Poll:Post-vaccination antibody test?

[Sojourner]

Anyone thinking of getting an antibody test after they've been fully vaccinated? It's something I've been pondering recently, considering that I'm premising my entire plan for returning to "normal life" on being protected by high levels of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies circulating throughout my body a few weeks after my second shot.

I read recently that not all antibody tests will return a positive result for people who've been vaccinated, so I'd need to look into it more. But it's absolutely something I'd do if I could find the right test to take. The peace of mind in knowing the vaccine was administered properly and worked as expected would be nearly invaluable. After all, even though one wants to trust that the vaccine was stored, handled, prepared, and injected properly, there is always a small chance that it wasn't... right?

Interested to read any comments or feedback in addition to poll responses, also.

 

[Surewhitey]

I would if they offered it. I got the J&J single dose vac...

 

[Ready]

From the CDC website:

Antibody tests indicate you had a previous infection and that you may have some level of protection against the virus. Experts are currently looking at how COVID-19 vaccination may affect antibody testing results.

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/facts.html

I don’t think there is enough data out there yet to know how the various antibody tests will respond to someone who has had the vaccine but has not been infected with the virus. It might be interesting to take the test out of curiosity, but I wouldn’t place much weight on the results until we have more data to analyze.

 

[Aerides]

I would not. Antibody tests are far from perfect even for previously infected individuals, and immunity is not as simple as antibodies Y/N.

You'd only drive yourself nuts if you took one. You can get them at Quest and other places, or they are offered with most blood drives. But I wouldn't be looking to get data to validate or question the vaccine, when that data is already imperfect.

 

[W2R]

My brother was in the initial Pfizer test group last year, so at first he did not know if he had been given the vaccine or a placebo.

Being the eternal smart guy , he figured he would out-think Pfizer and just go get tested for COVID at the proper time and that would tell him if he had the vaccine or not. However he got a negative test result, so he figured he had been given the placebo.

Turned out no, he had the real vaccine.

If/when I am vaccinated, I wouldn't waste my money on an antibody test after the appropriate time. What good would that do? None that I can tell. Total waste of money.

 

[Calico]

Nope, no interest in getting an antibody test.

It would just give me one more thing to worry about, and I've had enough worrying over the last year to last me the rest of my life.

I got the vaccinations - I anticipate they will eventually come out with a "booster" or some such solution to dealing with the variants, and I would get that too. I also anticipate there may be yearly boosters for Covid.

Other than getting the necessary vaccinations in the future, I'm not going to expend any more of my emotional or psychological energy on worrying about Covid. It has already stolen so many hours of my peace of mind, and I'm not voluntarily giving up any more!

 

[Midpack]

I don’t really care and wouldn’t go out of my way, but if the opportunity presented itself I wouldn’t be against it - call me an unlikely maybe. Recently my gastro required a Covid test before a colonoscopy, after I’d had both Moderna doses, of course I was negative - no antibody test that I know of.

 

[Ronstar]

I'm not getting an antibody test. I had one last year at Quest and IIRC the results had a lot of disclaimers in it.

 

[Rambler]

If you donate blood thru Vitalant, you’ll automatically get an antibody test. I’ve donated 3 times since they started offering the test when you donate, all negative so far. My appt for my first shot is this Friday. I’m planning to donate again on the 27th, if I can. My second jab will be on 4/2. I may put off the donation until several weeks after the second jab, out of curiosity. Would I pay for an antibody test? Naw...I figure if the jab is 95% effective, I don’t really need to blow my dough on the antibody test.

Edit to add: I didn’t vote, because I’ll be getting antibody tests each time I donate blood, like it or not, and at no cost to me.

 

[RockyMtn]

I was in a J & J study. Went and got an antibody test to see if I had the real thing or the placebo. Came back negative but it did turn out I got the real vaccine. Apparently getting an antibody test doesn't always tell/show if you have had a vaccine. Or so I was told!

