In the 4th round of serosurvey in Hyderabad, the testing group will include children in the age bracket of 6 to 9.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS
- The 4th round of serosurvey has begun in Hyderabad
- Children in the age group of 6-9 will be included in the study
- The 3rd round of serosurvey claimed that 24.1 percent people had Covid-19 antibodies
The Indian Council of Medical Research-National Institute of Nutrition (ICMR-NIN) in Hyderabad has begun the 4th round of serosurvey on Tuesday. The community-based survey to gauge the spread of Covid-19 in the second wave of the virus is being done in Jangaon, Kamareddy, and Nalgonda districts of the state.
These surveys are done on a periodic basis to understand the degree of the spread of the virus. The current round started after the number of Covid-19 cases in the state relaxed. The survey this time would also include children in the age group of 6 to 8, keeping in mind the third wave of the virus which is expected to impact kids more than the previous waves.
The last serosurvey was conducted in December 2020 where those in the age group of 10 to 17 were included as well as the healthcare workers over 18 years of age.
According to the head of the Public Health Division at ICMR-NIN, Dr. A Laxmiah, a total of 400 subjects will be included in the survey from 10 villages each. 100 healthcare workers from district hospitals and community health centers from each district will also be included in the study.
The aim of the survey is to understand the infection of Covid-19 at the community level.
“For this purpose, we are actively working in association with the Telangana government. We are happy the state health department and the district authorities have ensured smooth operationalisation of this surveillance,” said Dr R Hemalatha, Director, ICMR-NIN, in a statement.
In the third round of serosurvey conducted by NIN, 24.1 percent of the samples had returned Covid-19 antibodies.
