COVID vaccination efforts continue to gain momentum in the US and around the world, but that does not mean we are out of the pandemic forest. Regular testing remains an important factor in slowing the spread of the disease, but usually traveled to your doctor or local clinic. Fortunately, this is no longer the case. Over the past few months, the FDA has been delivering results within minutes rather than days.
If you have taken a personal COVID test in the past year, your nasal swab has probably been diagnosed using a (real-time RT – PCR), which is one of the most accurate and widely used laboratory methods to detect viral pathogens. such as Zika, Ebola and coronavirus.
The coronavirus contains only single-stranded RNA for genetic material that, unlike DNA, cannot be reproduced independently without the help of a host. As such, the virus must infect and re-use healthy cells, to make more of itself. RT – PCR mimics this process by first converting coronavirus RNA present in a given sample into DNA – hence ” – and then creating billions of copies of the genetic material and labeling it with a fluorescent dye for identification.
The process is an offshoot of the more common PCR method, which is used to detect pathogens whose genetic material comes in DNA form and therefore does not require amplification. This process is sensitive and very accurate, although it is time consuming, but allows pathologists to detect a coronavirus infection in the early stages, as only a minute amount of initial RNA is required. While the RT-PCR technique has a low chance of contamination from the outside, its ability is limited in that it can only detect the coronavirus if it is currently present in a sample. This method cannot determine if someone has been infected before.
Some home tests rely on a similar process called isothermal amplification. Just like PCR, isothermal amplification generates numerous copies of the coronavirus’ genetic material to detect it. Although IA is not as sensitive as the laboratory-based PCR method, it is more accurate than other home tests that look for antigens – pieces of coronavirus proteins that elicit the body’s immune response.
For example, an antigen-based BinaxNOW test correctly detects the virus in symptomatic humans. The figure drops to just 35 percent in asymptomatics. Because antigen testing does not involve a reverse transcription phase, it is faster and cheaper to work with PCR and IA methods, but is less accurate and yields higher false-negative returns – especially among people who have been recently exposed.
The antigen method provides a more general estimate of how contagious you are, said Dr. Gigi Gronvall from Johns Hopkins University at the . “If you test positive about it, you really need to isolate,” she said.
So, if you is asymptomatic, a PCR or similar molecular based test should be sufficient. If you suddenly notice that you do not smell or taste anything, then take a PCR or the most sensitive antigen-based test you can find. If you are positive, regardless of the type of test you are using, isolate yourself immediately and call a doctor.
So far, only a handful of home tests have obtained FDA emergency approval. EUAs are otherwise unapproved treatments, tests or medical countermeasures that have been allowed to circumvent the formal (and lengthy) FDA approval process in response to life-threatening health crises such as the ones we are currently facing.
This is the first home test available without a prescription. It is antigen based and takes 15 minutes to produce a result. You need to stick your nose out and then drop the sample into a table analyzer along with a little processing liquid. Once the device does its thing, the results are transmitted to your smartphone via Bluetooth. This data is also shared through a secure cloud connection that complies with HIPAA and health authorities to help map outbreaks. The test is expected to cost around $ 30, though the company has yet to announce where and when it will be available. The Ellume test showed 96 percent accuracy in people 2 years and older during its US clinical trial.
a $ 231.8 million deal with the Australian company to buy 8.5 million units of the test. Ellume ‘will deliver 100,000 tests a month from the Australian manufacturing facility until the US plant is built’, a company representative said NPR. ‘At full capacity, the US factory will be able to deliver up to 19 million tests per month. The 8.5 million tests for the U.S. government are part of the overall production. “But one that goes so far as to characterize the effort as a spit in the ocean.”
It will also be available over the counter soon, but unlike the Ellume, it uses a nucleic acid amplification test (similar to PCR) for better accuracy and generates results in 20 minutes. According to a recent study, “in prospective studies to evaluate the use of the Cue OTC test, the results were 97.4% consistent for positive cases and 99.1% agreement for negative cases, compared to the results of a highly sensitive EUA PCR laboratory-based test. ” The company has not yet announced prices or availability.
is not just a mouthful to say, it’s a whole process. After answering a series of selection questions via the eMed digital health website, Abbot will deliver a test to your home. Then you will be linked to a ‘telehealth professional’ who will guide you through the sample collection process. Once you have dropped your sample into the analyzer, you should get the results within about 15 minutes via the Navica smartphone app. The Abt test costs $ 25 and is available by prescription only.
The cost costs $ 50 and uses, just like the Cue, molecular technology. As with BinaxNOW, a prescription is required, so your doctor will need to order it on your behalf. The Lucira test is intended for use by people 14 years and older; it yields results in 11 to 30 minutes.
If you do not mind waiting a bit for your results, sell Amazon. Each costs $ 110 and requires you to take it to the local lab in LA for diagnosis. On the plus side, this test is saliva-based so you do not have to rub your nasal cavity with a Q-tip to collect your sample. Results will be available within 24 – 72 hours via the company’s web portal.
Similarly, the CRL Rapid Response COVID-19 saliva test can cost $ 119 and deliver results in a meager 24-48 hours. If you test positive, the company will have a telemedicine representative who will discuss the diagnosis and possible next steps.
Although all the complete home tests showed 90 percent more accuracy during their clinical trials, the numbers may vary when ordinary people perform the tests themselves, and do not treat a negative result as a license to mix. “When manufacturers prepare data to submit to the FDA, they conduct studies under very specific, highly controlled conditions that optimize test performance,” said Kelly Wroblewski, director of infectious disease programs at the Association of Public Health Laboratories. on the .