 

[JDARNELL]

I had the antibody test two weeks ago as an add on test to some routine bloodwork I was having done. So a target of opportunity.

I was sick in January for about 5 days and lost taste for about 3 weeks. So it was a pretty good guess I had the Rona. And sure enough It came back positive.

I don’t plan to get the vaccine anytime soon. I figure the deciding factor will be me wanting to travel out of the country in 2022-2023 and that will force my hand.

 

[Finance Dave]

Nope, no interest in getting an antibody test.

It would just give me one more thing to worry about, and I've had enough worrying over the last year to last me the rest of my life.

I got the vaccinations - I anticipate they will eventually come out with a "booster" or some such solution to dealing with the variants, and I would get that too. I also anticipate there may be yearly boosters for Covid.

Other than getting the necessary vaccinations in the future, I'm not going to expend any more of my emotional or psychological energy on worrying about Covid. It has already stolen so many hours of my peace of mind, and I'm not voluntarily giving up any more!

+1

Only difference here is that I have yet to get my 2nd shot...another 17 days or so until I do.

 

[OldShooter]

Antibody Test/Cheap Insurance

We get our second shots today and, as it happened, I was scheduling my annual physical. So I asked about getting the antibody test to confirm that the vaccinations did their job.

Quite a surprise actually. My PCP is happy to order it and it costs only $48, so I really don’t even care whether the my BCBS insurance covers it. We scheduled the physical for a couple of weeks out to make sure this second shot has had a chance to do its job.

 

[Alan]

Threads merged

 

[RobbieB]

Nope, not going to worry about it.

 

[FIREd_2015]

I got my antibody test last year from Labcorp for $10. It looks like it's still available.

"...You have the option to request the IgG test through Labcorp.com. While the test itself has no upfront costs, there is a $10 non-refundable service fee for the physician order through PWNHealth. The $10 service fee is not submitted to insurance for reimbursement. Labcorp will bill the cost of the COVID-19 antibody test directly to your health plan if you are insured, or if you are uninsured, Labcorp will bill the appropriate government program..."

When I signed up last year, Labcorp didn't ask for health insurance info so I'm assuming they billed the appropriate government program since I only paid $10.

https://www.labcorp.com/coronavirus-disease-covid-19/individuals/antibody-test

 

[RetiredAt55.5]

Edit to add: I didn’t vote, because I’ll be getting antibody tests each time I donate blood, like it or not, and at no cost to me.

+1

I've already had 8 tests this year, all negative. I haven't gotten the vaccine yet.

 

[capjak]

As someone that has developed serology tests for a long time.....

typically the immune system takes 14 days to illicit measurable IgG and/or IgM antibody and can hang around at a measurable level for days/weeks (IgM) to months to years (IgG)...

A positive result does not mean you have the level of antibody needed to be protected.

A negative result does not mean you are not protected as long term immunity is also contained within other immune cells like T-Cells and this would not be measurable on an antibody test.

So not sure how much value it would add.

However, vaccine manufacturers do typically monitor antibody levels pre and post vaccination (including viral neutralizing antibody...e.g. recent variants) so there is value for clinical research to develop an understanding of boosting concentration/time/target antibody development and eventually perhaps immunity etc.....

 

[Brdofpray]

I donate platelets and plasma every 2-3 weeks. They screen regularly for covid antibodies, looking for convalescent donors. After my two Pfizer shots, I have tested negative twice. Either the test isn't sensitive enough, or this vaccine functions differently than other vaccines we have received in the past.

 

[MRG]

We likely had Covid-19 last April, DW was sick the entire month, I had a lighter version. It wasn't until we were well our symptoms(fatigue, headache, body aches, loss of taste and smell) were added to the list. Since last fall there's been antibody tests, $25, at the grocery store.

Question is what would it prove? Was the test ineffective or didn't I have antibodies? What behaviors would I be willing to perhaps risk my life on? Maybe take 2 tests, 3, hey let's try 6 like Russian roulette? No thanks.

