Need to focus on more asymptomatic people

LUCKNOW: The health department is testing 181 samples per day on an average for coronavirus in the state capital and experts feel the number should go up to ensure early screening of cases.

“At present, a majority of the tests are being conducted on symptomatic patients. But the need now is to test the asymptomatic ones. We can say Lucknow is still doing under-testing against the required strategy,” said Dr PK Gupta, former president of the Indian Medical Association, Lucknow.

Other experts too said sampling needed to go up in Lucknow with a population of 46 lakh (4.6 million) and cover even those living in non-hot spot areas.

“There is no constraint on the testing facilities, hence the number should be taken up; maybe with the help of pool testing,” said Dr Adarsh Kumar. The average number of tests was around 20 per day till March 31 and then the number went up. Lucknow first case was reported on March 10.

In the first week of April, when members of the Tablighi Jamaat tested positive in the Sadar area of the city, the average number of tests went up to 50 per day and then crossed 100. Between April 12 and May 12, 5,600 samples were tested. From the first week of May, over 200 samples were tested till May 15 on an average. This gradually came down to 150 per day from May 17.

Asked about sampling, chief medical officer, Lucknow, Dr Narendra Agrawal said, “We are not doing a less number of tests. Till now, we have done almost 15,000 samples in the city. The number of samples depends on the requirement after screening people, particularly in the hot spot areas.”

“As per ICMR (Indian Council of Medical Research), all symptomatic people with international travel history and showing (signs of) influenza-like illness, contacts of positive cases, symptomatic healthcare workers, patients with severe respiratory illness, and asymptomatic high-risk contacts of positive cases need to be tested for the coronavirus,” said a senior faculty member at KGMU .

For the past one week, the private sector too has increased testing in the city, focusing on patients admitted to private hospitals or undergoing operations there. Private sector labs are now conducting at least 150 tests per day in Lucknow.

THE AVERAGE NUMBER OF TESTS WAS AROUND 20 PER DAY TILL MARCH 31 AND THEN THE NUMBER WENT UP. LUCKNOW FIRST CASE WAS REPORTED ON MARCH 10.