Health Ministry of Italy has been asking government officials and advisors to evaluate new World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines stating that people with COVID-19 infection can come out of isolation before they test negative for the virus.
Last week, the WHO said symptomatic COVID-19 patients who spent 10 consecutive days in isolation could be released if they are symptom-free for at least three days. And asymptomatic COVID-19 people can stop isolating 10 days after they first test positive, according to the revised guidelines of the WHO.
Earlier, the WHO recommended stopping the isolation of COVID-19 infected people only after they twice tested negative on samples taken 24 hours apart. This change is significant considering the fact that most countries are still suffering and grappling with how to deal with thousands of infected people but may not pose a risk of transmission to others.
The United Nations (UN) health agency said it updated its guidelines because recovered coronavirus patients were still testing positive for the virus weeks later.
The WHO said, “These patients are not likely to be infectious and therefore are unlikely to be able to transmit the virus to another person,” despite their positive results.
Italy followed the WHO’s previous testing advice, as some people self-isolated even after feeling well because they kept testing for the virus. One Italian woman made headlines because she tested positive as many as six times in 57 days even after feeling well. However, she required to remain in isolation.
Health Minister of Italy Roberto Speranza asked the government’s advisory committee for guidance on the updated WHO recommendations, noting they represented a “significant” change to Italy’s management of coronavirus patients.
He said in a statement, “The updated advice also could alter how the government counts who has officially recovered from the virus and recommended maximum precaution.”
Doctors in Italy have said many of the new confirmed cases were due to people getting tested for the coronavirus after they did blood tests for COVID-19 antibodies.
People who have developed COVID-19 antibodies are automatically tested specifically for the virus. Some people who tested positive may have never felt ill or may have been sick much earlier. So far, Italy has reported more than 238,490 confirmed cases, with nearly 34,630 deaths. On Sunday, public health officials reported 224 new cases, with 24 deaths.
