Health

Why COVID-19 testing is still important

Related video above: Doctors are analyzing variants of COVID-19 and increasing sequence tests In the United States, the number of COVID-19 tests is declining and that’s bad news. Without testing, there is no way to track where the pandemic is heading and whether the vaccine is working. And there is no way to take advantage of contact tracing, which is one of the most important tools for fighting infectious diseases. “The general public may now consider vaccination a priority, which is a priority, but extensive testing is still essential for infection control.” Clinical Microbiology at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. “This helps track the actual effects. Is there really a reduction in the number of cases?” She said at a briefing at the American Society of Infectious Diseases Thursday, Romney Humphreys, medical director at the institute. Said. Testing also helps track variants. According to data from the COVID tracking project, the United States recently recorded an average of about 1.5 million COVID-19 tests per day. This is about 26% less than the mid-January average. The United States reached a peak seven-day average of more than two million tests reported on January 15. The rate has begun to rise again, but only slightly. “If we don’t test, we don’t know how many infections we have. Dr. Mary Hayden, Head of Infectious Diseases and Head of Clinical Microbiology at Rush University Medical Center, said IDSA. She added that infection rates are declining but still high. Daily community profile reports from the Whitehouse COVID-19 team track a variety of indicators, including tests. In terms of test rates, an average of 100 people each day for at least five tests for seven days is ideal. However, in a report released this week, only five states: Road Island, Vermont, Massachusetts, New York, and Alaska. However, it reached that threshold in 7 days and was classified in the “Dark Green” category. Eight states were “red”. “Or” dark red “. This means that there was less than one test for every 100 people. The states in this category were Oklahoma, Missouri, South Dakota, Mississippi, New Hampshire, California, and Georgia. With the current spread of the infection, Hayden said he does not think the country is in a position to mitigate its overall strategy. Testing is also an important tool for non-diagnostic reasons, such as determining quarantine requirements and tracking pandemic progress. “I think one of the biggest messages is for the general public. If you have symptoms, yes. It’s important to have a test to determine if it’s positive,” Humphreys said. Labs and data show that the number of people being tested based on their symptoms is declining. According to Humphreys. What’s happening in the “red” and “dark red” states According to federal data, California has one of the biggest drop in test rates since mid-January. The state health department said the test dose had declined for the fifth straight week. The average for 7 days decreased from about 230,000 tests per day to about 181,000 tests per day. The California Public Health Service has confirmed to the lab that supply is not a factor, highlighting the decline in PCR test orders over the past two weeks. In Oklahoma, people are simply not tested, which is the state, warm climate, and hospitalization rates, Travis Kirkpatrick, deputy director of the Oklahoma Department of Health, told CNN. And a decrease in the case rate. Kirkpatrick also believes his state is experiencing some COVID-19 fatigue. “We continue to provide tests. We continue to look for ways to extend the tests,” he said. “There are all sorts of ways we’re trying to provide it, from a policy perspective, from a public health perspective, but I think the lack of tests is due to our appetite above all else. “It’s not time to ring the alarm yet, Kirkpatrick said, but his department is cautious about those who think they don’t need to be tested. Oklahoma continues to invest in testing and is the best for surveillance. He said he called it a tool for contact tracing in Vermont, one of the five states where “dark green” states still have a high rate of testing on how to get there. ing. Tracy Doran, Deputy Director of Public Health at the Vermont Department of Health, said it was a great help. In addition, tests are being used to help people finish quarantine early, Doran told CNN. “Early developed a more aggressive policy than the CDC.” “The state has a strict travel quarantine policy, and the best way to get out is to test early. It’s definitely an incentive for people. Vermont has also prioritized testing from the beginning, making it widely available and free. Most locations in Vermont are within a 30-minute drive from the test site, and most sites are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The state draws in additional inspection resources in the event of an outbreak and conducts “steady” surveillance inspections. As cases grow and communities and leaders support the test from the beginning, local health authorities will facilitate the test through targeted social media. ..

CNN —

Related video above: Doctors break down COVID-19 variants and increase sequence tests

The number of COVID-19 tests is declining in the US and that’s bad news.

