Coronavirus test queue in SP goes to zero, says government | Saint Paul

The test result can change the official number of deaths if the test result is positive for covid-19. Until this Tuesday (21), the state of São Paulo recorded 1093 deaths.

According to Covas, since the Covid-19 Diagnostic Laboratory Platform in São Paulo, coordinated by the Butantan Institute, became official on April 4, 35, 6,000 tests have been carried out in 38 laboratories. The queue reached 17,000 exams.

“Of those 17 thousand, yesterday we closed at zero, that is, there are no more than 17 thousand. And we have better news. We have done so since [a quinta] on the 9th, 24 thousand exams. We made 17 (thousand) and beat the house of 24 thousand. On day 9 we had 11,000 tests done, today we have 35,600 tests done, “said Covas.

According to the director, since last week, laboratories in the state of São Paulo take no more than 48 hours to issue the results of the coronavirus tests. 5,000 tests are processed per day.

“The diagnostic test, the follow-up test is a dynamic and important component in photographing the epidemic. Therefore, we are committed to generating the results of these tests quickly. Since last week, it takes no more than 48 hours to issue the result”. Goal accomplished, let’s move on, “said Covas.

In a note, the Butantan Institute reported that only on Tuesday (21), the network of laboratories issued 4,332 exams. Another 1,144 samples are in the reporting phase, but have already been processed. 964 samples are being analyzed, to be released within 48 hours. In May, when the platform reaches full processing capacity, it is expected to perform up to 8,000 exams per day.

According to Dimas Covas, an average of 1,800 tests for analysis arrive at the laboratories. However, Dimas noted on Tuesday (21) that many samples are arriving with problems either due to lack of material collection or due to contamination during storage or transport to laboratories.

Because they are considered inconsistent, a result cannot be achieved because the samples are unsuitable for laboratory analysis, Covas explains. The reasons are the most varied, such as the lack of material, the lack of collection of the material, the contamination in the collection or transport and even the error in the registration of the sample, such as the lack of information about the patient and the origin of the material.

Of the entire universe of tests analyzed in the Covid-19 state public network, the official estimate is that 7 to 8% of them are discarded because they are considered “inconsistent”, according to Dimas Covas.

On Monday (20), the number of samples dammed was 4,100. According to the government, the public network of laboratories is already managing to process around 2,000 tests per day and only on Monday (20) 3,700 samples were processed and released.

According to Covas, 12 of the 38 qualified laboratories operate at their maximum capacity. The total number of laboratories includes public, private and university universities, and the Butantan unit.

To meet the pent-up demand, the institute purchased 1.3 million tests imported from South Korea and the last shipment arrived on Saturday morning (18). The total investment for the implementation of the Covid-19 São Paulo examination platform was R $ 85 million, according to the São Paulo government.

In Butantan’s calculations, when the Covid-19 Diagnostic Laboratory Platform is operating at full capacity, which is scheduled for the second half of May, it will be possible to perform up to 8,000 RT-PCR tests per day, with results released within 48 hours after the samples arrive at the laboratories.

Test performance is essential to correctly measure the evolution of the pandemic, but the government has had difficulty obtaining kits and processing all demand. São Paulo has 42% of the Covid-19 cases in the country, with 1,037 deaths and 14,580 patients with confirmed coronavirus. So far, the State of São Paulo has carried out 31,200 tests for alleged cases of Covid-19.

• Morumbi has more cases of coronavirus and Brasilândia more deaths; see evolution of deaths by district
• Public reference hospitals in SP lose 150 beds due to unfinished renovations

Although the laboratory platform includes 38 institutions, both public and private, the delay in the exams is concentrated on samples sent to the public network, especially to the Adolfo Lutz Institute.

The Regional Council of Medicine of the State of São Paulo (Cremesp) came to denounce the Adolfo Lutz Institute before the Public Ministry and the State Health Department for indications of irregularities in the storage of more than 20 thousand samples awaiting coronavirus tests .

The delay in exams on the public network causes a discrepancy between the number of confirmations in the different neighborhoods of the city. Morumbi, where a large part of the population has access to the private network, is the district with the most confirmed Covid-19 cases in the city. Despite this, the neighborhood with the most deaths from the disease is Brasilândia, where there are much fewer confirmed cases.