ICMR to conduct household survey

The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) is to conduct household survey. The survey will conduct antibody testing in 24,000 adults in various districts.

About the Survey

The household survey is completely different from the ongoing surveys. Under the survey, the individuals from all the districts will be randomly tested. In every district 10 health facilities will be employed to conduct the survey. Of these 6 will be public and 4 will be private. These health facilities will select 100 health care workers and 50 outpatients. Also, the persons that so not have influenza like illness are to be selected. This is because, there are several on going surveys that focus on people that have influenza like symptoms.

Background

ICMR previously focused on surveying based on pooled testing and Severe Acute Respiratory Illness (SARI). The survey will look for the presence of IGG antibodies. These antibodies appear between 10 and 14 days.

SARI surveillance

The SARI surveillance is an ongoing surveillance method that is being implemented on hospitalized patients using RT-PCR tests. The surveillance currently helps to detect new COVID-19 cases.

Sero Survey

The survey is to be conducted in 10 clusters. Every district selected will have 400 random households. Among these households one adult individual will be tested for COVID-19 antibodies. This is called Sero Survey.

Month: Current Affairs - May, 2020