Antibody tests for Covid-19 wrong half the time, CDC says
4 years, 7 months ago

Antibody tests for Covid-19 wrong half the time, CDC says

CNN  

CNN — Antibody tests used to determine if people have been infected in the past with Covid-19 might be wrong up to half the time, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in new guidance posted on its website. “Serologic test results should not be used to make decisions about returning persons to the workplace.” Health officials or health care providers who are using antibody tests need to use the most accurate test they can find and might need to test people twice, the CDC said in the new guidance. “It cannot be assumed that individuals with truly positive antibody test results are protected from future infection,” the CDC says in the updated guidelines. “Serologic testing should not be used to determine immune status in individuals until the presence, durability, and duration of immunity is established.” The new CDC guidelines echo advice from groups such as the University of Minnesota, which cautions against using antibody tests to make policy decisions. “Alternatively, the same test in a population with an antibody prevalence exceeding 52% will yield a positive predictive greater than 95%, meaning that less than one in 20 people testing positive will have a false positive test result.” Get CNN Health's weekly newsletter Sign up here to get The Results Are In with Dr. Sanjay Gupta every Tuesday from the CNN Health team.

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History of this topic

Positive test not needed for long COVID diagnosis, experts conclude
7 months ago

Positive test not needed for long COVID diagnosis, experts conclude

LA Times  

People do not need to have tested positive for the coronavirus to be considered for a diagnosis of long COVID, a new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine concludes. The report, produced by a committee of experts at the request of the U.S. Social Security Administration, aims to summarize what is known about long COVID, a …

FDA: Take 3 home tests if exposed to COVID to boost accuracy
2 years, 4 months ago

FDA: Take 3 home tests if exposed to COVID to boost accuracy

Associated Press  

WASHINGTON — If you were exposed to COVID-19, take three home tests instead of two to make sure you’re not infected, according to new U.S. recommendations released Thursday. Previously, the Food and Drug Administration had advised taking two rapid antigen tests over two or three days to rule out infection. Thursday’s update reflects the evolving understanding of the accuracy of …

What Are The Chances Your Kid Already Had COVID And You Just Didn't Know It?
2 years, 10 months ago

What Are The Chances Your Kid Already Had COVID And You Just Didn't Know It?

Huff Post  

JulPo via Getty Images Millions of people in this country have likely had COVID without knowing it, according to CDC data. When I got a breakthrough COVID infection in December at the height of the omicron surge in New York City, I was certain I’d pass it on to my two young kids. While using antibody tests to get a …

Antibody tests for COVID-19 remain popular in Russia
3 years, 3 months ago

Antibody tests for COVID-19 remain popular in Russia

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. There are different counting methods.” But Western health experts …

Russians flock to antibody tests; West notes tool’s limit
3 years, 3 months ago

Russians flock to antibody tests; West notes tool’s limit

Associated Press  

MOSCOW — When Russians talk about the coronavirus over dinner or in hair salons, the conversation often turns to “antitela,” the Russian word for antibodies — the proteins produced by the body to fight infection. There are different counting methods.” But Western health experts say the antibody tests so popular in Russia are unreliable either for diagnosing COVID-19 or assessing …

Antibody Tests Should Not Be Your Go-To For Checking COVID Immunity
3 years, 4 months ago

Antibody Tests Should Not Be Your Go-To For Checking COVID Immunity

NPR  

Antibody Tests Should Not Be Your Go-To For Checking COVID Immunity Enlarge this image toggle caption Naveen Sharma/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Naveen Sharma/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Booster shots against the coronavirus have already started rolling out in the U.S. for some people and millions more could be due for them soon. Sponsor Message Unlike other COVID-19 tests that are used …

What Is Antibody Test And How Does It Help In Fight Against Covid-19?
3 years, 4 months ago

What Is Antibody Test And How Does It Help In Fight Against Covid-19?

