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Found 196 results
  1. News Article
    Free HIV tests that can be done at home are being offered this week to people in England. It is part of a government drive to improve diagnosis, which dropped off during the Covid pandemic. The kit is small enough to fit through the letterbox and arrives in plain packaging through the post. It gives a result within 15 minutes by testing a drop of blood from a finger prick. A "reactive" result means HIV is possible and a clinic check is needed. Support and help is available to arrange this. About 4,400 people in England are living with undiagnosed HIV, which comes with serious health risks. HIV medication can keep the virus at undetectable levels, meaning you cannot pass HIV on and your health is protected. Most people get the virus from someone who is unaware they have it, according to the Terrence Higgins Trust (THT) charity which campaigns about and provides services relating to HIV and sexual health. HIV testing rates remain a fifth lower than before the Covid-19 pandemic - with heterosexual men in particular now testing far less than in 2019. Read full story Source: BBC News, 5 February 2023
  2. News Article
    Concerns raised about dangerous discrepancies at a Covid testing lab which has since been blamed for causing an estimated 23 deaths were ignored by health officials for months. Documents show Public Health Wales flagged "significant concerns" about results from Immensa, in Wolverhampton, in letters to colleagues in England. They were told nothing was wrong and testing continued for six months. Letters were released after a Freedom of Information request by the Times. The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has said as many as 39,000 positive results were wrongly reported as negative in September and October 2021, mostly originating from south-west England. Read full story Source: BBC News, 26 January 2023
  3. News Article
    Strep A home-testing kits have sold out online as parents rush to find ways to diagnose their children’s rashes and high temperatures. The panic-buying follows the deaths of at least 16 children from invasive strep A infections in the UK. As infections and deaths from strep A have risen over the past few weeks, parents have turned to tests that involve a long cotton swab that is lightly passed over the back of the throat. Solutions and a strip test are then used to display results. These tests are now being sold online for more than £100, while some retailers have reported selling out after demand soared over the past few days. Other suppliers have warned customers that they will not be able to get hold of a test until after Christmas. One online retailer told customers that they would not be able to get the products until mid-January. Others said they were awaiting deliveries but “there may be delays beyond our control”. Strep A tests are not sold in England through the NHS because the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) – which approves and advises on clinical care – has said their accuracy is uncertain and likely to be “highly variable”. Scotland has not approved them either, though in Wales people can buy them over the counter for £7.50. “We’re not advising using those [tests] for the time being,” Professor Kamila Hawthorne, chair of the Royal College of GPs, said on Friday. “It is a clinical diagnosis. It is not too difficult to make. So long as the parent watches their child and brings their child in, then we are more than happy to see them.” Read full story Source: The Guardian, 11 December 2022
  4. News Article
    Staff mistakes in a private laboratory may have caused 23 extra deaths from Covid-19. The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) made the claim in a report into errors at the Immensa lab in Wolverhampton. It said as many as 39,000 positive results were wrongly reported as negative in September and October 2021. The mistakes led to "increased numbers of [hospital] admissions and deaths", the report, published on Tuesday, concluded. Thousands of people, many in the South West, were wrongly told to stop testing after their results were processed by Immensa. The Wolverhampton laboratory was used for additional testing capacity for NHS Test and Trace from early September 2021, but testing was suspended on 12 October following reports of inaccurate results. Experts said high case rates in some areas were down to people unwittingly infecting others when they should have been isolating. UKHSA experts said the mistakes could have led to as many as 55,000 additional infections in areas where the false negatives were reported. "Each incorrect negative test likely led to just over two additional infections," the report said. "In those same geographical areas, our results also suggest an increased number of admissions and deaths." Read full story Source: BBC News, 29 November 2022
