Value in testing a healthy person

Dear Dr. Roach: Many people are getting tested for 1) active illness and 2) antibodies. What’s the value of an asymptomatic person getting tested for an active infection? Do we even know if having antibodies gives you any protection? I’m reluctant to get tested. What am I overlooking? — B.E.

There’s really no reason to be checking for the virus unless you have a compelling reason to get a medical procedure or travel or could otherwise potentially expose others. In that case, a positive test would allow you to take stricter precautions.

Positive antibodies are necessary if you are enrolling in a study on the value of convalescent serum. Otherwise, it is mostly to satisfy curiosity about whether you were infected in the past or not. It remains unclear whether antibodies are needed for immunity; whether they confer immunity or not; and how long-lasting any immunity might be. Until these are known, getting antibody testing remains not very helpful.

Dear Dr. Roach: I am writing for my 78-year-old sister. She had a vascular access port put in 16 years ago for non-Hodgkin lymphoma. She opted to keep it in, and gets it flushed every six weeks. In a recent column, you wrote that without flushing, the port could clot. Could this affect her in any way? Is it possible to remove after 16 years? — E.R.

Usually, a port can be removed fairly easily, although there are rare complications. Many people, like your sister, choose to leave them in. Clotting of the catheter just means that the catheter can no longer be used to infuse fluid or chemotherapy; having a clot from the catheter break off and travel someplace — this is called “embolization” — is rare. Infection of the device is another rare complication. If she doesn’t mind going in, continuing the flushing is safe.