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The National Health Surveillance Agency (Anvisa) published a technical note this Friday (1st) to alert laboratories about the tests used in the diagnosis of Covid-19, since, depending on how they are applied, they may not identify the new ones. variation of the virus that was recently localized in several countries, including Brazil.
“The variant VUI 202012/01 identified in different countries has a mutation that affects the
the S gene, used as a target in different diagnostic tests, which can lead to the impossibility of detecting the virus if it is the only target or reference of the diagnostic model, ”says the note released by the agency.
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According to Anvisa, the tests available in Brazil are capable of recognizing different variants of the new coronavirus, including this recently identified one. The agency’s recommendation is that laboratories be attentive to application instructions so that the possibility of diagnosis is maximized.
“We emphasize that in Brazil there are several regularized, safe and effective products for the diagnosis of Covid-19, even for this variant strain,” the note adds. “Laboratories must be attentive to the information in the instructions for use and adopt measures that favor diagnosis, such as the use of products directed at different viral targets.”
Equal severity, but more transmissible
There is no indication that the new SARS-Cov-2 family is more lethal or leads to more serious conditions than the original, but it is more transmissible, which can further accelerate infections.
Still, according to Anvisa, there is also no evidence that the antibody response of patients, as well as the efficacy of the vaccine, may be different for her.
The variant was first identified in September, in England, and has been reported in at least 31 other countries since then.
In Brazil, it was reported for the first time on Thursday (31), after analysis of two patients by the private laboratory Dasa and by the Institute of Tropical Medicine of the Faculty of Medicine of the University of São Paulo (IMT-FMUSP).
