What is an Antibody Test
Antibody tests are used to detect antibodies in the blood to the SARS Covid -19 virus. The presence of antibodies mean that it is likely that you have had the virus.
The test works by us taking a blood sample either from a vein or a fingerprick test and looking for the presence of Covid antibodies to see if you have developed an immune response to the virus.
Antibody tests differ to virus swab tests, which test to see if you currently have the virus.
At this stage antibody testing really has limited use.
A Negative Antibody Test cannot tell us if you currently have the virus. It means that you do not have any antibodies to the virus in the blood that we can detect on the day of the test for Covid-19.
A Positive Antibody Test cannot tell us if you currently have the virus now. Some people who have had the virus may have antibodies that we simply cannot detect on the day of testing and some people simply may not make antibodies to the virus.
Please note that there is as yet, no good evidence to suggest that those of us who have had the virus, who have detectable antibodies in the blood then go on to develop long-lasting immunity that would prevent us from getting the virus again.