KUALA LUMPUR: The sensitivity of a rapid test in detecting influenza A virus in humans is only between 60% and 80%, said Health director-general Tan Sri Dr Mohd Ismail Merican.
“This means that even if the test results on a person is negative, it does not mean that he or she is not infected with influenza A,” he said in a statement yesterday.
So far, the test is not compulsory on suspected influenza A(H1N1) patients, he said when replying to questions on the reliability of the test relayed to the Health Ministry’s online.
He said that according to the Institute of Medical Research (IMR), only the Real-Time Reverse-Transcriptase-Polymerase Chain Reaction (RRTPCR) could confirm whether a person was H1N1 positive.
Dr Mohd Ismail said no new death from influenza A(H1N1) was reported in the last seven days and the death toll remained at 73.
He said 75 influenza-like illness (ILI) patients were admitted for treatment while 154 more patients were discharged.
This brought the number of ILI patients to 1,096 ILI in 104 hospitals, including 11 private hospitals, nationwide, and only 257 of them (23%) were confirmed H1N1 patients, he added.
Dr Mohd Ismail said that of the 257 cases, 39 patients were in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), including three new patients while another five were discharged.
He said that 30 of the 39 cases (77%) were high-risk patients with four having respiratory problems (asthma, COAD), diabetes mellitus (six), immunosuppressive (one), chronic neurology disease (one), obesity (11), pregnant (one), and children below five (six).
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