What are the investigations that should be done to the patient suspected to be infected with coronavirus( COVID -19) other than PCR?
Two kinds of tests are available for COVID-19: viral tests and antibody tests.
- A viral test tells you if you have a current infection.
- An antibody test might tell you if you had a past infection. An antibody test might not show if you have a current infection because it can take 1–3 weeks after infection for your body to make antibodies. Having antibodies to the virus that causes COVID-19 might provide protection from getting infected with the virus again. If it does, we do not know how much protection the antibodies might provide or how long this protection might last.
as well as CT-scan is important step in diagnosis of COVID-19
There are two types of test for detection of Corona virus by using a blood test, which is called serological or antibody testing, in addition to the current molecular diagnostic examination on a technique called "polymerase chain reaction" (PCR) that searches for evidence of the virus's RNA genome in the sample being examined. Medical tests for viruses that rely on RNA are useful when symptoms of the disease are very severe and to provide individual care to patients, in addition to implementing strategies to prevent the spread of the virus in health care facilities and in society. "
While serological tests may not be useful in the case of acute disease, they are very useful in the process of tracking friction and serological monitoring at the local or national level.
The Sofia SARS Antigen Fluorescent Immunoassay (FIA) uses advanced immunofluorescence-based lateral flow technology in a sandwich design for qualitative detection of nucleocapsid protein from SARS-CoV-2. The Sofia SARS Antigen FIA, with the Sofia 2 and Sofia analyzers, provides automated and objective results in 15 minutes, allowing for testing of patients suspected of COVID-19/2019-nCoV in near-patient testing environments.
https://www.quidel.com/immunoassays/rapid-sars-tests/sofia-sars-antigen-fia
Sahar A. Majeed Here is an article telling you all the possible methods which can be used to detect SARS-CoV-2. It also mentions the advantage and disadvantage of each method.
Title:
What tests could potentially be used for the screening, diagnosis and monitoring of COVID-19 and what are their advantages and disadvantages?
Link:
https://www.cebm.net/covid-19/what-tests-could-potentially-be-used-for-the-screening-diagnosis-and-monitoring-of-covid-19-and-what-are-their-advantages-and-disadvantages/
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