Antibody Tests

Who can use a coronavirus antibody test?

Anyone over the age of 18 can take a coronavirus antibody test. If you are taking this test because you had symptoms recently, you should only take this test 14 days after they started because your body may not have built an antibody response before this. Otherwise, you can take this test anytime.

Symptoms of COVID-19 include:

• fever
• loss of taste and smell
• continuous dry cough, which can occasionally lead to shortness of breath and breathing difficulties

Other symptoms include:

• muscle aches
• headache
• sore throat
• diarrhoea
• tiredness and fatigue
• rash

Coronavirus testing is very important for key workers, and people supporting those who are in at-risk groups to make sure they can go to work safely.

You can order a coronavirus antibody test kit if you have never had symptoms of coronavirus and want to find out if you’ve been infected previously and been asymptomatic (didn’t show visible symptoms). 

Can I still take a coronavirus antibody test if I’ve been vaccinated?

We can provide antibody testing if you have already been vaccinated and want to see the vaccine’s effects on your spike antibody levels. However, your results may be affected by a number of different factors.

If you have been vaccinated and receive a negative result for antibodies, this may be caused by:

• Testing too early (less than 3 weeks after a dose)
• Having a delayed response (some people develop antibodies weeks later than others)
• Testing after the first dose only (some people only develop antibody responses after the second dose)
• Being immunocompromised, or a reason why your immune system may not react as well as others (either because of a medical condition like diabetes or cancer, older age, medication or lifestyle factors like obesity or smoking)

Try to remember that a negative result does not always mean you haven’t responded to the vaccine. Immune responses after infection involve other immune pathways than just these antibodies. This includes cellular immunity (B and T cells), which are not analysed by this antibody test. 

So, if you receive a negative antibody result after only having one dose of the vaccine, you should continue to get your second dose as planned.