ABP News  

New Delhi: A variety of tests are available in the pathology labs to detect the presence of the Covid-19 virus in humans. While RT-PCR, TrueNAT, and Rapid Antigen Test detect the infection in the human body, there is a separate test that can be is conducted to determine if an individual has had a past infection with the virus that …

New Evidence Points To Antibodies As A Reliable Indicator Of Vaccine Protection
3 years, 4 months ago

New Evidence Points To Antibodies As A Reliable Indicator Of Vaccine Protection

NPR  

New Evidence Points To Antibodies As A Reliable Indicator Of Vaccine Protection Enlarge this image toggle caption Britta Pedersen/dpa/picture alliance via Getty Images Britta Pedersen/dpa/picture alliance via Getty Images When Dr. Anthony Fauci spoke recently at a White House briefing about the need for COVID-19 booster shots, buried in his slideshow of charts and data points was a little-noticed scientific …

False-positive cases of COVID-19 recorded in the ACT
3 years, 5 months ago

False-positive cases of COVID-19 recorded in the ACT

ABC  

ACT Health has confirmed 11 people initially tested positive to COVID-19 in the ACT on Wednesday, but all of them have since returned negative results. ACT Health said the results were recorded at a private pathology provider late on Wednesday afternoon, and the government then ordered urgent re-testing of those individuals. "At this time, there are no positive cases of …

CDC encourages use of new tests that detect both COVID-19 and the flu
3 years, 5 months ago

CDC encourages use of new tests that detect both COVID-19 and the flu

Associated Press  

CLAIM: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention revoked Emergency Use Authorization for coronavirus PCR tests because they were inaccurate, led to false positives and confused positive influenza cases with COVID-19. Early in the pandemic, in February 2020, the CDC introduced a COVID-19 PCR test, known as the “CDC 2019-Novel Coronavirus Real-Time RT-PCR Diagnostic Panel.” Some newer coronavirus tests can …

Covid-19 Antibodies Last at Least Nine Months After Infection, Study Finds
3 years, 5 months ago

Covid-19 Antibodies Last at Least Nine Months After Infection, Study Finds

News 18  

Antibody levels remain high nine months after infection with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19, whether symptomatic or asymptomatic, according to a study published on Monday that analysed data from an entire Italian town. The study, published in the journal Nature Communications, found that 98.8 per cent of people infected in February and March showed detectable levels of antibodies in …

Teenagers in UK are Faking Covid-19 Positive by Using Soft Drinks, Here's How
3 years, 6 months ago

Teenagers in UK are Faking Covid-19 Positive by Using Soft Drinks, Here's How

News 18  

On June 24, a school in England warned the parents of its students about false-positive covid tests and asked them to be vigilant when their children were taking Lateral Flow Test for the coronavirus. To find how the kids were able to break the test to get a positive result, a professor of science communication at the University of Hull …

Covid-19 antibody test not to be used to evaluate immunity, says doctor
3 years, 6 months ago

Covid-19 antibody test not to be used to evaluate immunity, says doctor

Hindustan Times  

Amid the rising cases of Delta and Delta mutations of the coronavirus, the Hindustan Times spoke to Dr Ravi Shekhar Jha of Fortis Escorts hospital in Faridabad, National Capital Region, to talk about the antibodies test and how one can analyse the results by themselves. A positive antibody test result can be used to help identify people who may have …

Here's How to Measure Immunity Against COVID-19
3 years, 6 months ago

Here's How to Measure Immunity Against COVID-19

News 18  

According to medical experts, the production of antibodies — microscopic protein components –are used to measure immunity against any virus. This means that when someone is infected, their body produces antibodies which attacks the virus by fighting the infection and protects us from getting that infection in the future. Dr Bruce Walker, an immunology expert from Harvard Medical School, told …

Why some test negative for Covid-19 despite showing symptoms
3 years, 7 months ago

Why some test negative for Covid-19 despite showing symptoms

India Today  

The scale of the Covid-19 spread is such in the country that there is a chance that you already know somebody who showed symptoms of coronavirus infection, but the laboratory test returned “negative” for SARS-CoV-2. But why do machines or Covid-19 test kits return a negative report for a positive person? Correct results from a laboratory depend on many things: …

Explained: Difference Between Antibody and RT-PCR Tests & How to Read Covid-19 Reports
3 years, 8 months ago

Explained: Difference Between Antibody and RT-PCR Tests & How to Read Covid-19 Reports

News 18  

While most symptoms of Covid-19 resemble that of a common cold or flu, a test helps to determine if at all it is coronavirus or some other viral infection. Also known as serology test, this procedure is done to determine if you have been infected with coronavirus in the past by detecting covid-19 antibodies in your blood. “Antibody tests should …

The Hindu Explains | Can people test positive for COVID-19 even after inoculation?
3 years, 8 months ago

The Hindu Explains | Can people test positive for COVID-19 even after inoculation?

The Hindu  

The story so far: The Indian Council of Medical Research has reported that around two to four of 10,000 people given two doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have tested positive for the disease. Coronavirus | Vaccines aimed at curbing severe COVID-19: experts Results from the Pfizer phase 3 trial showed that of the 21,720 who got the second dose of …

Covid-19 self-test not 100% accurate, authorities warn
3 years, 8 months ago

Covid-19 self-test not 100% accurate, authorities warn

NL Times  

Experts are worried that self-administered coronavirus tests do not accurately indicate if someone has an active infection of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus. Rapid tests have become increasingly popular in the Netherlands since they became available in stores at the end of March. Health authorities expressed their concern that people may become more likely to disregard coronavirus measures based on an incorrect …

There's a lot of misinformation around about COVID-19 PCR tests. We asked an expert to clear it up
3 years, 9 months ago

There's a lot of misinformation around about COVID-19 PCR tests. We asked an expert to clear it up

ABC  

CoronaCheck is RMIT ABC Fact Check's weekly email newsletter dedicated to fighting the misinformation infodemic surrounding the coronavirus outbreak. Billed by Australia's medicines and therapeutic regulatory agency as the "gold standard for diagnosis of COVID-19", polymerase chain reaction tests are used globally to identify positive COVID-19 cases. "There is no evidence to suggest asymptomatic individuals will no longer count toward …

Covid-19 antibodies may protect against reinfection later, study suggests
3 years, 10 months ago

Covid-19 antibodies may protect against reinfection later, study suggests

CNN  

CNN — There’s new evidence that connects testing positive for Covid-19 antibodies from a prior infection with a significantly lower risk of becoming infected again in the future. A study, published in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine on Wednesday, found that people who tested positive for Covid-19 antibodies were at a decreased risk of coronavirus infection compared with those who …

Covid-19 antigen tests not counted among cases in some states, CNN analysis shows
3 years, 11 months ago

Covid-19 antigen tests not counted among cases in some states, CNN analysis shows

CNN  

CNN — Antigen test results still are not included in the total count of Covid-19 cases for some states – not even as probable cases, as the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends. CNN requested antigen testing data from the state’s department of public health, but was told in an email that “antigen test results are not being …

Studies find having COVID-19 may protect against reinfection
4 years ago

Studies find having COVID-19 may protect against reinfection

India TV News  

Two new studies give encouraging evidence that having COVID-19 may offer some protection against future infections. Researchers found that people who made antibodies to the coronavirus were much less likely to test positive again for up to six months and maybe longer. on the order of the same kind of protection you’d get from an effective vaccine,” of getting the …

Studies find having COVID-19 may protect against reinfection
4 years ago

Studies find having COVID-19 may protect against reinfection

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. on the order of the …

Studies find having COVID-19 may protect against reinfection
4 years ago

Studies find having COVID-19 may protect against reinfection

Associated Press  

Two new studies give encouraging evidence that having COVID-19 may offer some protection against future infections. on the order of the same kind of protection you’d get from an effective vaccine,” of getting the virus again, said Dr. Ned Sharpless, director of the U.S. National Cancer Institute. Among the 1,265 who had coronavirus antibodies at the outset, only two had …

Covid-19 testing: Everything you know about Covid-19 tests, interpreting results, reliability
4 years ago

