Peterborough clinic becomes first in the city to offer Covid-19 antibody testing

An antibody test tells you whether or not it’s likely you’ve had coronavirus. When you have a virus inside your body, antibodies are produced to fight it.

If you have coronavirus antibodies in your blood, it is likely that you have had the virus before.

The test helps to provide data and a greater understanding of the spread of the virus but it can not tell if you currently have it.

The tests are approved for use in the European Economic Area (EEA) and work by taking a small prick of blood. The results are received instantly and they have an accuracy rate of 98 percent.

Free antibody tests are currently only available for certain people who work in primary care, social care or education. They are not widely available for the public yet either, previously the closest place to Peterborough to get one was Milton Keynes.

The clinic, on Papyrus Road, is also offering Vitamin D shots. Last week, Health Secretary Matt Hancock encouraged people to take Vitamin D to boost their resilience to fight coronavirus. This came after Vitamin D showed positive results in helping to boost the body’s immune system recently.

The clinic only opened last year and owner Kerry Moore has worked hard to ensure that the business came back stronger after lockdown.

She said: “It’s been tough but we are gradually finding our feet again. We want to bring all kinds of therapies under one roof. We offer everything from hairdressing, fillers, lashes to reiki. We’re really excited to be able to offer these antibody to people in Peterborough.”

The tests are appointment only and anyone wishing to book one can visit cambridgeshirewellnessclinic.com.