Pros And Cons Of The Common Types Of COVID-19 Tests
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has placed the world in a tailspin, which the healthcare industry has responded to in kind with the development and fast deployment of tests designed to detect infection. Many of those tests assist clinicians and researchers accurately determine extreme acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the virus responsible for COVID-19.
And while these tests have been essential in identifying and tracking cases of infection and disease-related morbidity and mortality, they aren’t without their potential drawbacks.
Types of COVID-19 Tests
Several new strategies have been developed to diagnose COVID-19, lots of which have their own different methods of administration and unique benefits:
Speedy, level-of-care diagnostic tests: These tests, which might be classified as either antigen or molecular tests, rely on a mucus sample obtained from the throat or nose and is analyzed at a clinic or doctor’s office. Results from these tests can usually be available within minutes of analysis.
At-residence collection tests: Tests performed at residence are only available by a doctor’s prescription. These tests enable the affected person to self-acquire a pattern in their house and send it to a lab for analysis.
Saliva tests: These tests depend on samples from sufferers who spit into a tube versus getting their throat or nose swabbed. For some individuals, saliva tests could also be more comfortable and also safer, especially for frontline healthcare workers.
Diagnostic Tests: Molecular vs Antigen Tests
There are foremost types of COVID-19 tests – diagnostic tests and antibody tests. Diagnostic tests embrace molecular tests, comparable to reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and antigen tests.
Getting a test for COVID-19 can be challenging for some folks, especially considering the rapid evolution on testing guidance on testing options. While each test features its own limitations, molecular tests are maybe the simplest strategies available.
Beneath is an overview of those completely different tests, including what they will do to identify the illness and their limitations.
RT-PCR
The RT-PCR is the commonest test that is often used to detect the virus’s genetic materials in the body. Utilizing this test, sufferers can know whether or not they've an active COVID-19 an infection and can adjust their life-style accordingly (i.e., quarantine).
Pros
Minimally invasive – carried out using nasal swabs, throat swabs and tests of saliva or different bodily fluids
Permits for social distancing – while some molecular tests, including RT-PCR, are sometimes performed at a hospital or clinic, swabs can be taken from the affected person’s automobile or at house
Fewer false negatives in some cases – deep nasal swabs can have fewer false negatives compared with other tests, equivalent to throat swabs or saliva tests
Cons
Long turnaround instances – in some instances, RT-PCR tests can yield leads to the same day or within one to 2 days, but test results taking as much as one to 2 weeks have been reported through the pandemic
False negatives – molecular tests have been shown to produce results that say the patient doesn’t have the virus after they truly do; the rates of false-positives have ranged from 2% to 37%
Uncomfortable for some individuals – deep nasal swabs could be uncomfortable for some individuals, particularly small children
Antigen Tests
Antigen tests, which are performed utilizing a nasal or throat swab, help detect particular protein fragments residing on the surface of the virus. These tests characteristic a high false-negative rate, nonetheless, leading to many clinicians ordering molecular testing for sufferers with negative antigen tests who display the traditional signs and symptoms of COVID-19.
Pros
Rapid results: The test makes use of technology similar to that utilized in a being pregnant test and yields results within minutes
Cons
Carried out at a hospital or clinic: At-home antigen tests are not widely available, so sufferers typically must travel to a hospital or clinic to have this test performed
High false-negative rate: Antigen tests produce higher false-negative rates than molecular RT-PCR tests, with some evidence suggesting rates as high as 50%
Antibody Tests
Antibody tests look for specific antibodies generated by the immune system in response to a virus, including SARS-CoV-2. Antibodies are proteins that the body produces to combat active invading viruses and active infections. This test can also be known as a serological test, blood test and serology test and involves taking a pattern with a finger stick or blood draw.
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And while these tests have been essential in identifying and tracking cases of infection and disease-related morbidity and mortality, they aren’t without their potential drawbacks.
Types of COVID-19 Tests
Several new strategies have been developed to diagnose COVID-19, lots of which have their own different methods of administration and unique benefits:
Speedy, level-of-care diagnostic tests: These tests, which might be classified as either antigen or molecular tests, rely on a mucus sample obtained from the throat or nose and is analyzed at a clinic or doctor’s office. Results from these tests can usually be available within minutes of analysis.
At-residence collection tests: Tests performed at residence are only available by a doctor’s prescription. These tests enable the affected person to self-acquire a pattern in their house and send it to a lab for analysis.
Saliva tests: These tests depend on samples from sufferers who spit into a tube versus getting their throat or nose swabbed. For some individuals, saliva tests could also be more comfortable and also safer, especially for frontline healthcare workers.
Diagnostic Tests: Molecular vs Antigen Tests
There are foremost types of COVID-19 tests – diagnostic tests and antibody tests. Diagnostic tests embrace molecular tests, comparable to reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and antigen tests.
Getting a test for COVID-19 can be challenging for some folks, especially considering the rapid evolution on testing guidance on testing options. While each test features its own limitations, molecular tests are maybe the simplest strategies available.
Beneath is an overview of those completely different tests, including what they will do to identify the illness and their limitations.
RT-PCR
The RT-PCR is the commonest test that is often used to detect the virus’s genetic materials in the body. Utilizing this test, sufferers can know whether or not they've an active COVID-19 an infection and can adjust their life-style accordingly (i.e., quarantine).
Pros
Minimally invasive – carried out using nasal swabs, throat swabs and tests of saliva or different bodily fluids
Permits for social distancing – while some molecular tests, including RT-PCR, are sometimes performed at a hospital or clinic, swabs can be taken from the affected person’s automobile or at house
Fewer false negatives in some cases – deep nasal swabs can have fewer false negatives compared with other tests, equivalent to throat swabs or saliva tests
Cons
Long turnaround instances – in some instances, RT-PCR tests can yield leads to the same day or within one to 2 days, but test results taking as much as one to 2 weeks have been reported through the pandemic
False negatives – molecular tests have been shown to produce results that say the patient doesn’t have the virus after they truly do; the rates of false-positives have ranged from 2% to 37%
Uncomfortable for some individuals – deep nasal swabs could be uncomfortable for some individuals, particularly small children
Antigen Tests
Antigen tests, which are performed utilizing a nasal or throat swab, help detect particular protein fragments residing on the surface of the virus. These tests characteristic a high false-negative rate, nonetheless, leading to many clinicians ordering molecular testing for sufferers with negative antigen tests who display the traditional signs and symptoms of COVID-19.
Pros
Rapid results: The test makes use of technology similar to that utilized in a being pregnant test and yields results within minutes
Cons
Carried out at a hospital or clinic: At-home antigen tests are not widely available, so sufferers typically must travel to a hospital or clinic to have this test performed
High false-negative rate: Antigen tests produce higher false-negative rates than molecular RT-PCR tests, with some evidence suggesting rates as high as 50%
Antibody Tests
Antibody tests look for specific antibodies generated by the immune system in response to a virus, including SARS-CoV-2. Antibodies are proteins that the body produces to combat active invading viruses and active infections. This test can also be known as a serological test, blood test and serology test and involves taking a pattern with a finger stick or blood draw.
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