New cases from tests for travel

Vadodara: As the number of cases as well as hospitalisations due to Covid-19 goes down, many who test positive may be surprised by their test results. These persons undergo tests as a requirement for foreign travel or other purposes unaware that they are carrying the virus.
Health officials take a detailed history of persons who have tested positive in an attempt to ascertain where a person may have contracted the infection and the severity of the disease as well.However, for quite some time now, it has come to light that a large majority of cases do not have any symptoms and no epidemiological link emerges.
“There are persons who get themselves tested for foreign travel, employment needs or surgeries. They are otherwise healthy, but come to know that they are positive only due to the tests,” said infectious diseases expert Dr Hiten Kareliya. He said that he had come across about 12 cases in a fortnight and only two of them had symptoms.
Pathologist Dr Viral Patel, whose laboratory performs a large number of RT-PCR tests said that the highest tests were being performed for foreign travel. “These people have no symptoms and are caught unaware of the infection,” he said. Patel added that the number of tests of employees of the corporate sector and for hospitalisation has gone down significantly. “Overall, there is a decline in testing and symptomatic cases and we hope it stays this way,” he said.
VMC health officer Dr Devesh Patel said that most cases were caught randomly when testing was done for some purpose even if a person was not ill.