  5. Event
    until
    Sir Mike Richards’ review of diagnostics, Diagnostics: recovery and renewal, which was commissioned in response to recommendations in the NHS Long-Term Plan, outlined a new diagnostic model for services. The review identified key enablers to drive and deliver much needed to change to optimise diagnostic capacity and improve efficiency, along with the need for a major expansion of the workforce and improved connectivity and digitisation across all aspects of diagnostics. Demand for almost all aspects of diagnostics has been rising year on year. The public’s familiarisation with swab testing and testing closer to home through the Covid-19 has provided a strong launch pad to change the approach to diagnostics in response to this rising demand This King's Fund event will explore what can be learnt from the NHS reponse to Covid-19, how partners are working to reshape diagnostic pathways through community diagnostic centres, point-of-care testing and increasing workforce capability and capacity. Register
  6. News Article
    Private companies are offering “misleading” home blood-testing kits that fuel health anxieties and pile pressure on the NHS, a report has suggested. There has been a boom in sales of the kits, which promise to reveal everything from cancer risk to how long patients can expect to live. But an investigation by the BMJ found these “unnecessary and potentially invasive tests” can be misleading and generate false alarms. The NHS is then left to “clear up the mess” as worried patients see GPs for reassurance or extra tests, piling more pressure on the overstretched service. One GP described patients coming in “clutching the results of private screening tests”, with doctors asked to review the results. The companies have been criticised for not providing sufficient follow-ups after the “poor quality and overhyped” tests, and for misleading results such as wrongly telling people their test levels are outside the “normal” range. Bernie Croal, president of the Association for Clinical Biochemistry and Laboratory Medicine, said: “Most of the online [tests] will send the results to the patient with at best a sort of asterisk next to the ones that are abnormal, with advice to either pay some more money to get some sort of health professional to speak about it or go and see your own GP.” Doctors are calling for the tests to be more tightly regulated by the health watchdog, the Care Quality Commission. Read full story (paywalled) Source: The Times, 27 October 2022
  7. News Article
    Very sick babies and children will be diagnosed and start treatment more quickly thanks to a “revolutionary” new genetic testing service being launched by the NHS. Doctors will gain vital insights within as little as two days into what illnesses more than 1,000 newborns and infants a year in England have from the rapid analysis of blood tests. Until now, when doctors suspected a genetic disorder, such tests have sometimes taken weeks as they had to be done in a sequential order to rule out other possible diagnoses, delaying treatment. NHS England bosses say the service could save the lives of thousands of seriously ill children over time and will usher in “a new era of genomic medicine”. The clinical scientists, genetic technologists and bioinformaticians will carry out much faster processing of DNA samples, including saliva and other tissue samples as well as blood. They will share their findings with medical teams and patients’ families. “This global first is an incredible moment for the NHS and will be revolutionary in helping us to rapidly diagnose the illnesses of thousands of seriously ill children and babies, saving countless lives in the years to come,” said Amanda Pritchard, NHS England’s chief executive. Read full story Source: The Guardian, 12 October 2022 Further hub reading Genetic profiling and precision medicine – the future of cancer treatment
  8. News Article
