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News | 26/03/2021
SARS-COV-2

Over 10,000 PCR tests after one year of operation

COVID-19 Testing Unit (CTU) at the Munich Tropical Institute closes at the end of March 2021
The COVID-19 Testing Unit (CTU) at the Munich Tropical Institute was probably the first SARS-CoV-2 testing station in Germany. Since its opening at the beginning of 2020, a total of over 10,000 PCR tests have been carried out under the direction of PD Dr. med. The approximately one-year operation of the test station ended on March 26, 2021.
Laetitia Vancon/The New York Times
MItarbeiter:innen der COVID-19 Testing Unit (CTU) in der Münchner Georgenstraße

Despite the pandemic, a piece of normality returned to Munich's Georgenstraße on 26.03.2021. One year after it was opened by the City of Munich and the Bavarian Minister of Science Bernd Sibler as "help for helpers", the COVID-19 Testing Unit (CTU) at the Tropical Institute of the LMU Hospital will cease operations on March 26, 2021. The tent of the temporary walk-through station at the entrance to the outpatient clinic at Leopoldstraße 5, which has become part of everyday hospital life and the street scene since the beginning of the corona pandemic, was dismantled at the end of March 2021. The Tropical Institute decided to take this step in consultation with its partners, as there were a large number of large, specialized facilities in Munich with testing capacities that met the demand. At the end of the one-year operation of the test station at the Tropical Institute in March 2021, the mark of 10,000 PCR tests performed was thus reached.

One year of testing at the Tropical Institute: Chronology of events

The COVID-19 Testing Unit (CTU) was an important contact point for containing the pandemic right from the start: the first COVID-19 case in Germany was diagnosed at the Tropical Institute by Dr. Camilla Rothe on 27.01.2020. The very next day, a team experienced in infection control under the leadership of PD Dr. med. Günter Fröschl set up a COVID-19 test unit in a separate area of the institute's building. The test unit was probably the first SARS-CoV-2 test station in Germany. With increasing numbers of infections and thus an increased number of tests, the COVID-19 Testing Unit (CTU) was relocated to a tent in Georgenstraße on March 23, 2020, which was closed for this purpose with the support of the City of Munich.


With the original drive/walk-through station, the City of Munich initially created testing capacities for special professional groups that play a central role in combating the pandemic, such as medical personnel, police officers, nursing staff, firefighters and Bavarian Red Cross emergency services. The test station later continued to operate as a pure walk-through. From September 2020, it became part of the Bavarian testing strategy, making it possible for anyone living in Bavaria to book an appointment free of charge. During the course of its operation, the team at the Tropical Institute was able to adapt the CTU to changing requirements, for example by focusing on elderly and nursing home staff, or as a training center for healthcare staff to instruct them in infection control and swabbing procedures.

Thanks to all supporters of the COVID-19 Testing Unit (CTU)

The Director of the Munich Tropical Institute, Professor Michael Hoelscher, summarized: "It was important for us to provide quick and uncomplicated support with our expertise after the first corona cases in Germany and in the acute emergency situation. In a unique collaboration between all parties involved and thanks to the immediate willingness of the Bavarian state government and the city of Munich, we were able to create an urgently needed contact point for PCR testing for the Munich population in a very short time."

"The Tropical Institute appreciates the great commitment of all those involved," said CTU Director PD Dr Günter Fröschl, "our express thanks and great praise for their strong commitment go to our medical and organizational team, especially to the many student assistants: without them, the CTU would not have become what it has been all this time - a reliable and stable institution for the Munich area. Many thanks also to all local residents for their patience and understanding, as well as to the Munich police, the Munich professional fire department, Stadtwerke München, the district administration department and Verkehrssicherung München, and the many other supporters."

LMU Klinikum München