TORCH-10 Profile Test

Torch 10 Test Overview

The Torch 10 test, also known as the Torch profile test, is a comprehensive blood test designed to detect a group of infections that can be transmitted from a mother to her developing foetus. By detecting these infections early, appropriate interventions can be implemented to minimise the potential for adverse outcomes. Additionally, the test is valuable for individuals with weakened immune systems or those who have had significant contact with individuals suffering from the infections covered in the Torch profile test.

TORCH is an acronym from five potential infectious agents that can be transmitted from mother to foetus through the placenta. These viruses can cause serious congenital malformations especially when mother acquires the infection for the first time during the first trimester.
The full form of TORCH is toxoplasmosis, rubella, cytomegalovirus (CMV), herpes simplex (HSV).

Certain potential viral infections can be transmitted from mother to foetus through the placenta. These viruses can cause serious congenital malformations especially when the mother acquires the infection for the first time during the first trimester. Thus, it is essential to screen for such infections to prevent fetal complications. The TORCH-10 test can detect 10 common prenatal and postnatal infections. Here is all you need to know about the TORCH-10 test.

What is the TORCH-10 Test?

TORCH stands for the potential viruses, toxoplasma, others (hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV), human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), varicella zoster virus (VZV), and human parvovirus B19), rubella, cytomegalovirus (CMV), and herpes simplex (HSV). The TORCH-10 test is an innovative, comprehensive screening tool for the early detection of infectious diseases that detects the IgG and IgM antibodies to Toxoplasma, CMV, Rubella, HSV-1 and HSV-2. By using a single blood sample IgM and IgG antibodies against these viral pathogens can be detected.

Written by: Dr R.Lakshmi Priya, M.B.B.S, MD, Dept. of Microbiology and Molecular Biology