Coimbatore: The district recorded 222 new cases of Covid-19 on Friday, taking the tally to 44,676. However, the number of active cases dipped further to 1,001 with 233 patients getting discharged from treatment centres. The number of people recovered from Covid-19 stands at 43,104 in the district, where the recovery rate has touched 96.4%.
The toll, meanwhile, shot up by two to 571. Both the deceased were men in their 70s and diabetic. One of them, who was aged 72, died of pneumonia and respiratory failure in the Coimbatore Medical College Hospital on Wednesday, while the other one, aged 75, succumbed to the virus on Thursday.
Meanwhile, more people, who are exposed to positive patients, are undergoing antibody test after a week or two of quarantine. A private laboratory at RS Puram said at least 10 to 15 people were coming for the SARS-CoV2 igm/igg antibody test daily. While igm antibodies show the virus is still active, igg antibodies usually signify that the virus is inactive.
Another laboratory on Cowley Brown Road said it was mostly doctors and their family members, who were opting for the antibody test. “Many doctors bring their families two months after they have recovered to check if they still have antibodies, because they know about the test,” said a lab representative.
Government officials, however, said the usefulness of antibodies was yet to be proven. “We are realizing that many asymptomatic Covid-19 patients don’t have antibodies. Even symptomatic patients don’t have antibodies after a little over two months. We do not know how long igg antibodies for Covid-19 would last and if the presence of antibodies would help prevent reinfection,” said Siva Chandran, a senior epidemiologist.