At labs, hospitals, many requests for antibody test

Gurgaon: Ever since private labs and hospitals in Haryana got approval to conduct IgG-based Elisa tests, they have seen a steady stream of residents who want to determine if they have developed antibodies in response to a past Covid infection. On August 22, the state allowed private labs to conduct these tests and capped the price at Rs 250.
Immunoglobulin-G or Ig-G antibodies start developing two weeks after the onset of infection, and last around 90 days, say doctors. While the IgG test cannot detect the presence of the virus, but a positive result indicates that the person had contracted the infection in the past, even if they were asymptomatic. Thus, several people are opting for this test to ascertain whether they have developed immunity against Covid.
Several labs pointed out that they are getting around 10 requests for antibody tests every day since the beginning of this month. Private hospitals pointed out that they are getting requests from corporate clients for these tests. As per the data, around 20% to 30% people are found to have developed antibodies.
Dr Sanjay Gupta, senior consultant & HOD, internal medicine, Medeor Hospital, Manesar, said, “This month, 15 patients have visited our hospital for the antibody tests, out of which five were found to be positive. Considering this, the positivity rate of these tests is over 25%.”
According to Anand K, CEO, SRL Diagnostics, the test helps detect specific antibodies and is accurate in indicating whether an individual has been exposed to the novel coronavirus. “The demand for these tests had slumped after an initial take-off. However, the tests have evolved and the government is using it widely in many states for sero surveillance. As per ICMR guidelines, sero surveillance testing has to be done on clusters which include industries, offices, health care workers, among others,” he said.
A negative result of Ig-G test doesn’t rule out an active infection, and thus, has to be confirmed with an RT-PCR test, says Dr Arunesh Kumar, senior consultant & head respiratory medicine, pulmonology, Gurgaon. “Ig-G is not the right test for detection of acute Covid infection. its pupose is completely different. A positive results of Ig-G test simply signifies that the person has a subclinical infection from a virus which might not necessarily be SARS-CoV-2,” he explained.
This test, however, would help in gauging the proportion of the population exposed to the infection, say experts. “This will help identify the cases that were asymptomatic according to rapid antigen tests,” said Dr Majeetha Nath Das, consultant, internal medicines, Columbia Asia Hospital, Gurgaon.
Suraj Wadha, a resident of Nirvana Country, said, “Knowing that you have immunity provides hope which is needed at this point of time. I do not have antibodies, so I am not venturing out and I am following the norms to ensure that I am safe.”