29th September, 2020
Presenter: Dr Gabriel Gonzalez-Escobar
Summary: September 29, 2020 - CARPHA COVID-19 Health
Rounds
Webinar 4 "Laboratory Diagnostics and Patient Immunity" was well
attended by
national laboratory directors, regional laboratory experts and
laboratory
professionals from both the public and private sector. During his
presentation,
Dr. Gabriel Gonzalez-Escobar, Head, Laboratory Services and Networks,
CARPHA
Medical Microbiology Laboratory, discussed the various diagnostic
platforms
including antigen-based rapid tests, an update on serological assays and
guidance on the use of the gold standard molecular methods (Polymerase
Chain
Reaction or PCR). A total of one hundred and thirteen (113) participants
from
seventeen (17) CMS joined the discussion on what is known about patient
immunity, ongoing research into the link between asymptomatic
presentation and
immunity, and the most updated technical guidance available from the
WHO, PAHO
and CARPHA. An overview of CARPHA's Guidance on the Selection and Evaluation of
Diagnostic
Kits was given to attendees as a tool that can be used to
evaluate
existing and new test kits for COVID-19 diagnosis prior to purchase. The
recording of the webinar is available here.
Flyer: