continue to see how long natural immunity tends to last for among people who've caught the bug.
According to an overview of multiple different studies into Covid-19, around one in five people who catch the virus experience no symptoms.
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Covid-19: Brazil virus already in UK ‘not variant of concern’, scientist says
One of two coronavirus variants first detected in Brazil has been found in the UK, says a leading scientist advising the government.
But the version discovered is not the "variant of concern", Prof Wendy Barclay clarified.
The "variant of concern" from Brazil, detected in travellers to Japan, is thought to be more infectious.
It led to travellers from South America and Portugal being banned from entering the UK on Friday.
Prof Wendy Barclay, who is heading a newly-launched project to study the effects of emerging coronavirus mutations called the G2P-UK National Virology Consortium, said: "There are two different types of Brazilian variants and one of them has been detected and one of them has not."
Prof Barclay, who also sits on Nervtag, a committee which advises government on new and emerging respiratory virus threats, said the variant was "probably introduced some time ago" and it "will be being traced very carefully".
She added: "The new Brazilian variant of concern, that was picked up in travellers going to Japan, has not been detected in the UK.
"Other variants that may have originated from Brazil have been previously found."
The body which collects and analyses the genomes of virus samples - Covid-19 Genomics UK Consortium (Cog-UK) - said this variant seen in the UK contained one of the mutations found in the Brazilian "variant of concern".
The mutation, also found in the South African variant, has been linked to a reduced antibody response meaning our bodies might be less able to fight it off.
Cog-UK said this alone was not enough to qualify it as a "variant of concern", thought it acknowledged "no internationally agreed definition of a variant of concern has yet been agreed".
In other variants of concern, the mutation sits alongside a "constellation" of others which together amount to a high chance of making the virus more transmissible.
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2,000 more Canadians could die from COVID-19 in the next 10 days: PHAC
New modelling comes as infections climb across Canada
New modelling released by the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) suggests the number of daily COVID-19 cases could more than triple to 30,000 if people increase their contacts during a time of widespread community transmission.
The report also projects that if Canadians simply maintain their current levels of contact with people outside their households, case counts will still rise to roughly 13,000 a day from 7,900 now.
The modellers said that, based on current case counts, Canada "remains on a rapid growth trajectory," with roughly 2,000 more people expected to die over the next 10 days as the country approaches a death toll of 20,000. As many as 100,000 more people could contract the virus over the next week and a half, PHAC said.
"Quick, strong and sustained measures are needed to interrupt rapid growth and maintain COVID-19 control," PHAC said in its report. "Reducing COVID-19 activity is urgently needed as rollout of safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines begins."
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N.W.T. reports first case of COVID-19 'without known source'
N.W.T. public health officials are reporting the territory's first case of COVID-19 with no known source.
In a news release Friday afternoon, Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Kami Kandola said the positive COVID-19 diagnosis was made in Yellowknife "with no known source and no travel history."
"At this point, we don't have the full information," she said in an interview on CBC Radio's Trail's End Friday. "We're ... working to see all the people that could've been exposed."
The release said the individual sought testing when they developed symptoms and has since isolated and is doing well.
A COVID-19 rapid response team is being deployed to find the source of the infection, she said.
"The team will complete what is called reverse contact-tracing, which includes reviewing potential exposures in the 14 days before symptoms started. Public health will recommend targeted testing of further individuals to attempt to find the source," she said.
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