Zika Testing Mistakes Require Re-testing Of Over 400 Specimens

Imagine being pregnant, getting tested for Zika, feeling relieved when you find out that the test is negative, but then months later hearing that your test actually should have been positive. Well, as the Washington, DC NBC affiliate reports, that’s now happened to at least two women. After Dr. Anthony Tran became Director of the Washington DC Public Health Laboratory in the latter half of 2016, he found an error in the laboratory’s Zika testing procedure. This meant that 409 specimens from July 14 to December 14, 2016, that had previously been deemed negative for Zika have had to be re-tested by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) or CDC-approved labs.