Abstract:
This study was conducted to review relevant articles and demonstrate the prevalence of coronavirus disease
2019 (COVID-19) reinfection among healthcare workers (HCWs). A systemic search was conducted on
PubMed and Medline from their inception to July 17, 2021. All statistical analyses were conducted using
ReviewManager 5.4.1. Studies meeting the following inclusion criteria were selected: (a) articles
having HCWs with COVID-19; (b) studies describing reinfection of COVID-19; and (c) articles having a
defined number of patients and controls. Three studies were selected for meta-analysis. The Newcastle-
Ottawa Scale (NOS) was used to assess the quality of the cohort studies. NOS scores of 1-5 were considered
high risk for bias, scores of 6-7 were deemed moderate, and scores >7 were considered low risk for bias. A
random-effect model was used when heterogeneity was seen to pool the studies, and the results were
reported in inverse variance (IV) and corresponding 95% confidence interval (CI). Pooled prevalence of
reinfection of COVID-19 in HCWs was 3% (OR: 0.03 [-0.04, 0.01]; p=0.44; I2=4%). A non-significant
prevalence was found among the healthcare professionals in terms of severe acute respiratory syndrome
coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) reinfection in Europe. The preformed antibodies were protective against
reinfection. However, the waning of antibodies with respect to time was evident, varying differently in
different individuals, thereby resulting in reinfection.