    If doctors had tested a nine-year-old girl's blood sooner they may have changed the treatment she received before her death, an expert witness has confirmed to a medical tribunal. The hearing was told this was a "significant failure" in the care of Claire Roberts. Claire died at the Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children in 1996. In 2018 a public inquiry concluded she died from an overdose of fluids and medication caused by negligent care. At the time, her parents were told a viral infection had spread from her stomach to her brain. The General Medical Council (GMC) said one of the doctors involved in Claire's care, Dr Heather Steen, acted dishonestly in trying to conceal the circumstances of her death. Dr Steen denied allegations that she acted dishonestly and engaged in a cover-up. The Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service (MPTS) heard from a defence expert witness on Monday who said doctors not checking the sodium levels in Claire's blood earlier was a "significant failure" in her care. Dr Nicholas Mann told the tribunal he would have ordered more blood tests on Claire on the morning after she was admitted to hospital but he said he did not know if this would have prevented her death. "There should have been more attention to her fluids and electrolytes on the day after admission. Whether that would have altered the final outcome I don't know but certainly it would have been sensible to do that," he said. The tribunal also heard that Claire's death was not referred to a coroner, despite this being something all of the doctors caring for her would have had a duty to do. It was also told that a letter sent to Claire's parents from the hospital in 2005 contained inaccuracies. During questioning of Dr Mann, a barrister for the GMC highlighted the involvement of Dr Steen in compiling the letter which was signed by another doctor. Tom Forster KC said it was the GMC's case that Claire's family were given incorrect information about potential causes of her death despite these not being definitively diagnosed. Read full story Source: BBC News, 3 October 2022
  9. News Article
    Most hospital patients and care home residents in England will no longer be tested for Covid unless they have symptoms, the government has said. From 31 August, NHS and social care staff will also not be offered lateral flow tests unless they fall sick. Free testing for the general public ended in April in England, but continued in some high-risk settings. Health Secretary Steve Barclay said: "This reflects the fact case rates have fallen and the risk of transmission has reduced, though we will continue to closely monitor the situation and work with sectors to resume testing should it be needed." Read full story Source: BBC News (25 August 2022)
  10. Content Article
    This report examines the approaches and key decisions taken by UK governments during the pandemic and the public health measures they introduced. It assesses whether these choices were timely, appropriate, and proportionate to deal with the threat and impact of COVID-19.
  11. News Article
    A change in pre-eclampsia testing for pregnant women could help save lives. The potentially-fatal condition affects around 6% of women, often during the second half of pregnancy. The National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) had recommended a test that could only rule out the condition, but now recommends more accurate tests that can diagnose cases. The Welsh government welcomed the new guidance, but said routine screening had not been recommended. Jeanette Kusel, director for scientific advice at NICE, said: "These tests represent a step change in the management and treatment of pre eclampsia. "New evidence presented to the committee shows that these tests can help successfully diagnose pre eclampsia, alongside clinical information for decision-making, rather than just rule it out. "This is extremely valuable to doctors and expectant mothers as now they can have increased confidence in their treatment plans and preparing for a safe birth" Eleri Wyn Foxhall, 32, from Penygroes in Gwynedd had pre-eclampsia in 2020. She welcomes the move, but called for women to be tested routinely. She believes there is a general "lack of information" about pre-eclampsia, and wants more work to be done on early detection. Read full story Source: BBC News, 26 July 2022
  12. Content Article
    In July 2021, the UK Government lifted all Covid protections, meaning people were no longer legally obliged to take infection control measures such as wearing face masks in designated places. Twelve months on, the UK is facing high levels of infection and hospitalisations from Covid-19. In this opinion piece for The BMJ, members of Independent SAGE—a group of scientists working together to provide independent scientific advice about Covid-19 to the UK government and public—propose a series of measures to help people make informed decisions that will reduce the risk of illness and disruption to them, their families and their communities. The authors accuse the government of ignoring published scientific advice from their own advisory group, SPI-B, and call for action to give people the information they need to make responsible personal choices as part of the plan to 'live with Covid'.
