ICMR team visits NCI-Jhajjar to validate Chinese rapid antibody testing kits

Amid vel Coronavirus crisis in country, a team of scientists from Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) on Thursday visited AIIMS's National Cancer Institute (NCI) at Jhajjar in Haryana, to conduct field validation of Chinese manufactured rapid antibody testing kits. validation is being done after some States complained that  kits are showing wide variations in results and low accuracy rates.

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 As a result to complaints, ICMR advised all States t to use rapid testing kits for two days and wait for furr directions from ICMR.  rapid antibody tests would be on blood samples of COVID and n-COVID patients to learn trend, a senior scientist from ICMR informed ANI.

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A senior scientist from ICMR told ANI: "We have started field validation of rapid antibody test kits, which we received from China. A group of scientists has gone to NCI, Jhajjar, to do field validation. This rapid antibody tests would be on blood samples of COVID and n-COVID patients to learn trend."

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According to ICMR scientist, one needs to watch for false negative and false positives as well. "Hence one needs to include negatives as well," added scientist."We will also collect data from or States to assess scope and extent of utility of se rapid antibody tests in field conditions of our country and will keep advising States," said ICMR officials, adding that States must do vigorous RT-PCR as principal diagstic tests to contain spread of  virus.

Meanwhile, on Wednesday, ICMR had directed all state governments to follow fresh protocol for using a rapid antibody test. A senior doctor at AIIMS, Jhajjar, said: "As on to date, we have at least 200 COVID-19 positive and COVID-19 suspected patients. About 70 of se patients are COVID-19 positive, including a five-year-old child."

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(With inputs from ncy)