Covid-19 testing: Everything you know about Covid-19 tests, interpreting results, reliability

Firstpost  

Tests are useful when used correctly, and when you know the limits of the information they give you. Many people don’t understand what a test can and can’t tell you about your risk — and wrongly think a test result that comes back negative guarantees they can’t spread the virus to others. Cons: Because these tests have to go through …

Covid-19 Reinfection Unlikely For At Least 6 Months, Study Finds
4 years, 1 month ago

Covid-19 Reinfection Unlikely For At Least 6 Months, Study Finds

News 18  

People who’ve had COVID-19 are highly unlikely to contract it again for at least six months after their first infection, according to a British study of healthcare workers on the frontline of fight against the coronavirus pandemic. “This is really good news, because we can be confident that, at least in the short term, most people who get COVID-19 won’t …

That Pre-Thanksgiving Covid Test Won't Really Keep You Safe
4 years, 1 month ago

That Pre-Thanksgiving Covid Test Won't Really Keep You Safe

Wired  

The plan sounds so reasonable on its face: We’ll all get together for Thanksgiving, but only after everyone—every last member of the family, no matter where they’re coming from or how they’ll get there—has had the chance to get a proper Covid test. Even if you assume these tests are 100 percent accurate, they’ll only tell you what your status …

T-cell test is EIGHT TIMES better at detecting whether someone was infected with coronavirus
4 years, 1 month ago

T-cell test is EIGHT TIMES better at detecting whether someone was infected with coronavirus

Daily Mail  

A new type of test may be more effective at determining whether someone already had coronavirus compared to widely-used antibody tests. New research from the manufacturer, Adaptive Biotechnologies, which is based in Seattle, found that the test was eight times better at detecting past COVID-19 infection than a commercially available antibody test. A new type of test looks for T-cells, …

Covid-19 Antibodies May Provide Immunity for At least 5 Months, Finds New Study
4 years, 2 months ago

Covid-19 Antibodies May Provide Immunity for At least 5 Months, Finds New Study

News 18  

While some reports have come out saying antibodies to coronavirus go away quickly, a new study has revealed that the vast majority of individuals infected with mild-to-moderate Covid-19 mount a robust antibody response that is relatively stable for at least five months. The study, published in the journal Science, found that this antibody response correlates with the body’s ability to …

Covid-19 testing is key, but a testing-only strategy is a ‘complete failure’
4 years, 3 months ago

Covid-19 testing is key, but a testing-only strategy is a ‘complete failure’

CNN  

CNN — Until President Trump’s coronavirus infection, the White House strategy for keeping him and others in the administration safe was one of testing only. Testing-only strategy a ‘complete failure’ Unlike mask-wearing, testing would not “send the wrong message” as Trump has said in the past, and one he reinforced when he pointedly took off his mask on the White …

Testing Won’t Save Us From Covid-19
4 years, 3 months ago

Testing Won’t Save Us From Covid-19

Wired  

We’ve known it since the early days of the pandemic: To stop the spread of Covid-19, we need more and better testing. If our Covid tests were only cheap enough to make, and prompt enough in delivering results, according to Harvard epidemiologist Michael Mina, then we could “quickly contain and end this terrible plague.” Let’s call it the Theory of …

US Reverses Covid-19 Testing Guidance Again: Exposed Without Symptoms Need Tests
4 years, 3 months ago

US Reverses Covid-19 Testing Guidance Again: Exposed Without Symptoms Need Tests

News 18  

The Trump administration reversed guidance Friday on COVID-19 testing for a second time, urging those exposed to people with the virus to get tested even if they are not displaying symptoms. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention sparked widespread outcry among state public health officials and experts in late August when it said that people who do not have …

Sero-survey Conducted in August Finds No Antibodies in 30 Percent of Recovered Covid-19 Patients
4 years, 3 months ago

Sero-survey Conducted in August Finds No Antibodies in 30 Percent of Recovered Covid-19 Patients

