Coronavirus: Chennai Corporation introduces antibody testing for its employees

CHENNAI: The Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) on Thursday introduced antibody testing for its employees to check if they are exposed to coronavirus.
GCC commissioner G Prakash said 1,000 employees in the Ripon Buildings (GCC headquarters) would undergo the test, which is a blood test as compared to the RT-PCR which is a swab test.
"The test is quick and gives results on whether the person has developed antibodies against the virus," Prakash said.
The test will check for Immunoglobulin-G (IgG) and Immunoglobulin-M (IgM).
If IgG is detected, the person will be deemed to have recovered from Covid-19 and has the antibodies. If IgM is detected, the person will have to undergo the RT-PCR test to confirm if he has Covid-19. Then the person would be isolated and treated, Prakash said.
“If the person tests negative for both, then they have not been exposed to the virus so far,” he said.
The tests were being done by Strumed Solutions Private Limited in collaboration with Ageis Home Healthcare Private Limited.
In a release, the company said the tests would reveal the presence of IgG and IgM antibodies in a given individual within 15 minutes. The test results can be used to segregate i) non-infected people, ii) people carrying active infection and iii) people who have been infected but have recovered.
Additionally, for IgG positive individuals, a Quantitative CLIA Test to determine the antibody levels in the patient could be optionally done, to identify possible donor candidates for plasma therapy.
The test data are proposed to be uploaded on a web portal (through a mobile app) that the government could use for tracking results and taking appropriate policy decisions.