ICMR approves Kriya Medical’s test kit to detect influenza viruses

Hyderabad: The RT-qPCR kit to detect influenza viruses H1N1, H3N2 and sub-lineages of SARS-Cov-2 developed by Kriya Medical Technologies has received approval from the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR). The kit has the shortest cycle time of 27 minutes. The time taken for the result to be read can vary between 50–60 minutes.

With influenza spreading among the population, this kit will help identify the virus or the pathogen causing the illness. This will make it easy for doctors to opt for the right treatment.

What does the kit do?

It detects the specific virus causing the respiratory infection. Identifying the specific virus that is causing the infection can help clinicians understand the likely outcomes and how the patient will do.

For example, an infant with SARS-CoV-2 has a good prognosis, but one with respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) may develop severe inflammation of the lungs called bronchiolitis. If there is a co-infection or if multiple viruses are present, it may signal a worse outcome and a higher chance of developing severe pneumonia.

Why is knowing the virus important?

Knowing which virus is causing the infection can help doctors decide on the best treatment plan for the patient. For example, if an adult is diagnosed with influenza, within the first two days of being sick, they can be treated effectively with an antiviral drug. If any of the three viruses are detected, doctors can advise patients to avoid antibiotics, which can help prevent the spread of antibiotic resistance.

Easy to decide the patient load

The kit can help healthcare providers stay informed about the current burden of respiratory infections and be prepared for any new ones that may emerge. It will give appropriate data on the burden of the disease in a particular area and also how is the spread of the disease.

Anu Moturi, the CEO and founder of Kriya Medical Technologies, said, “I thank ICMR for their prompt and timely validation of the kit. Over the last several weeks, there has been an increase in the number of H3N2 cases. There is also a rise in the number of Covid-19 infections of different sub-lineages. A kit that can clearly differentiate between these infections is the need of the hour, to treat properly and save lives.”

Dr. Shanmuga Priya, head of research and development, Kriya Medical Technologies, said, “The kit is designed to identify the type of virus causing common respiratory illnesses such as the common cold, flu, respiratory infections, Covid-19, and allergies. All these diseases have similar symptoms like cough, sneezing, weakness, breathlessness, and fever. However, each of these illnesses has a different clinical course and management protocol. Since these illnesses cannot be accurately distinguished from each other based on symptoms alone, there is a critical need for an easy and accurate method to identify the specific viral cause of the infection. It is essential to detect these infections since coinfections are possible.”

The kit is designed to detect the presence or absence of three pathogens—H1N1, H3N2, and SARS-Cov-2. It will give a clear picture to the clinicians.

Here’s all you need to know about the testing kit Krivida Trivus:

· The kit has the shortest cycle time of 27 minutes. The time taken for the result to be read can vary between 50–60 minutes.

· It’s an open kit that can be used in all the available RT-PCR equipment.

· The Krivida Trivus effectively distinguishes between Influenza, SARS-CoV-2, and respiratory syncytial virus.

· The kit is evaluated by ICMR at the National Institute of Virology, Pune, using 225 known positive samples and 85 negative samples. The overall sensitivity of Krivida Trivus is 99.11% and specificity is 100%.

The kit will be produced at Kriya’s state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Oragadam in Chennai and will be available across the country.