Coronavirus: ICMR widens testing criteria in revised strategy; details here
The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) on Monday revised its strategy for testing cases of COVID-19. As per the revised strategy, frontline workers who are involved in containment and mitigation efforts regarding the outbreak will also be tested if they show symptoms of influenza-like illness (ILI). Till Monday morning, over 23 lakh samples had been tested for COVID-19 in India.
The revised testing strategy states that "all symptomatic (ILI symptoms) health care workers/frontline workers involved in containment and mitigation of COVID-19" can be tested for the disease. Other changes to the testing strategy include the addition of all hospitalized patients who develop ILI symptoms. All symptomatic ILI cases among returnees and migrants must be tested within seven days of illness.
Asymptomatic direct and high-risk contacts of a confirmed case will now be tested once between day 5 and day 10 of coming into contact with the infected person. Earlier, they had to be tested between day 5-14 of coming in contact with the infected person.
All symptomatic (ILI symptoms) individuals with international travel history in the past 14 days, symptomatic (ILI symptoms) contacts of laboratory-confirmed cases, patients of Severe Acute Respiratory Infection (SARI), and symptomatic ILI cases within hotspots and containment zones will continue to be eligible for COVID-19 tests. The aforementioned tests are to be conducted using real-time RT-PCR tests only.
In the latest revision of the testing strategy, the ICMR also mentioned that no emergency procedure (such as deliveries) should be delayed over the lack of a test. Their samples can be sent for testing if they meet the testing criteria.
According to the Health Ministry's latest update, as of Monday 8 am, India had reported 96,169 COVID-19 cases. These included 3,029 deaths and 56,316 active cases along with 36,823 patients who have been cured/discharged and one patient who migrated out of India. A total of 420 labs across India (289 government labs, and 131 private labs) are conducting real-time RT PCR for COVID-19.
