LUCKNOW: The Uttar Pradesh government launched the anti-body based rapid testing for coronavirus on Sunday from Gautam Buddh Nagar, home to 30-odd hotspots in the state. The district also accounts for about 9% of all cases in UP and 11.3% cases in top ten districts.
“The purpose is to undertake better Covid surveillance in the district which accounts for the third largest burden of cases in the state,” said principal secretary, health and family welfare, Amit Mohan Prasad.
Informing that the rapid kits have been provided by the union government, Prasad added: “The ICMR approved rapid kits can help in screening coronavirus cases in a record 30 minutes. The outcomes from Noida would be used to develop a template for surveillance in other affected districts as well.”
Officials however clarified that the lab based RT PCR (real time polymerase chain reaction) test would continue to be the confirmatory test. “The rapid test will not be used to declare a confirmed case of Covid-19. The traditional RT PCR will continue to be used,” they said.
Health officials stated that the kits were a need of the hour. “The cluster containment plan – under which hotspots have been made — is already in action. Aggressive surveillance and testing is a part of the strategy and kits will naturally be needed,” said a health officer.
Experts said that the use of rapid kits for purely surveillance purpose was a good move as the outcomes gathered from rapid kits came with the challenge of diagnostic accuracy — or assessment of how reliable a test is. “There is a notable risk of getting false positive or false negative cases with rapid kits. Limiting its use for surveillance purpose appears to be a good way out to overcome the barrier,” said a veteran microbiologist at KGMU, Lucknow.
“The purpose is to undertake better Covid surveillance in the district which accounts for the third largest burden of cases in the state,” said principal secretary, health and family welfare, Amit Mohan Prasad.
Informing that the rapid kits have been provided by the union government, Prasad added: “The ICMR approved rapid kits can help in screening coronavirus cases in a record 30 minutes. The outcomes from Noida would be used to develop a template for surveillance in other affected districts as well.”
Officials however clarified that the lab based RT PCR (real time polymerase chain reaction) test would continue to be the confirmatory test. “The rapid test will not be used to declare a confirmed case of Covid-19. The traditional RT PCR will continue to be used,” they said.
Health officials stated that the kits were a need of the hour. “The cluster containment plan – under which hotspots have been made — is already in action. Aggressive surveillance and testing is a part of the strategy and kits will naturally be needed,” said a health officer.
Experts said that the use of rapid kits for purely surveillance purpose was a good move as the outcomes gathered from rapid kits came with the challenge of diagnostic accuracy — or assessment of how reliable a test is. “There is a notable risk of getting false positive or false negative cases with rapid kits. Limiting its use for surveillance purpose appears to be a good way out to overcome the barrier,” said a veteran microbiologist at KGMU, Lucknow.
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