 

[skyking1]

I would for just one reason: If I thought I possibly had covid, I could donate convalescent plasma to help others.

 

[Alan]

We likely had Covid-19 last April, DW was sick the entire month, I had a lighter version. It wasn't until we were well our symptoms(fatigue, headache, body aches, loss of taste and smell) were added to the list. Since last fall there's been antibody tests, $25, at the grocery store.

Question is what would it prove? Was the test ineffective or didn't I have antibodies? What behaviors would I be willing to perhaps risk my life on? Maybe take 2 tests, 3, hey let's try 6 like Russian roulette? No thanks.

My BIL and myself also went through similar at end of February / start of March last year. We used to go to the pub together every week so we’re totally convinced we had it. He actually went to see the doctor and about 2 months later the NHS contacted him and asked if you would take an anti-body test to see if he had had Covid. The test was negative.

Christmas Eve he got Covid and he was really sick for 2 weeks, tiredness lasting many weeks beyond that so I guess in his case the test had been correct.

 

[JoeWras]

I answered "no" because I don't care.

But it turns out I'm going to get one, because I'm back to donating platelets. The blood center checks for the antibodies. They also have added a question about having the COVID-19 vaccine, and if you say "yes," they throw another question at you asking if you want to donate convalescent plasma.

This is going to be an interesting experiment if I keep my typical 2 to 3 week donation pattern. I'll potentially find out when (or if) the test finds me positive.

My first donation was 2 days after my first shot of Moderna. It came back negative, which is not a surprise. We'll find out what it shows in a few weeks. Depending on what test they use, it may never show positive. It will be interesting to watch.

 

[Sojourner]

Question is what would it prove? Was the test ineffective or didn't I have antibodies? What behaviors would I be willing to perhaps risk my life on? Maybe take 2 tests, 3, hey let's try 6 like Russian roulette? No thanks.

For me, this is the key. For the past 12 months I have totally altered my daily routines and habits in order to studiously avoid face-to-face contact with virtually everyone on Earth. Once I'm fully vaccinated (my first shot is scheduled for next week!), would I be willing to "risk my life" on the assumption the vaccine was administered properly? I do have a pretty high degree of trust in the vaccination system overall, but the vaccine itself is so fragile (especially Pfizer-BnT) and subject to human error in its storage/handling/preparation/delivery. Isn't there a (small) chance, for any given individual shot/dose, that something went wrong along the way and the high degree of expected immunity wouldn't actually be realized? Wouldn't I want to know—via an antibody test—that everything did work as expected and that I can go about my life feeling relatively safe?

Of course, the problem is finding an antibody test that is a) specific enough to pick up the antibodies induced by the vaccine I get, b) readily available, and c) not unreasonably expensive. Right now, I don't know of anything that meets all those criteria.

 

[JoeWras]

For me, this is the key. For the past 12 months I have totally altered my daily routines and habits in order to studiously avoid face-to-face contact with virtually everyone on Earth. Once I'm fully vaccinated (my first shot is scheduled for next week!), would I be willing to "risk my life" on the assumption the vaccine was administered properly? I do have a pretty high degree of trust in the vaccination system overall, but the vaccine itself is so fragile (especially Pfizer-BnT) and subject to human error in its storage/handling/preparation/delivery. Isn't there a (small) chance, for any given individual shot/dose, that something went wrong along the way and the high degree of expected immunity wouldn't actually be realized? Wouldn't I want to know—via an antibody test—that everything did work as expected and that I can go about my life feeling relatively safe?

Of course, the problem is finding an antibody test that is a) specific enough to pick up the antibodies induced by the vaccine I get, b) readily available, and c) not unreasonably expensive. Right now, I don't know of anything that meets all those criteria.

You have to trust somewhere. We all risk our life driving on 2 lane roads and trusting that the oncoming driver is paying attention and awake.