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New Delhi:
The very newest information on testing for coronavirus – which NDTV has accessed with issue – exhibits that India is instantly utilizing many extra of the less-reliable Rapid Antigen Tests (RAT).
The “gold standard’ for coronavirus testing is the RT-PCR test because it has a much better level of accuracy than Antigen Tests.
Two months ago, 98 per cent of the tests that India was conducting was PCR tests. Today, almost half the tests being conducted are Antigen Tests: only 56 per cent of coronavirus tests in India are PCR tests – while Antigen Tests have risen from 2 per cent to 44 per cent (see graph).
Since Antigen Tests have a excessive false negativity fee (they report optimistic instances as adverse), an issue recognised even by the ICMR (Indian Council of Medical Research), the each day numbers being launched for India’s fee of Covid-positivity are deceptive. The Covid-positivity fee is more likely to be a lot increased, if solely RT-PCR assessments are used.
There is little question of a task for RAT or Antigen Test surveys: to establish individuals who’re contaminated. But if an Antigen Test result’s adverse, it shouldn’t be taken critically. The ‘adverse’ antigen examined particular person should still even have the coronavirus an infection.
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