Excelsior Correspondent
Srinagar, Aug 20: The Government Medical College (GMC), Srinagar is going to carry out the second round of the Indian Council of Medical Research’s (ICMR) National Sero-Survey for COVID-19 in Pulwama district.
Though the ICMR is conducting the study through its regional centres, however the Director General ICMR & Secretary, Department of Health Research, MOHFW, Government of India Dr. Balram Bhargava has again asked the GMC, Srinagar to conduct the study in Pulwama district on its behalf for which it has communicated to Atal Dulloo, Financial Commissioner, Health & Medical Education Department, J&K.
The sero-survey for COVID-19 is titled ‘National sero-surveillance to monitor the trend of SARS-CoV-2 infection transmission in India: Community-based surveillance’.
The survey is being conducted across 60 districts and 10 hot-spot sites among all states and union territories of the country to see the changing trend of population response to SARS COV-2 infection over these months since the first round held in May & June this year.
Back then, the prevalence of IgG antibody titres were found among 0.73% of the general population in the country.
The data collection will again be app-based, and blood samples will be taken to assess immunoglobulin-Gamma (Ig-G) against SARS-CoV-2 which will determine infection in recent past.
Each selected site will collect data and blood samples of 400 participants of children over 10 years and adult population.
A team from GMC, comprising faculty, resident doctors and medical interns from Department of Community Medicine (SPM) are deputed by Dr. Samia Rashid, Principal, GMC Srinagar in ten clusters of district Pulwama with full support of the district administration as well as the Health officials.
“ICMR Headquarter New Delhi, and its premier centres, including National Institute of Epidemiology (NIE), Chennai is providing support in training, guidance, ELISA testing, data management, analytics and logistics support,” Dr. S. Muhammad Salim Khan, HOD Community Medicine, GMC Srinagar said,
He added that the blood samples will be sent to ICMR lab at Chennai.
In the first round, the sero-prevalence in district Pulwama was found to be 2%, which was higher than the national average of 0.73%, while the recent study by GMC Srinagar in district Srinagar showed prevalence of 3.8% among general population which is almost twice than the prevalence in district Pulwama.
However, this time the sero-prevalence is expected to be more than previous outcome.
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