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Dr Gérald Kierzek (Medical Director of Doctissimo)
After two years of pandemic, some have still not contracted the Covid. Does that mean they never will? More explanations with Dr Gérald Kierzek, emergency doctor and medical director of Doctissimo.
At the dawn of the sixth wave, a question torments people who have slipped through the cracks since the start of the pandemic: could they never catch the Covid? For Bruno Lina, virologist and member of the Scientific Council, interviewed by the HuffPostthe answer is “no”. Nevertheless, “there are bound to be people who will remain asymptomatic, and who will feel that they have never been infected”, he continues.
According to Dr. Gérald Kierzek, it is difficult to know in advance if these people will never have the Covid: “we cannot say that some will never have it, we do not know who has been in contact with the virus and who has not. We only have a global and approximate approach to the functioning of the immune system in the face of the virus and it is for the moment difficult to know why some will resist the penetration of the virus into the respiratory tract and others will not.
A question of “genetic background”
If some people seem to genuinely escape the virus, it could be explained by a DNA story. “There are people who have genetic predispositions and an immune system that protects them from Covid”explains Dr Gérald Kierzek, medical director of Doctissimo. “It may be a matter of genetic background. We know that there is one for the development of severe forms, so there may be one for those who are resistant to the virus”continues the emergency doctor.
This argument of genetic heritage predisposed or not is a track studied since the start of the pandemic. Work is still underway regarding this possibility. “For the time being, whether on the genome, the HLA system or the blood group, we have not found any proof of this with regard to Covid-19”assures virologist Bruno Lina at HuffPost. Nevertheless, it would seem that “we have probably neglected how to strengthen our immune system”laments Dr Gérald Kierzek. “We now know that people who have a poor lifestyle, suffer from obesity or diabetes are more vulnerable to the virus.”
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“Everything is not always explained”
If the mystery hangs over the “immunes” of the Covid, there may not necessarily be concrete answers to this phenomenon. “Everything is not always explained”recalls an infectious disease specialist interviewed by France Inter. “We can catch it or not because we are at the moment T more or less in good shape with a more or less efficient immune system. If you drink, if you smoke for example, if you are tired… everything it can play.”
Several avenues then remain unresolved, such as cross immunity or the influence of blood group which would play on the risks vis-à-vis the Covid. Since 2020, Inserm has conducted a dozen studies on this subject, finally indicating that belonging to group O would reduce the risk of infections. An explanation that remains to be explored.