News 18  

A sero-prevalance survey conducted in the first week of August in Delhi has found that 79 of the 257 people who recovered from Covid-19 did not have antibodies against the virus. Antibodies against Covid-19 infection were found in 29.1 per cent of people in the August sero-prevalence survey in the national capital, Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain had said late …

Antibodies may not guarantee COVID-19 protection, say scientists
4 years, 4 months ago

Antibodies may not guarantee COVID-19 protection, say scientists

India TV News  

The presence of antibodies indicates previous exposure to the SARS-CoV-2 virus but may not always translate into protection against the disease, say scientists, citing imponderables such as what kind of antibodies, how many and how long they last. “Simple presence of antibodies is a clear indication of previous exposure to SARS-CoV2 but does not necessarily guarantee protection from the disease …

I Had COVID-19 But Tested Negative 5 Times. Here's What You Should Know About Testing.
4 years, 4 months ago

I Had COVID-19 But Tested Negative 5 Times. Here's What You Should Know About Testing.

Huff Post  

The author, shown wearing protective gear, returned to work in the emergency department of her hospital on July 3, 2020. “According to study, published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, there was a 67% chance of patients receiving a false-negative if they were tested within four days of contracting the virus.” While I waited to see if I would experience …

Dengue virus tests may sometimes return ‘positive’ for coronavirus, says study
4 years, 4 months ago

Dengue virus tests may sometimes return ‘positive’ for coronavirus, says study

The Hindu  

Can dengue be sometimes mistaken for COVID-19? Two independent research studies — one from a group in Israel and another from the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research-Indian Institute of Chemical Biology in Kolkata — show that tests specific to check for dengue sometimes led to a positive SARS-CoV-2 test and this, the scientists warn, could lead to misdiagnoses and …

What's the likelihood that my COVID-19 test result is wrong?
4 years, 4 months ago

What's the likelihood that my COVID-19 test result is wrong?

ABC  

When you have a coronavirus test there are two things you want: a negative test result and confidence that the result you get is correct. PCR testing has very high specificity, which means we can expect very few false positive results, and it is also the most sensitive virus test ever created. It's false negative test results that are a …

COVID-19 antibodies fade rapidly in mild cases, raise risk of lost immunity: Report
4 years, 5 months ago

COVID-19 antibodies fade rapidly in mild cases, raise risk of lost immunity: Report

India TV News  

In people with mild cases of COVID-19, antibodies against the novel coronavirus may drop sharply over the first three months after infection, according to a research which says the levels may decrease by roughly half every 73 days. According to the scientists, the current research, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, is the first to carefully estimate the …

COVID-19 Immunity: Lancet study suggests herd immunity may not be possible, antibodies found only in 5% of test population in Spain
4 years, 6 months ago

COVID-19 Immunity: Lancet study suggests herd immunity may not be possible, antibodies found only in 5% of test population in Spain

Firstpost  

Herd immunity of importance as for the pandemic to be over, enough people in a community have to develop immunity against the coronavirus either after getting the disease or through vaccination Herd immunity is a term that most of us have become acquainted with during the coronavirus pandemic. Now, a population-based seroepidemiological study done in Spain, indicates that only 5 …

Covid-19 test blunder: 30 false positives in Dordrecht
4 years, 6 months ago

Covid-19 test blunder: 30 false positives in Dordrecht

NL Times  

Thirty people were wrongly diagnosed with the coronavirus by a laboratory in Dordrecht. The malfunction of a test device caused the false positive test results, the laboratory said in a statement. We immediately launched an investigation into this, which led to a 'too strict' device," the Regionaal Laboratorium Medische Microbiologie said. "We immediately repeated all positive tests performed on this …

Coronavirus pandemic: Implications of false-negative Covid-19 tests evaluated
4 years, 7 months ago

Coronavirus pandemic: Implications of false-negative Covid-19 tests evaluated

Hindustan Times  

More emphasis should be placed on addressing the inaccuracy of diagnostic tests for COVID-19, which play a key role in containing the pandemic, say scientists, who suggest that government agencies urge manufacturers to provide details of their tests’ clinical sensitivity. “Diagnostic tests, typically involving a nasopharyngeal swab, can be inaccurate in two ways,” said study lead author Steven Woloshin from …