  13. News Article
    The UK needs to do more to use diagnostic testing in the fight against antimicrobial resistance (AMR), the chair of a government-commissioned review on AMR told MPs. Lord O’Neill, an economist and former treasury minister, warned in the review’s final report in 2016 that a continued rise in AMR would lead to 10 million people dying each year by 2050 and made ten recommendations, including the need for rapid diagnostics to reduce unnecessary use of antimicrobials. Speaking to a Commons Science and Technology Committee evidence session on 22 June 2022, Lord O’Neill said that while he was pleased with progress on some of the recommendations published in his review in 2016, especially in the reduction of antimicrobials in agriculture, progress on diagnostics was “woeful”. He said it was “alarming to me how we are not embedding state-of-the-art diagnostic technology right in the middle of our health systems”, adding that it could “really make a huge difference about whether an antibiotic is needed or not, and the right kind of antibiotic”. “Our most aggressive recommendation was that we should ban the use of subjective prescriptions in secondary settings, at least in Western countries, until they’ve gone through a state-of-the-art diagnostics,” he continued. “And nobody’s done it; they claim it’s a vicious circle, the technology isn’t there, but we have to give incentives in order to get this embedded because that would make a permanent difference.” Read full story Source: The Pharmaceutical Journal, 24 June 2022
  14. News Article
    The NHS is warning about widespread scam text messages telling recipients they have been in close contact with a Covid case. "We've seen reports of fake NHS text messages about ordering Omicron Covid-19 test kits," it tweeted. Close contacts of people who have tested positive are no longer advised to test. The aim of the messages appears to be harvesting financial and personal information. In its alert, the NHS says it will "never ask for bank details, so please be aware of suspicious messages". Most people are no longer advised to test for Covid and are ineligible for free tests - but some some pharmacies and shops sell them. Read full story Source: BBC News, 22 June 2022
  15. News Article
    Women are wasting their time and money buying do-at-home menopause testing kits, doctors have warned. The urine tests are not predictive enough to tell whether a woman is going through the phase when her periods will stop, doctors have told the BBC. The tests, which give a result within minutes, accurately measure levels of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), which helps manage the menstrual cycle. But experts say it is not a reliable marker of the menopause or perimenopause. Dr Annice Mukherjee, a leading menopause and hormone doctor from the Society of Endocrinology, told the BBC the FSH urine tests were “another example of exploitation of midlife women by the commercial menopause industry, who have financial conflicts of interest”. “It’s not helpful for women to access [FSH] directly,” she said. “It is not a reliable marker of perimenopause and can cause more confusion among women taking the test. At worst, misinterpretation of results can cause harm.” The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG), along with other leading experts in women’s health, said the tests could be unhelpful and potentially misleading. Read full story Source: The Guardian, 10 June 2022
  16. News Article
    One million checks for cancer, heart and lung disease have been carried out at new diagnostic clinics in football stadiums and shopping centres, the NHS has reported. In the past year, 92 “one-stop shop” centres offering scans, x-rays and blood tests have been opened in an effort to tackle the Covid care backlog after NHS waiting lists in England soared to a record 6.4 million patients. The NHS said it will open a further 70 centres, which will operate seven days a week and allow patients to get symptoms checked “on their doorstep” following GP referrals. The centres are staffed by nurses and radiographers who can carry out a range of diagnostic tests, including cancer scans. This means patients can get multiple tests in one visit, rather than having to make several different trips to a hospital. Professor Charles Swanton, chief clinician at Cancer Research UK, said the rapid diagnostic clinics were improving access to lifesaving treatment. Speaking at the world’s largest cancer conference in Chicago, he said: “Individuals with red-flag cancer symptoms — blood in the stool, persistent cough — can bypass the bureaucratic and lengthy standard approaches to getting investigated in hospital.” However, Swanton warned that without action to address the “chronic shortage” of 110,000 NHS staff, the new centres risked “robbing Peter to pay Paul” by taking doctors and nurses away from hospitals. Read full story (paywalled) Source: The Times, 6 June 2022
  17. Content Article
    In this article for The BMJ, Matthew Limb looks at the findings of the British Medical Association's (BMA's) review of the UK's management of the pandemic. The review found that many doctors had traumatic experiences during the pandemic, and highlights the following areas where the government could have better supported doctors: Preparedness including chronic underfunding of the NHS Personal protective equipment (PPE) shortages Inadequate infection prevention and control guidance Testing failures Lack of risk assessment and failure to protect vulnerable staff Deaths Long Covid Exhaustion Mental health and emotional wellbeing Anxiety and moral injury Isolation Lack of support Career prospects The review did also highlight the vaccination campaign and rollout as a notable success in the government's response to the pandemic.
