New Cochrane review assesses how accurate antibody tests are for detecting COVID-19

Today Cochrane, a global independent organization that reviews evidence from research to inform health decision-making, publishes a review of studies looking at the accuracy of COVID-19 antibody tests.  The review shows that antibody tests could have a useful role in detecting if someone has had COVID-19, but that timing is important. The tests were better at detecting COVID-19 in people two or more weeks after their symptoms started, but we do not know how well they work more than five weeks after symptoms started. We do not know if this is true for people who have milder disease or no symptoms, because the studies in the review were mainly done in people who were in hospital. In time, we will learn whether having previously had COVID-19 provides individuals with immunity to future infection.Antibody tests are an important public health tool to identify individuals with previous COVID-19 disease. This enables assessment of the spread of infection and the need for public health interventions.   The review summarizes research evidence available up until the end of April 2020 to see whether antibody tests: are accurate enough to diagnose disease in people with or without symptoms of COVID-19, and  can be used to find out if someone has already had COVID-19.The immune system of people who have COVID-19 responds by developing proteins in the blood called antibodies that attack the virus. Detecting antibodies in people ’s blood may indicate whether they currently have COVID-...
Source: Cochrane News and Events - Category: Information Technology Authors: Source Type: news