Evidence map›Paper›PMID 38515023›Full record

SynthesisBMC infectious diseases2024

How does the SARS-CoV-2 reinfection rate change over time? The global evidence from systematic review and meta-analysis.

Ying Chen, Wenhui Zhu, Xinyue Han, Miaoshuang Chen, Xin Li, Haiping Huang, Mengyuan Zhang, Rongjie Wei, Huadong Zhang, Changhong Yang and 1 more

Open access · goldAbstract readMeta-AnalysisSystematic Review
In one paragraph

Synthesis in BMC infectious diseases, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 11 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
11citing papers in PubMed
7.8field-weighted citation impact, top 2% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

11 citing papers in PubMed, 20 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Article
  2. Review
  3. The Effect of SARS-CoV-2 Reinfection on Long-Term Symptoms in the Innovative Support for Patients With SARS-CoV-2 Infections Registry (INSPIRE).Clinical infectious diseases : an official publication of the Infectious Diseases Society of America · 2025
    Article
  4. Article
  5. Article
  6. Article
  7. Article
  8. Article
  9. Article
  10. Review
  11. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.

Ying Chen *Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, West China School of Public Health and West China Fourth Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China.
Wenhui Zhu *Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, West China School of Public Health and West China Fourth Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China.
Xinyue HanDepartment of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, West China School of Public Health and West China Fourth Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China.
Miaoshuang ChenDepartment of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, West China School of Public Health and West China Fourth Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China.
Xin LiDepartment of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, West China School of Public Health and West China Fourth Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China.
Haiping HuangDepartment of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, West China School of Public Health and West China Fourth Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China.
Mengyuan ZhangSichuan Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China.
Rongjie WeiSichuan Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China.
Huadong ZhangChongqing Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Chongqing, China.
Changhong YangSichuan Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China. changhong_yang@163.com.
Tao ZhangDepartment of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, West China School of Public Health and West China Fourth Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China. statzhangtao@scu.edu.cn.
West China Medical Center of Sichuan University · CNSichuan Center for Disease Control and Prevention · CNSichuan University · CN

Funding

Central government funding items 2021zc02Chengdu Municipal People's Government H230413Chongqing Science and Technology Program cstc2020jscx-cylhX0003National Key Research and Development Program of China 2022YFC3600604National Natural Science Foundation of China 81602935Sichuan Province Science and Technology Support Program 2022YFS0641
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundThere is a significant increase in the number of SARS-CoV-2 reinfection reports in various countries. However, the trend of reinfection rate over time is not clear.

methodsWe searched PubMed, Web of Science, Medline, Embase, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, and Wanfang for cohort studies, case-control studies, and cross-sectional studies up to March 16, 2023, to conduct a meta-analysis of global SARS-CoV-2 reinfection rate. Subgroup analyses were performed for age, country, study type, and study population, and time-varying reinfection rates of SARS-CoV-2 were estimated using meta-regression. The risk of bias was assessed using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale and the Joanna Briggs Institute critical appraisal tool.

resultA total of 55 studies involving 111,846 cases of SARS-CoV-2 reinfection were included. The pooled SARS-CoV-2 reinfection rate was 0.94% (95% CI: 0.65 -1.35%). In the subgroup analyses, there were statistically significant differences in the pooled reinfection rates by reinfection variant, and study type (P < 0.05). Based on meta-regression, the reinfection rate fluctuated with time.

conclusionMeta-regression analysis found that the overall reinfection rate increased and then decreased over time, followed by a period of plateauing and then a trend of increasing and then decreasing, but the peak of the second wave of reinfection rate was lower than the first wave. SARS-CoV-2 is at risk of reinfection and the Omicron variant has a higher reinfection rate than other currently known variants. The results of this study could help guide public health measures and vaccination strategies in response to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

Indexed as

COVID-19ReinfectionSARS-CoV-2Global HealthHumansCOVID-19Meta-analysisMeta-regressionSARS-CoV-2Time-varying reinfection rate

Identifiers

PMID38515023
PMCPMC10956270
OpenAlexW4393043822

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.