The Centre had on Thursday asked all states and union territories to conduct rigorous screening and testing of all international travellers coming from or transiting through South Africa, Hong Kong and Botswana, where the B.1.1.529 variant has been detected.
The rapid molecular test is highly accurate and easy to use, making it a prime candidate for use in settings with limited testing capabilities, according to the researchers.
Under the new norms, passengers coming from 12 'at risk' countries/regions undergo an RT-PCR test and wait for result at the airport before leaving or taking a connecting flight
India on Wednesday reported 21 cases of the JN.1 Covid variant, a development that is neither surprising nor particularly worrying, scientists said while allaying fears but also advising adherence to existing precautionary measures.
'We urge the government to have discussions with private labs on the actual cost of running a test.'
'The fortunate part is that the severity is less. New strains are continuously forming and the virus is getting less severe.'
The diagnostic test kit developed by the Thiruvananthapuram institute can detect coronavirus in 10 minutes, and the sample to result time will be less than two hours, Vardhan tweeted. A total of 30 samples can be tested in a single batch on a single machine, he said.
The new test it will enable rapid testing amongst more people easily.
The testing rate is likely to slow down, report Pavan Lall and Sohini Das.
A total of 25,12,388 samples have been tested for coronavirus infection as on 9 am, May 20 all over the country.
The number of active COVID-19 cases stands at 2,15,125, while 3,34,821 patients have been cured/discharged.
A total of 3,00,41,400 samples have been tested until August 16 with 7,31,697 samples being tested on Sunday, the Indian Council of Medical Research said.
This test uses an indigenously developed, cutting-edge CRISPR technology for detection of the genomic sequence of SARS-CoV-2 virus, CSIR said in a statement.
As has been reported from states and UTs that have pushed ahead with aggressive testing, there is a commensurate decline in the positivity rate, the health ministry said.
The bouquet of Covid-19 tests that most diagnostic labs are offering include antibody tests (blood tests), rapid antigen tests (point of care tests that detect the presence of an antigen from a nasal or throat swab in case of SARS-CoV-2), and reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) tests.
The test - called the Truenat Beta CoV test - effectively enables same-day testing, reporting, and patient isolation initiation.
Two dogs -- two-year-old cocker spaniel Casper and one-year-old Jaya, a 'chippiparai', which is an indigenous breed from Tamil Nadu -- have been trained to detect COVID-19 by sniffing samples of sweat and urine, senior Army officials said.
8 Asiatic lions in the zoo in have tested positive for COVID-19 after their saliva samples were thoroughly examined by CSIR-Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology in Hyderabad, Rakesh Mishra, advisor of the premier research institute said.
Blood tests are a significant diagnostic method for disease detection, says Prashant Shetty.
If you are considering pregnancy, it is advisable to meet with a healthcare provider to discuss your overall health, any pre-existing conditions, and any steps you can take to optimise your health before conceiving, advises Dr Kiran Coelho.
India has one of the lowest cases per million at 1,469 as against the global average of 2,425, the government said.
Mumbai, with an estimated population of nearly 20 million, has been testing 1,200-1,400 people per day. Delay in the delivery of rapid antibody test kits has forced the BMC to restrict its testing net.
Wang Guangfa, a respiratory expert from Peking University First Hospital, warned that Beijing may experience a spike in severe COVID-19 cases over the next fortnight.
"The recovery rate is 58.56 per cent amongst COVID-19 patients," the ministry said.
Two kinds of diagnostic tests are being currently used in India -- RT-PCR test and rapid antibodies test -- as per the global health norms.
'We found that in fatty liver patients, something happens that blocks insulin secretion.'
Pune's Mylab Discovery Solutions' CoviSelf, which gives results in 15 minutes, gets ICMR nod
Six Covid-19 cases were reported on Wednesday after screening 3,476 passengers of 11 flights that arrived in India from "at-risk" countries and the samples have been sent for genomic sequencing, the Health Ministry said amid concerns over the 'Omicron' variant of coronavirus.
The study will provide information about the spread of the infection and also throw light on herd immunity.
In a letter to the state chief secretaries on Monday, ICMR Director General (D-G) Dr Balram Bhargava said the COVID-19 diagnostic supplies are stabilising because of the indigenous production of the kits.
The cumulative tests conducted so far for detection of coronavirus infection in the country has increased to 3,26,61,252.
The apex health research body on Tuesday validated the 1,000th testing laboratory, ramping up the capacity for detection of COVID-19 in the country. Currently, three lakh samples can be tested per day, an official said.
The test named the "SARS-CoV-2 DETECTR" is easy to implement and to interpret, and requires no specialised equipment, said researchers from the University of California, San Francisco in the US.
The average Tests Per Million Per Day have increased from 237 in the second week of July to 758 in the first week of September.
The researchers, including those from the Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics (CDFD) in Hyderabad, advise testing asymptomatic primary and secondary contacts followed by surveillance.
'Antiviral treatment will have no change. Spike protein change may affect the immunity protection.'
A total of 5,15,385 COVID-19 patients have recovered so far with 19,870 patients having been cured and discharged in the last 24 hours till 8 am.
At present, the cost of testing for COVID-19 is Rs 4,500 per examination and the results are available within 24 hours. Almost 90 per cent of queries fizzle out after patients realise the cost of testing will not be borne by the government.
The districts are Gondia (Maharashtra), Raj Nand Gaon (Chhattisgarh), Davangiri (Karnataka), South Goa, Wayanad and Kottayam (Kerala), West Imphal (Manipur), Rajouri (J&K), Aizwal West (Mizoram), Mahe in Puducherry, SBS Nagar in Punjab, Patna, Nalanda and Munger in Bihar, Pratapgarh in Rajasthan, Panipat, Rohtak and Sirsa in Haryana, Pauri Garhwal in Uttrakhand and Bhadradari Kothagudem in Telangana.