  18. News Article
    It was hailed as a cutting-edge laboratory that would play a key role in response to Covid-19 and future epidemics, carrying out 300,000 tests a day. Announcing the project in November 2020, then-health secretary Matt Hancock said the project “confirms the UK as a world leader in diagnostics”. But less than 18 months later, the Rosalind Franklin Laboratory – named in honour of the renowned British scientist – has been plagued by failure while costing almost twice as much as its initial £588m budget, The Independent understands. Instead of being at the forefront of the fight against Covid, the project opened six months late, facing a string of issues with equipment, staff and construction, with barely 20% of its touted capacity being reached. Now, as the government winds down its “lighthouse” testing labs as part of the plan to “live with Covid”, leaving the Leamington Spa facility as the last lab standing, there are questions about the future of the site – and whether it would be able to cope with the nation’s testing needs alone if another deadly wave of Covid were to emerge. Read full story Source: The Independent, 28 April 2022
  19. News Article
    A dramatic drop in testing for Covid-19 has left the world blind to the virus’s continuing rampage and its potentially dangerous mutations, the head of the World Health Organization has warned. The UN health agency said that reported Covid cases and deaths had been dropping dramatically. “Last week, just over 15,000 deaths were reported to WHO – the lowest weekly total since March 2020,” WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters. While saying this was “a very welcome trend”, he warned that the declining numbers could also be a result of significant cuts in testing for the virus. “As many countries reduce testing, WHO is receiving less and less information about transmission and sequencing,” he said. “This makes us increasingly blind to patterns of transmission and evolution." “When it comes to a deadly virus, ignorance is not bliss.” William Rodriguez, who heads the global diagnostics alliance FIND, also decried that many governments in recent months simply stopped looking for Covid cases. Speaking at the press conference hosted by WHO, he pointed out that in the past four months, amid surging Covid cases from the Omicron variant, “testing rates have plummeted by 70% to 90% worldwide”. The plunging testing rates came despite the fact that there is now more access to accurate testing than ever before. “We have an unprecedented ability to know what is happening,” Rodriguez said. “And yet today, because testing has been the first casualty of a global decision to let down our guard, we’re becoming blind to what is happening with this virus.” Read full story Source: The Guardian, 26 April 2022
  20. Content Article
    There has been an increasing trend in commercially available diagnostic tests for food allergy and intolerance, but many of these tests lack an evidence base. In this article, Philippe Bégin from the University of Montreal describes the risks involved with using unproven diagnostic tests for food allergies and intolerances. He highlights that alongside their high cost, they may lead to false diagnoses, with associated anxiety and unnecessary strict avoidance diets. They may also lead truly allergic people to believe they are not allergic to certain foods, which could cause them to eat a food that gives them a life-threatening reaction. He also provides a list of tests that are offered to consumers, but that are unproven and should be avoided.
  21. News Article
    Pregnant women should be tested for Group B Strep to save the lives of dozens of babies every year, campaigners have warned. Group B Strep is the most recurrent cause of life-threatening illness in newborn babies, with an average of two babies a day identified with the infection. Each week, one of these babies goes on to die while another develops an ongoing long-term disability. More than one in five women carry Group B Strep, a common bacteria that normally causes no harm and no symptoms. However, its presence in the vagina or rectum means babies can be exposed to it during labour and birth. Pregnant women in Britain are not routinely tested for its presence, but a trial led by the University of Nottingham is examining whether such a move would be effective. Campaigners have called for more hospitals to join the pilot to ensure it is successful. Jane Plumb, chief executive of campaign group Group B Strep Support, said: “It’s taken over 20 years of campaigning to get this trial commissioned. It’s devastating that only 30 of the 80 hospitals needed have signed up. We can’t let this trial fail. “We need to fight for the 800 babies per year that are infected with this too-often-deadly infection. We need more hospitals to take part. We need to rally together and get this trial over the finish line.” Ms Plumb said the majority of Group B Strep infections in babies are preventable. “If we don’t know, then they can’t be offered the protective antibiotics in labour,” she said. “Families so often tell us that the first time they hear of Group B Strep is after their baby falls ill. For a mostly preventable infection, this is unforgivable – and must change. “We want to encourage every hospital to take part. We need people to ask for their MP’s support. This is an opportunity to save so many babies’ lives, but we only have six months to get hospitals on board. It really is now or never.” Read full story Source: The Independent, 19 April 2022
  22. Content Article
    This guidance from the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) should be used to help reduce the spread of Covid-19 in adult social care settings. It applies from 4 April 2022 and should be read in conjunction with: the infection prevention and control (IPC) resource for adult social care, which should be used as a basis for any infection prevention and control response the adult social care testing guidance, which details the testing regimes for all staff, as well as any resident and outbreak testing where applicable.
