JOIN USNeed to fill the VAP gap
As the world is coping with the Covid-19 outbreak, clinical microbiology laboratories dealing with coronavirus have seen an influx of additional tests to identify viral and bacterial infections presenting similar or related symptoms to Covid-19 virus. Respiratory diseases range in severity from mild common colds to pneumonia that can be viral, bacterial, or fungal in nature.
Commonly, patients get a virus first that weakens their immune system making them susceptible to bacterial infections like pneumonia. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), seasonal influenza alone results in three to five million cases of severe illness, killing about 2,90,000 to 6,50,000 people globally each year.
Patients with a Covid-19 infection may show symptoms like other respiratory infections, and patients that require breathing assistance have an increased risk of bacterial co-infection. Identification of similar or related infections is vital to rapidly address the outbreak.
While data is still emerging, reports have suggested that 15 percent of hospitalised coronavirus patients developed a secondary bacterial infection, such as ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP).
Co-infections in Covid-19, particularly with other seasonal respiratory viruses, are extremely common and one-size-fits-all tests can not only be prone to inaccuracy but to contamination as well.
Additionally, recent guidelines issued by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) also recommend the use of antibiotics based on the clinical diagnosis, such as in community-acquired pneumonia, healthcare-associated pneumonia, or if an infection was acquired in a healthcare setting. These factors make it critical to have reliable testing solutions that can help clinicians prescribe the most effective treatment plan.
The world is actively engaged in developing new and innovative solutions to mass-produce precise testing kits.
A rapid response is needed to fulfil the medical needs of the governments and the scientific community through advanced technologies and ensure a quick and accurate detection of contamination.
(The author is the
managing director of a
global life sciences company.)