Coronavirus outbreak has spread to many countries across the globe. India, too is on the brink of a crisis, with over 41 confirmed
cases of Coronavirus so far. There's also a lot of panic across, more so because the disease exhibits symptoms similar to that of a cold or flu. The number of people who have died of the disease globally stands at 3,830.
While the cases continue to rise, the biggest focus right now is to diagnose and quarantine people as soon as possible to stop the spread of infection.
Even though the symptoms are similar to that of a cold or the flu, coronavirus is a "novel" strain, and hence, the testing is also different.
What is the procedure Quarantine and isolation is the first line of defence to protect against Coronavirus risk.
Since coronavirus is a high-risk infection, Indian Council of Medical Research (
ICMR) suggests that anyone with a recent travel history to COVID-19 affected countries or someone who has been in close contact with infected patients is also advised screening. A statement reads:
Following people should be considered for COVID-19 testing.
1.Symptomatic (fever, sore throat, running nose, dyspnea, etc) individuals who have traveled to affected countries (China, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Iran, Italy etc.)
2. Close contacts of confirmed positive cases of COVID-19 infection.
3. All individuals evacuated and quarantined from Wuhan, China and Diamond Princess ship, Japan.
While there is no readily available test kit to detect coronavirus infection, doctors and researchers go by a series of tests to confirm the infection. Sometimes, testing can also be done at home or at the lab. The testing usually involves drawing blood and mucus samples.
To see if a person is actually infected by the "novel" coronavirus strain, technicians conduct analysis which involves three specific tests:
-Swab test: A cotton swab is inserted inside the throat or the nose.
-Nasal aspirate: A saline solution is injected inside the nose and once done, the test sample is removed.
-A tracheal aspirate: Testers also insert a bronchoscope which collects swabs from inside the lungs. Sometimes, a sputum test is also ordered to analyse infection pattern.
Doctors also recommend carrying out antibodies test to detect possible side effects which can develop alongside the viral infection.
The collected samples are then studied to detect virus risk. Specific gene sequences which can detect for the novel coronavirus are conducted in
virology labs. One such lab is National Institue of Virology (NIV), located in Pune. With rising cases, the government of India has accredited 52 more labs across the country to help fasten the testing procedures at the preliminary level. World Health Organisation (WHO) suggests that the diagnosis of COVID-19 must be done by RT-PCR (polymerase chain reaction) or gene sequencing for respiratory or blood specimens
How long does it take for results to come back?Since the tests are done to detect virus incubation and its gene sequence, the testing procedure takes a little longer. While some labs can send reports in less than 10 hours, otherwise, it usually takes longer to see results.
Is it reliable?Even though the testing kit is currently set in place, it isn't entirely "reliable". There are chances of false positives and negatives to come back, which is what happened with the first Indian patient who tested positive for coronavirus.
Here is the list of 52 labs across India where coronavirus testing is available:1. Sri Venkateswara Institute of Medical Sciences, Tirupati2. Andhra Medical College, Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh3. GMC, Anantapur, AP4. Regional Medical Research Centre, Port Blair, Andaman and Nicobar5. Gauhati Medical College, Guwahati6. Regional Medical Research Center, Dibrugarh7. Rajendra Memorial Research Institute of Medical Sciences, Patna8. Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education & Research, Chandigarh9. All India Institute Medical Sciences, Raipur10. All India Institute Medical Sciences, Delhi11. National Centre for Disease Control, Delhi12. BJ Medical College, Ahmedabad13. M.P.Shah Government Medical College, Jamnagar14. Pt. B.D. Sharma Post Graduate Inst. of Med. Sciences, Rohtak, Haryana15. BPS Govt Medical College, Sonipat16. Indira Gandhi Medical College, Shimla, Himachal Pradesh17. Dr.Rajendra Prasad Govt. Med. College, Kangra, Tanda, HP18. Sher-e- Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences, Srinagar19. Government Medical College, Jammu20. MGM Medical College, Jamshedpur21. Bangalore Medical College & Research Institute, Bangalore22. National Institute of Virology Field Unit Bangalore23. Mysore Medical College & Research Institute, Mysore24. Hassan Inst. of Med. Sciences, Hassan, Karnataka25. Shimoga Inst. of Med. Sciences, Shivamogga, Karnataka26. National Institute of Virology Field Unit, Kerala27. Govt. Medical College, Thriuvananthapuram, Kerala28. Govt. Medical College, Kozhikhode, Kerala29. All India Institute Medical Sciences, Bhopal30. National Institute of Research in Tribal Health (NIRTH), Jabalpur31. NEIGRI of Health and Medical Sciences, Shillong, Meghalaya32.Indira Gandhi Government Medical College, Nagpur33. Kasturba Hospital for Infectious Diseases, Mumbai34. J N Inst. of Med. Sciences Hospital, Imphal-East, Manipur35. Regional Medical Research Center, Bhubaneswar36. Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education & Research, Puducherry37. Government Medical College, Patiala, Punjab38. Government Medical College, Amritsar39. Sawai Man Singh, Jaipur40. Dr. S.N Medical College, Jodhpur41. Jhalawar Medical College, Jhalawar, Rajasthan42. SP Med. College, Bikaner, Rajasthan43. King's Institute of Preventive Medicine & Research, Chennai44. Government Medical College, Theni45. Government Medical College, Agartala46. Gandhi Medical College, Secunderabad47. King's George Medical University, Lucknow48. Institute of Medical Sciences, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi49. Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College, Aligarh50. Government Medical College, Haldwani51. National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases, Kolkata52. IPGMER, KolkataWhile we report on the spread of coronavirus in India, we also need to emphasise that the need for caution shouldn't lead to an atmosphere filled with anxiety and fear. We stand by #CautionYesPanicNo