New 90-minute COVID-19 Test Gives Highly Accurate Results

New coronavirus test developed in the UK produces "highly accurate" results in just 90 minutes and is hailed as a potential gamechanger in controlling the pandemic. The findings of the study are published in the journal Lancet Microbe.

The test uses throat or nasal swabs, which are put on a cartridge that goes into a shoebox-sized machine called NudgeBox for analysis.

‘New 90-minute coronavirus test have over 94 percent sensitivity and 100 percent specificity. ’

The test, called CovidNudge, has produced nearly perfect results when used by NHS staff and patients during the pandemic's peak. It has been successfully trialed in 3 NHS hospitals, and experts hope once further checks are finished, it can be rolled out for mass testing, with care homes, GP surgeries, and schools included.

The high-speed tests can be performed in cartridges smaller than a mobile phone. The Lab-in-Cartridge rapid testing device can be performed at a patient's bedside. It was shown to have over 100 percent specificity and 94 percent sensitivity, which indicates that it has a high level of accuracy. The device scans for traces of genetic material belonging to the coronavirus.

This test is particularly well suited in a healthcare setting, where you require an urgent test to either select on a patient's management or try to determine where a patient goes to a hospital. However, further research of real-world effectiveness in non-clinical settings would be needed before widespread deployment.

Source: Medindia