Translated material
The Ministry of Health has permitted the soaking of Mantoux
The chief freelance phthisiologist of the Russian Ministry of Health, Irina Vasilyeva, told TASS that the Mantoux test can be wetted, but cannot be mechanically damaged.
According to her, the recommendation not to wet the Mantoux test is due to the fact that the wet area is usually wiped, and this is mechanical damage to the test site.
"You can wet it, but you can't comb it. You can't tug it, you can't rub it with a washcloth <…> [If water gets on the sample, you just have to] blot it and that's it," Vasilyeva said.
- The Mantoux test allows you to find out whether a person's body contains mycobacteria, which cause tuberculosis. In Russia, the Mantoux test is given to children in kindergartens and schools. Parents are usually advised to ensure that water does not come into contact with the injection site.
- Parents have the right to refuse the Mantoux test for their child if they provide evidence that the child does not have tuberculosis. An alternative to the Mantoux test may be a tuberculosis test based on the drug Diaskintest, the Ministry of Health says.
- In February 2018, State Duma deputy and former chief sanitary doctor of Russia Gennady Onishchenko publicly called for not getting the Mantoux test wet.