Without testing, there is no way to track where the pandemic is heading and whether the vaccine is working. And there is no way to take advantage of contact tracing, which is one of the most important tools for fighting infectious diseases.

“The general public may now consider vaccination a priority, which is a priority, but extensive testing is still essential for infection control.” Romney HumphreysThe director of clinical microbiology at the Vanderbilt University Medical Center said at a briefing at the Infectious Diseases Society of America on Thursday.

“This helps track the actual impact. Do you really see a reduction in cases?” She said. Testing also helps track variants.

According to data from the COVID Tracking Project, the United States recently recorded an average of about 1.5 million COVID-19 tests per day.

This is about 26% less than the mid-January average, when the United States reached its peak seven-day average of over 2 million tests reported on January 15. This rate is starting to rise again, but only slightly.

“If you don’t test, you won’t know how many infections you have.” Dr. Mary Hayden, Head of Infectious Diseases Division and Director of Clinical Microbiology Division, Rush University Medical Center, said in an IDSA briefing.

She added that although infection rates are declining, they are still high and in some places higher than in summer.

Daily community profile reports from the Whitehouse COVID-19 team track a variety of metrics, including testing.

From a test rate perspective, ideally every 100 people should be tested at least 5 times a day for 7 days. However, in a report released this week, only five states, Rhode Island, Vermont, Massachusetts, New York, and Alaska, reached that threshold in seven days and fell into the “dark green” category.

Eight states were “red” or “dark red.” That is, there was less than one test for every 100 people. The states in this category were Oklahoma, Missouri, South Dakota, Mississippi, New Hampshire, California, and Georgia.

With the current spread of the infection, Hayden said he does not think the country is in a position to ease the overall strategy and reduce testing.

According to Humphreys, testing is an important tool for non-diagnostic reasons, such as determining quarantine requirements and tracking pandemic progress.

“I think one of the biggest messages is to the general public. If you have symptoms, it’s very important to have a test to determine if it’s positive,” Humphreys said. I will.

According to Humphreys, labs and data show that fewer people are being tested based on their symptoms.

What’s happening in “red” and “dark red”

According to federal data, California has one of the biggest drop in test rates since mid-January. The state health department said the test dose had declined for the fifth straight week. The 7-day average decreased from about 230,000 tests per day to about 181,000 tests per day.

The California Public Health Service highlighted the decline in PCR test orders over the past two weeks and asked the labs that they found supply not a factor. Rather, people are simply not tested.

In Oklahoma, people simply don’t seek testing, Travis Kirkpatrick, deputy director of the Oklahoma Department of Health, told CNN.

He attributed this to several factors, including high immunization rates in the state, warm weather, and low hospitalization and case rates. Kirk Patrick also believes his state is experiencing COVID-19 fatigue.

“We continue to provide tests. We continue to find ways to extend our tests,” he said. “There are all sorts of ways we are trying to provide it from a policy perspective, from a public health perspective, but I think the lack of tests is due to our appetite above all else. .. “

According to Kirkpatrick, it’s not time to ring the alarm yet, but his department is wary of those who think they don’t need to be tested. He said Oklahoma continues to invest in testing and calls it the best tool for surveillance.

How the “dark green” state gets there

Tracy Doran, Deputy Director of Public Health at the Vermont Department of Health, said focusing on contact tracing would be of great help in Vermont, one of the five states where testing is still high. It was.

In addition, tests are used to help people leave the quarantine early, Doran told CNN.

“Early, we created some policies that were more aggressive than the CDC,” she said.

“The state has a strict travel quarantine policy, and the best way to escape is to test early. It definitely gives people an incentive.”

Vermont has also prioritized testing from the beginning, making it widely available and free, Doran said. Most locations in Vermont are within a 30-minute drive from the test site, and most sites are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The state takes in additional test resources when it occurs and conducts “steady” monitoring tests.

As cases grow and communities and leaders support the test from the beginning, local health authorities are pushing for the test through targeted social media, Doran said.

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