Panchkula ready for antibody tests for Covid-19
Tests can confirm suspected cases and also reveal who was infected and didn’t know it
Panchkula To understand the proportion of population exposed to Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome or SARS-CoV-2 (which causes Covid-19) the Panchkula health department will soon start serosurveillance or monitoring of the presence or absence of specific substances in the blood serum of a population, as advised by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR).
Antibody serum immunoglobulin (IGg) ELISA (enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay) kits, will be used to detect and quantify proteins and antigens from various samples.
The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) on Saturday asked states and union territories to start the serosurveillance.
“We have approvals to conduct the tests . On Monday, we sent the demand to the state health department and as soon as we receive the IGg ELISA kits, we will start the tests,” said Dr Jasjeet Kaur, civil surgeon, Panchkula.
To check if people have developed antibodies to the virus, ICMR has specified that those who should be tested include immuno-compromised patients, healthcare workers, police, municipal workers, drivers, vendors, migrant labourers, people working at airports, industrial workers, prisoners, bankers, mediapersons and others.
“Serosurveillance of particular groups such as policemen and healthcare workers will start as soon as we receive the kits. From the immunoglobulin levels of asymptomatic people exposed (to SARS-CoV-2) and cured we will find out if they are part of the self-cured population,” Kaur added.
The testing will enable health authorities to work out public health strategies for people exposed and not exposed to the virus as it will help us find out what percentage of the population has been exposed to the virus and does not require treatment, which in future will help in the prevention and control of the disease, Kaur said.