HALF of coronavirus antibody finger-prick tests are unreliable, study of nine finds
4 years, 7 months ago

HALF of coronavirus antibody finger-prick tests are unreliable, study of nine finds

Daily Mail  

A new investigation reveals that several antibody tests for the novel coronavirus currently on the market are unreliable. ABC News and the Mayo Clinic looked at nine tests that use a drop of a blood from a finger prick to see if someone has immune-fighting cells against the virus. Four of nine coronavirus antibody finger prick tests failed to meet …

Getting An Antibody Test For The Coronavirus? Here's What It Won't Tell You
4 years, 7 months ago

Getting An Antibody Test For The Coronavirus? Here's What It Won't Tell You

NPR  

Getting An Antibody Test For The Coronavirus? Here's What It Won't Tell You Enlarge this image toggle caption Paul Hennessy/Echoes WIre/Barcroft Media via Getty Images Paul Hennessy/Echoes WIre/Barcroft Media via Getty Images Salvador Perez got really sick in April. Enlarge this image toggle caption Sheila Perez Sheila Perez "He's anxious that he doesn't want to get sick. Some people also …

A Double-Barreled Approach To Antibody Testing Could Improve Accuracy
4 years, 7 months ago

A Double-Barreled Approach To Antibody Testing Could Improve Accuracy

NPR  

A Double-Barreled Approach To Antibody Testing Could Improve Accuracy Enlarge this image toggle caption Joe Raedle/Getty Images Joe Raedle/Getty Images Last month the White House issued guidelines suggesting a way to reduce the number of false positive results in antibody tests: Run two tests. Dr. Alex Marson at UCSF says they may be able to take the data they've already …

What can a COVID-19 antibody test tell me?
4 years, 7 months ago

What can a COVID-19 antibody test tell me?

Associated Press  

What can a COVID-19 antibody test tell me? An antibody test might show if you had COVID-19 in the recent past, which most experts think gives people some protection from the virus. Dozens of companies are making rapid antibody tests to help identify people who had the virus and may have developed some immunity to it. The U.S. Food and …

ICMR issues guidance on rapid antibody test kits for COVID-19, lists manufacturers
4 years, 7 months ago

ICMR issues guidance on rapid antibody test kits for COVID-19, lists manufacturers

The Hindu  

The ICMR on Wednesday issued guidance on rapid antibody test kits for COVID-19 and listed their manufacturers, which include two Chinese firms whose importer licenses were cancelled by the CDSCO after kits supplied by them showed wide-variation under field conditions. Interactive map of confirmed coronavirus cases in India | State-wise tracker for coronavirus cases, deaths and testing rates The apex …

Coronavirus: Rollout of antibody tests met with confusion, little oversight
4 years, 8 months ago

Coronavirus: Rollout of antibody tests met with confusion, little oversight

CNN  

CNN — Public health experts, including members of the White House Coronavirus Task Force, have argued accurate Covid-19 antibody tests can support efforts to get Americans back to work by determining who may have overcome the virus. States concerned by accuracy of antibody tests Antibody test data “are of dubious reliability; we are not tracking or analyzing them,” a spokesperson …

Everything We Know About Covid-19 Antibody Tests (So Far)
4 years, 8 months ago

Everything We Know About Covid-19 Antibody Tests (So Far)

Wired  

Antibody tests are big news right now. Many people consider these blood tests key to "reopening the economy" and easing back on social distancing, sending us back to work and to some semblance of a normal social life again. The problem is that, despite the rush to make them quickly available in huge numbers to people in all places, it’s …

Coronavirus: UK in talks over rollout of antibody test with near-100% accuracy rate, says Hancock
4 years, 8 months ago

Coronavirus: UK in talks over rollout of antibody test with near-100% accuracy rate, says Hancock

The Independent  

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Get our free View from Westminster email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy The UK is in talks with pharmaceutical giant Roche on a …

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