'Tracking of COVID-19 cases can never be fool-proof'

After India was accused of downplaying the number of COVID19 infected by international medical journals and web portals medical professionals and health scientists in the country have rubbished the claims saying there can never be foolproof tracking of public at largeThis experts say is because a person who tests negative may get infected a few days later Also had screening in other countries like the UK and USA been accurate they would have been able to contain the spread tooDr Wiqar Shaikh senior allergy and asthma specialist said A September 5 article in the Lancet accused India of lack of clarity and shortcomings in registration testing practices and classification of COVID19 deaths The Lancet mentioned shortcomings in data surveillance particularly because testing for COVID in India is lower than in other countriesExperts say antigen tests like the one being done in Kurla may have led to the problem of falsenegatives PicSayyed Sameer AbediDr Shaikh added The portal Corona Tracker reported that there is an exponential increase in Indias COVID cases and those requiring daily treatment and critical care As per the portal Statista India has conducted approximately 82 million tests which translates to 64000 tests per million people The highest number of tests worldwide is in Israel 447 lakh tests per million UK 421 lakh tests per million and USA 370 lakh tests per million India stands at the 22nd position Based on this it is claimed that India scores poorlyPublications also mentioned shortage of testing kits lack of testing facilities in rural and semirural areas as causes of underreporting and suggested expanding facilities and a uniform RTPCR test They also advised properly documenting COVID deathsHowever Dr Shaikh argued Until June only government laboratories did COVID tests Then private labs started testing and numbers increased This explains the lesser number of testsIt may be argued that despite higher tests Europe and the UK are experiencing a second wave By and large asymptomatic positive patients do not undergo further testing once the initial report is positive Besides a negative person could turn positive later This is not considered in data collection COVID19 data world over is inaccurate and there needs to be a proper system to count deaths too Dr Shaikh saidIndia follows guidelinesSimilar concerns were echoed by Dr Subhash Hira professor of Global Health at University of WashingtonSeattle health advisor to several UN Indian and African health agencies He said Every country should strictly adhere to the principles SOPs and best practices of International Health Regulation IHR ratified in 2005 and revised in 2009 at the WHO General Health Assembly It provides a framework for all 195 signing countries for pandemic control and reporting principles I feel that the Lancet reports assertions are misplacedI am surprised that the experts did not mention IHR which overrides the state health autonomy in a global pandemic Also I am aware that most if not all Indian states and the union health ministry have been transparent in reporting of new COVID cases and deaths Inadvertent delays should not be given a harsh connotation of underreporting said Dr HiraDr Hira said Indias Ministry of Health should positively counter harsh connotations and undertake operations research projects in slower states to analyse real delays in reporting if any India and other developed countries are already paying for having sat on a slippery slope for decades after repeated wakeup calls brought about by HIVAIDS in 1980s SARS in 2002 influenza in 1996 swine flu in 2005 Zika in 2009 and Ebola in 2014 India has announced a paradigm shift towards Atmanirbhar and based on this Indian scientists suggest that the PMO and MOH setup a quality operations research programmeDr Ketan Vagholkar professor of surgery at D Y Patil Medical College said The unnecessary targeting of India is totally uncalled for Despite a heterogeneous culture and a population of over 130 million we have done exceedingly well in controlling the pandemic Although in an Unlock phase the numbers are decreasingDr Vagholkar added Good protocols for diagnosis and treatment led to decrease in mortality as well We should continue our way of working and not pay any heed to the western journals or agenciesDr Vagholkar added There could have been a variation in international data due to a continuous change in testing protocols as advised by individual countries Hence there is a lack of uniformity in testing and data collection one cannot accuse another country of inaccurate reporting Our testing and treatment are much superior to developed nationsProblem of falsenegativesA senior vaccine expert from a reputable pharma company said The crux of the issue is that in such data around 25 per cent are false negative reports from antigen tests This could be the group of actual infection spreaders The recommended gold standard is the RTPCR test Unfortunately it is not adhered to strictly thereby raising ambiguity in all countries Therefore scientifically it is irrational to link such data with the current evidencebased evaluation of COVID19Also ReadMumbai Breathless itchy sweaty and foggy as COVID19 masks remain issue for manyJuneMonth in which private labs started testing for COVID and cases increasedKeep scrolling to read more newsCatch up on all the latest Mumbai news crime news current affairs and a complete guide from food to things to do and events across Mumbai Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates MidDay is now on Telegram Click here to join our channel middayinfomedialtd and stay updated with the latest news