WHO changes criteria for CCP virus test to try to reduce false positives



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The World Health Organization (WHO) has warned experts not to rely solely on the results of a PCR test to detect the CCP virus.

In updated guidelines released Jan. 20, the WHO said laboratory experts and healthcare professionals should also consider patient history and epidemiologic risk factors alongside PCR testing to diagnose the virus. of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party).

The new guidelines could lead to a significant decrease in daily cases.

“Most PCR tests are indicated as a diagnostic aid, therefore healthcare providers should consider any result in combination with the time of sampling, the type of sample, the specifics of the test, the observations. clinical, patient history, confirmed contact status and epidemiological information, ”the guide says.

It is not known why the health agency waited more than a year to publish the new directive. The WHO did not respond to a request from The Epoch Times.

Scientists and physicians have been concerned for many months about over-reliance and misuse of the PCR test as a diagnostic tool, as it cannot differentiate a live infectious virus from a fragment of inactivated virus that does not is not infectious.

In addition, the high cycle cutoff values ​​of most PCR tests – at 40 cycles or more – increase the risk of false positives. A higher cutoff value indicates a lower viral load and the person is less likely to be infectious, while a person with a lower cycle cutoff value has a higher viral load or is more infectious.

The WHO did not specify what the cut-off value should be for a positive diagnosis, but said it should only “determine whether [a] manual adjustment of the PCR positivity threshold is recommended by the manufacturer. “

Photo Epoch Times
A member of the medical staff prepares and processes PCR and antibody tests on people believed to be infected with the CCP virus, at the laboratory of Karolinska Hospital in Solna near Stockholm, Sweden, December 7, 2020 ( Jonathan Nackstrand / AFP) via Getty Images)

However, he clarified that when the prevalence of the CCP virus is low, “the risk of false positives increases”, which means that “the probability that a person who has a positive result (SARS-CoV-2) is actually detected. infected with SARS- CoV-2 decreases as the prevalence decreases, regardless of the specificity claimed [of the PCR test]. “

SARS-CoV-2 is the scientific name for the CCP virus responsible for the COVID-19 disease.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says its PCR tests have a cycle threshold limit of 40 cycles. The federal agency finally included information about the cycle threshold value in its Frequently Asked Questions about COVID-19 for Laboratories on November 12, 2020.

But many medical experts consider a cutoff of 40 cycles to return only false positives, because samples that go through many rounds of amplification will pick up negligible RNA sequences whether the virus is inactivated or the viral load. is excessively weak to pose a problem.

Before the CCP virus pandemic, for individuals to be considered a case, they must test positive and show clinical signs and symptoms. But to be considered a case of CCP virus, only a positive PCR test is necessary. And regardless of the number of tests an individual has, each positive test is counted as a separate case.

WHO now recommends that a positive PCR test that “does not correspond to the clinical presentation” be verified by taking “a new sample” and testing it again.

These tips can also help reduce cases of CCP virus in hospitals because it more clearly defines who is considered an inpatient case.

UK National Health Service (NHS) Director of International Relations Dr Layla McCay has confirmed talkRADIO that a percentage of hospitalized patients officially considered positive were in fact being treated for various illnesses unrelated to COVID-19. They had only tested positive for the disease in hospital without showing any symptoms.

“It is correct that in the hospital, people who test positive for COVID will have the full range of symptoms,” McCay said. “Some will have it on the sidelines of another problem for which they are in the hospital.”

The day after the WHO released its new directions, President Joe Biden’s chief medical adviser, Dr Anthony Fauci, said the United States would join the organization.

“As such, I am honored to announce that the United States will remain a member of the World Health Organization,” Fauci said. “Yesterday, President Biden signed letters retracting the previous administration’s announcement to withdraw from the organization, and these letters were forwarded to the Secretary-General of the United Nations and to you, Dr Tedros, my dear friend.”

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus is the Director General of WHO.

“The United States also intends to meet its financial obligations to organizations,” added Fauci.

In July of last year, the Trump administration withdrew from the WHO over its alleged role in helping the Chinese Communist regime cover up the severity of the CCP virus.

There have been mixed responses from Congress on Biden’s decision to join the WHO.

Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) Introduced a bill on January 21 (pdf) to “ban the availability of US contributions to the World Health Organization until Congress receives a full report on China and the COVID-19 pandemic, and for other purposes. “

She said in a statement, “WHO is China-centric and rallies around Beijing at every turn. There is no reason why U.S. taxpayers should contribute more than $ 400 million a year to an organization that has covered China and failed to contain the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Prior to former President Donald Trump’s withdrawal from the WHO, the United States contributed the most money to the health agency, according to State Department statistics.



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