Dear SASREG member
Several major hospital groups have recently abolished the routine COVID-19 testing prior to surgery.
The arguments to stop this are:
- An increasing proportion of patients attending our facilities have been vaccinated.
- A staff complement which Is almost entire vaccinated.
- The reduced mortality and morbidity rate with the Omicron variant.
- The ready availability of both RT-PCR testing and “rapid” antigen testing if necessary.
- The very low anaesthetic risk to an asymptomatic Covid positive patient.
- The need to “live with” SARS-COV-2 for the foreseeable future.
For these reasons, SASREG no longer recommends mandatory COVID-19 testing for asymptomatic patients before OPU. The clinician can still request a test whenever there is any indication. It is recommended to discuss the consequences of COVID-19 for fertility treatment and pregnancy with the patients.
Yours sincerely,
Dr Sulaiman Heylen