  23. News Article
    Patients are being put at risk in the UK because very few sexually transmitted infection (STI) tests offered online meet official standards, experts have warned. The NHS provides free in-person tests for STIs via its network of sexual health and genitourinary medicine clinics. Patients can also order tests via the internet from both NHS-commissioned and private providers, a practice that has become increasingly popular during the pandemic. However, new research in the Sexually Transmitted Infections journal published by the BMJ found that few online STI test services meet national recommended standards, with independent sector providers the least likely to be compliant. Online tests involve the user ordering a kit and either self-sampling by posting the specimen for laboratory analysis, or self-testing by interpreting the test themselves. The research found that the commercial self-sample providers, which advertised to those with symptoms, did not differentiate by STI symptom severity, and eight – seven private and one NHS-commissioned provider – offered no advice on accessing preventive treatment after exposure to HIV as recommended. Self-test providers did not appear to offer any form of order of treatment for patients and five offered tests that were intended for professional use only. The research concluded: “Regulatory change is required to ensure that the standard of care received online meets national guidelines to protect patients and the wider population from the repercussions of underperforming or inappropriate tests." “If we do not act now, patients will continue to receive suboptimal care with potentially significant adverse personal, clinical and public health implications.” Read full story Source: The Guardian, 12 April 2022
  24. News Article
    Overstretched hospitals are stopping routine Covid tests for new patients as “brutal” pressures mount on doctors and nurses, The Independent understands. On Monday there were 1,702 new Covid admissions to hospitals in England as of 9 April – with 16,442 positive patients occupying beds – the NHS leaders warn their ability to tackle the backlog in planned care is at risk. Despite pleas from NHS chiefs to measures such as mask-wearing back into force, ministers said there were no plans to change guidance. The Independent understands at least two major hospitals, in Newcastle and York, have dropped testing of all patients without symptoms in order to alleviate pressure on beds – raising fears that Covid could spread on unchecked wards. Other hospitals are also likely to do the same as bed pressures worsen. Sources have told The Independent some trusts have begun to drop “red” Covid only wards, while some are considering not separating patients in A&E. One expert, critical care doctor Tom Lawton, who analyses hospital-acquired infection data, said that stopping patient testing in hospitals was “worrying” and that the NHS would be putting “blinkers on” just as in-hospital infections were “as high as they’ve ever been”. Read full story Source: The Independent, 11 April 2022
  25. News Article
    Pregnant women with suspected pre-eclampsia will now be offered a test on the NHS to detect the condition. Pre-eclampsia affects some women, usually during the second half of pregnancy or soon after their baby is born. It can lead to serious complications if it is not picked up during maternity appointments, with early signs including high blood pressure and protein in the urine. In some cases, women can develop a severe headache, vision problems such as blurring or flashing, pain just below the ribs, swelling and vomiting. Tests have been available to help rule out the condition but midwives will now use tests designed to pick up a positive diagnosis. In new draft guidance, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) said midwives could use one of four blood tests to help diagnose suspected preterm pre-eclampsia. Jeanette Kusel, the acting director for medtech and digital at NICE, said: “These tests represent a step-change in the management and treatment of pre-eclampsia. New evidence presented to the committee shows that these tests can help successfully diagnose pre-eclampsia, alongside clinical information for decision-making, rather than just rule it out. “This is extremely valuable to doctors and expectant mothers as now they can have increased confidence in their treatment plans and preparing for a safe birth.” Read full story Source: The Guardian, 25 March 2022
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