Resident Tran Thi Kim Cuc from District 7 of Ho Chi Minh City wondered if she had SARS-CoV-2 antigen after being inoculated with Covid-19 vaccines; therefore, she went to a medical facility for antigen testing where informed the antigen test price of 450,000 VND while the sender Nguyen Van Ut Em in Binh Tan district demanded a test negative before returning to work after catching Covid-19. The test can help him get a Covid Green card. With a Covid green card, he is again eligible for delivery work.
Cho Ray Hospital, based in HCMC, is performing antigen testing for the treatment of Covid-19 patients and responding to requests from residents. Dr Tran Thanh Vinh, head of the biochemistry department at Cho Ray Hospital, said this method is applicable to a group of people who need tests to find out if their body has antibodies and, if so, how many will be obtained.
After vaccination, doctors will use this result to reassess the body’s ability to respond to the vaccine. Moreover, this method is also applicable to a group of patients that a doctor requires to have tested because a doctor suspects them of catching Covid-19, the results will support the diagnosis.
Many medical establishments in the southern metropolis offer antigen tests at the request of residents. For example, Hong Duc General Hospital provided testing service with Cobas Roche c6000 in 60 minutes at a cost of VND 450,000 excluding rapid screening test.
The hospital collects 1.2 million VND per person or 600,000 VND per person for groups of 50 to 60 people for the collection of samples to be tested at home. Elsewhere in the city, the Hoan My Saigon General Clinic has agreed to conduct antigen testing services for people who have had Covid-19 after 7-15 days and people who have received the Covid-19 vaccine after 14- 28 days. Specifically, the fee for antigen testing at the clinic is 475,000 VND per person and the fee is 1,367,000 VND at people’s homes.
Doctor Truong Huu Khanh, counselor of the neurological infections department of Children’s Hospital 1, said people should not have antibody tests because it can cause waste, but should wait for advice from the health sector. health.
Regarding the antibody test for returning to work or reassessing a person’s response to the vaccine, Dr Nguyen Van Vinh Chau, deputy director of the Ho Chi Minh City health department, said the test of antibodies is extremely complicated. Commercially available tests are generic antibody tests; while the antibody that protects against infection is a neutralizing antibody that directly blocks the spike protein on the virus.
PCR and antigen tests are the most common, but they work differently. While antigen tests look for proteins on the surface of the virus to determine the presence of the pathogen, PCR (polymerase chain reaction) tests are designed to look for genetic material called RNA that instructs the virus to make these proteins. .
Both tests also require a swab from the back of your nose or throat as a sample and can’t determine if you’re contagious if it’s positive, but that’s where the similarities end.
