BackgroundFalse-negative results derived from RT-PCR tests for diagnosing coronavirus disease have raised questions about whether to consider them the gold standard for the detection of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Using an imperfect gold standard to assess other diagnostic tests would never let the other tests show better diagnostic performance. The best strategy in such cases is to do an agreement analysis, and this study aims to estimate the agreement between real-time reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and rapid antigen test (RAT) for COVID-19 detection. MethodsA retrospective study was done using paired data of individuals tested for COVID-19, both by RT-PCR and RAT, obtained from the virology laboratory of Government Bundelkhand Medical College, Sagar, Madhya Pradesh, India. A sample size of 93 was calculated, and the data were abstracted in a data abstraction sheet. Variables included were results of RT-PCR and RAT, age, gender, presence of symptoms, test kit used, and the time duration between sampling for RT-PCR and RAT. Apart from descriptive statistics, keeping in mind the binary outcome of RT-PCR and RAT, Cohen's kappa was calculated for agreement analysis. A p-value of <0.05 was considered significant. ResultsThe data on 100 participants suspected to be infected with COVID-19 (58 male and 42 female) with a mean age of 39.8 (±19.0) years were analysed. The number of discordant pairs was eight. Cohen's kappa showed substantial agreement between RT-PCR and RAT, κ=0.646, (95% CI 0.420 to 0.871), p<0.001. ConclusionConsidering the ease of conducting RAT with quick results and substantial agreement with RT-PCR, RAT could be a better choice in detecting SARS-CoV-2 and, hence, COVID-19 disease on a large scale.

Background: This study aimed to explore the experience of cancer patients about chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting and its effect on patients’ daily life. Methods: A descriptive qualitative study was conducted on cancer patients who experience nausea and vomiting due to chemotherapy. Semi-structured interview guide consisting of eight questions was used as a study tool and thematic analysis was done using QDA Miner lite software.Results: Twenty-five participants were included in the final analysis. The median age of the participants was 53 (IQR-15) years and most of the patients were Hindu. All the patients were newly diagnosed. Approximately 80% of patients had received three cycles of chemotherapy by the time of their interviews. Adriamycin, Cyclophosphamide (AC), Docetaxel (T), Paclitaxel and Carboplatin (P+C) were the chemotherapy drugs administered. Our findings suggest that chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting has affected many aspects of patient’s lives, especially those related to eating, physical, emotional, and social functioning, but the degree of impact was unique to each patient. Conclusion: The individual experiences of nausea and vomiting during chemotherapy treatment may have a profound effect on treatment compliance and future outcomes. Specific assessment and innovative approaches for its subsequent management are highly needed while considering the complexity of these symptoms.