Group Testing for COVID-19: How to Stop Worrying and Test More

The article "Group Testing for COVID-19: How to Stop Worrying and Test More" which can be read from the link https://arxiv.org/abs/2004.06306 is a report on the research conducted at IIT Palakkad by Dr. Lakshmi Narasimhan on group testing for COVID-19 diagnosis. This article studies the optimal pool sizes and test plans for performing group testing for COVID-19. The effects of pooling and dilution on the sensitivity of the tests were  analytically investigated. From this analysis, the optimal pool size to perform group testing to achieve a given sensitivity level was obtained. It was found that upto 57 samples can be pooled together without significant loss in the sensitivity of the tests. Efficient testing plans that reduce the total number of tests performed and increase the number of people tested are provided in detail. The source codes to generate the test plans are also made available online.
The illustrious profile of Dr Lakshmi Narasimhan can be read from the page https://iitpkd.ac.in/people/lakshminarasimhan