Should all returnees be tested for Covid19?

With train facility extended to stranded Nagas, many of them are opting to come back home. The first train from Chennai carrying nearly 1500 citizens arrived in Dimapur on 22nd May. More trains are scheduled to arrive in the coming days.

The problem of asymptomatic “silent spreaders”

Growing evidence of “silent spreaders” who are unknowingly infecting others, have sparked concerns. “Among the total coronavirus tests conducted so far in India, 69% were asymptomatic and 31% were symptomatic. Which means for one positive patient when we initiated contact tracing, on average we found two asymptomatic patients,” ICMR’s head of epidemiology and communicable diseases Raman Gangakhedkar said in April.

Around 65% coronavirus cases in Maharashtra did not show any symptoms, according to an analysis by HT in April. In Uttar Pradesh, 75% of the COVID-19 cases were of people with no symptoms.

Should we test all returnees?

Nagaland has been ‘lucky’ to not have any Covid19 positive cases but we can’t afford to be complacent. If there are testing facilities available, it may be a good option to be extra careful and test all returnees especially those arriving from Red zone areas.

Manipur has seen a rise of Covid19 cases among the returnees. A tweet by Assam health minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on May 23 shows that returnees in quarantine centers are testing positive for the virus.

The problem is that if we do not test while the returnees are still in quarantine centers, the asymptomatic ‘silent carriers’ may take the virus to the general population.

The Mon model

Earlier this month, Mon DC Thavaseelan K has announced that the district will be testing all returnees from outside the state. They are using a pooled system of testing which allows to test many persons at a time. The District hospital in Mon town has the TrueNat machine which is now “a comprehensive essay for screening and confirmation of Covid19 cases” mentioned the notification from the DC. Moreover, the Konyak Union has helped to purchase another machine to further facilitate in testing about 5000 expected returnees.

As per reports, Nagaland health Department is now planning to get pooled testing done for all returnees like how Mon is doing. The question is – how soon can they start testing since the state’s biggest urban centres – Dimapur and Kohima have started receiving large number of returnees.

The sooner we test, the sooner we can isolate and treat the positives.

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