Resurgence of COVID-19 symptoms in patients treated with Pfizer Inc.’s Paxlovid appeared far more common than has been reported, and rebounding patients still risked spreading the disease, doctors said in a report on a series of cases in a top medical journal.
The article published Wednesday in the New England Journal of Medicine documented 13 fully vaccinated patients whose rapid COVID tests turned strongly positive and symptoms reappeared several days after finishing five-day courses of Paxlovid. One patient apparently transmitted the virus to a 6-month-old baby during rebound, while another who spent time with his wife, brother-in-law and sister-in-law just as his rebound was beginning saw all three become infected.
This summer, researchers reported high viral loads and the isolation of infectious virus in patients who rebounded after Paxlovid treatment, and the article adds to suspicions that they can spread the disease. Although small, it also adds weight to indications that Paxlovid rebound is by no means uncommon: lead study author Michael Charness, chief of staff of the VA Boston Healthcare System, said that all three members of his family who took Pfizer’s drug, including himself, experienced rebound and both members of his co-author’s family who got Paxlovid had the same experience.
