Is Serology Test Effective to Deal with Coronavirus?

In many coronavirus (Covid-19) hotspots in the world, the local health agencies are increasingly relying on serology tests to contain the spread of the virus.

However, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) cautions that at this stage serology test may not be the right containment remedy.

The CDC has developed a laboratory test to help estimate how many people in the United States have been infected with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19.

Clinicians and researchers refer to this as a serology test, and many commercial laboratories call it an antibody test. CDC is using this serologic (antibody) test to evaluate the performance of commercial antibody tests. CDC says it will develop guidance for the use of antibody tests in clinical and public health settings.

An antibody test looks for the presence of antibodies, which are specific proteins made in response to infections. Antibodies are detected in the blood of people who are tested after infection; they show an immune response to the infection. Antibody test results are especially important for detecting previous infections in people who had few or no symptoms.

CDC says it does not know if the antibodies that result from SARS-CoV-2 infection will provide someone with protection (immunity) from getting infected again. If antibodies do provide immunity, CDC does not know how much antibody is protective or how long protection might last. CDC scientists are currently conducting studies to answer these questions.

Courtesy: CDC