CDC Director Rochelle Walensky, MD, tested positive for COVID-19 days after she took Paxlovid to treat mild symptoms.
Dr. Walensky tested positive Oct. 21, took Pfizer's five-day antiviral treatment, self-isolated and tested negative. On Oct. 30, mild symptoms returned and she tested positive again, according to the CDC.
Rebound COVID-19 after taking Paxlovid cases are rare, studies suggest, but there has been debate over the rarity status after high-profile people such as President Joe Biden and Anthony Fauci, MD, have had rebound cases. A recent study sponsored by the National Institutes of Health found that rebound cases happened equally between study participants who did and did not take Paxlovid.