ICMR’s antibody test research study highlights requirement for more screening, and much better contact tracing
The outcomes of a serological test conducted across 69 districts by the Indian Council of Medical Research Study (ICMR) have indicated that the confirmed varieties of COVID-19 infections reported from the RT-PCR tests are likely an undercount. Serological or antibody tests are not as precise as the PCR tests, but they are useful indicators of the spread of the novel coronavirus amongst people. The ICMR study found that 0.73%of the population, taken a look at for antibodies produced specifically for SARS-CoV-2 through an ELISA test, had evidence of previous exposure to the infection. In a population with a low infection rate, there is a higher possibility of “incorrect positives” being reported. A number of respondents could have been found to have released antibodies particular to coronaviruses, but without real direct exposure to SARS-CoV-2 alone. But the ICMR in its method note in a paper in its online publicatio