Hyderabad: The Nizam’s Institute of Medical Sciences (NIMS) in Hyderabad will soon have a new testing facility called NAAT (Nucleic Acid Amplification Testing) for blood. This will make NIMS the second government hospital in South India to have this advanced testing method.
NAAT helps detect viruses directly in the blood. This is better than traditional tests that look for antibodies, which can take time to appear after infection. With NAAT, infections can be found earlier, which lowers the risk of spreading diseases through blood transfusions.
Dr. Murali Krishna from the NIMS blood bank explained that some diseases, like HIV and Hepatitis, can go undetected for up to 20-24 days with regular tests. NAAT can shorten this “window period” to just 3.5 to 4 days, making blood transfusions much safer.
He said that a small-scale NAAT facility has already started at NIMS, and they are now planning to expand it. This will be the second NAAT setup in a government hospital in the region, after Sri Venkateswara Institute of Medical Sciences (SVIMS). While some private hospitals like Apollo already have this facility, it will be a first for government hospitals in Hyderabad. NAAT is also available at AIIMS in New Delhi.
At a recent awareness event on safe blood screening, NIMS Director Beerappa said the hospital is working to ensure better and safer blood for patients. He mentioned that NAAT can quickly test blood using either DNA or RNA.
He added that the full rollout of the facility will take some time because it involves administrative procedures like calling for tenders and inviting bids. But he assured that the process is in an advanced stage and could begin soon.
