Rapid test kits that were recently donated to the Civil Defence Commission (CDC) will not be used to make a diagnosis or identify a person infected with COVID-19, according to the Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Dr. Shamdeo Persaud, who says they will be used for screening and surveillance purposes.
“They [the rapid tests] will be used for screening and surveillance purposes and to estimate exposure because it [the rapid tests] wouldn’t tell you if you are currently infected,” Persaud told Stabroek News.
Approximately 46,250 IgG/IgM rapid tests were donated to the CDC by the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA). The rapid tests were handed over to the Ministry of Health subsequent to their arrival in the country last Wednesday.
The IgG/IgM rapid test utilises human whole blood, serum, or plasma and is used in rapid, qualitative and differential detection of IgG and IgM antibodies. These tests delivers clinical results between 2 to ten minutes.
Persaud explained that the IgG/IgM tests will be able to detect antibodies in persons who were infected or were exposed to COVID-19. He said that if a person had a previous exposure to coronavirus, they are likely to have antibodies. Thus, if the person is tested using the rapid test, the tests will be able to show if the person has antibodies or not.
He noted that the World Health Organization has not approved them as diagnostic tests, which is why they will only be used for screening and for estimating population prevalence.
To date, he says, they have not used any of the rapid tests. “We are still working through the protocol. They [the tests] still have to be validated. We have started the process to have them validated at the public health lab [the National Public Health Reference Laboratory]. That is the normal thing for any introduction of new tests in Guyana,” he explained.
