5 things to remember with at-home COVID-19 testing
The COVID-19 pandemic has started an irreversible trend of patients using at-home tests to check their COVID-19 infection status. Patients do not have to leave their homes when sick, infectious, and prone to getting secondary infections. They can self-administer antigen-based tests and collect their samples for PCR-based tests. As the fall weather approaches and there is an increased circulation of respiratory illnesses such as COVID-19, it is best to keep these 5 things in mind when going for at-home testing.1. NAATs such as PCR-based tests are superiorThere are two types of at-home tests for COVID-19 infection- antigen-based tests and Nucleic acid amplification tests (NAATs) such as PCR-based tests. Antigen tests can be performed completely at home. For PCR tests, samples can be collected at home and shipped to a lab for analysis.Both tests have different sensitivities with PCR-based tests being better at catching COVID-19 infection. PCR, short for polymerase chain reaction, is an amplification reaction that makes numerous copies of the viral genetic material, thereby amplifying even a small signal to a level that can be recognized. For COVID-19 testing, NAATs such as PCR are considered the gold standard. With the power of NAATs, it is much more uncommon to miss a current COVID-19 infection. NAATs accurately detect the virus at least 95% of the time. On the other hand, antigen-based test kits may yield false negative results if the infection level is low. Antigen tests accurately detect the virus at least 80% of the time. Both tests can fail to detect the infection if the test is taken too early after exposure to the COVID-19 virus. The CDC recommends waiting at least 5 full days after first exposure before taking a test.
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2. Positive PCR results may indicate past infectionIf someone is asymptomatic but still tests positive for a COVID-19 infection in a PCR test, the results may be due to a past infection. PCR-based tests can yield a positive result for up to 90 days after COVID-19 infection.It is also possible that the person has an asymptomatic infection or reinfection. There are many different COVID-19 variants in circulation simultaneously. Someone can recover from COVID-19 and then get reinfected within 90 days with the same or a different variant.If you are asymptomatic but had COVID-19 in the last 3 months and you test positive on a PCR-based COVID-19 test, it can be difficult to know if the test has detected a current or past infection. In this situation, the CDC recommends seeing a medical care provider who can assess your overall health and medical history to guide you.
3. Antigen tests may work past their expiration dateA COVID-19 antigen test can be purchased over the counter or sometimes obtained free through USPS. Each testing box has an expiration date noted on it. The date indicates how long the test is expected to function. In general, antigen tests should not be used beyond their expiration date.However, sometimes manufacturers find that their tests work perfectly beyond the expiration date indicated on their packaging. In that case, they contact the FDA and request that the kit’s shelf life be extended. If FDA approves the extension of the product’s shelf life, all new packaging will indicate the updated shelf life. The company may send a notice to customers who purchased the kits before the update to let them know that the shelf life of their kits has been extended. However, that may not be possible if the kit was not directly purchased from the manufacturer.When in doubt, customers can check the FDA’s website to see which commercially available at-home COVID-19 testing kits have had their shelf lives extended.4. Garbage in, garbage outTest results depend on the sampling acumen of the person administering the at-home test. If the person follows the directions exactly and works on a clean dry surface, the results will be reliable. However, if the person does not follow the directions properly or allows their kit to get contaminated with dirty fingers or wet surfaces, the results from such a test will not be reliable.At-home PCR kits also depend on the sample collector to ensure that the sample collected per person contains no contaminants from the surroundings.All at-home kits require sufficient samples to be collected at least five full days after the first exposure to COVID-19. Insufficient samples or samples taken too early can yield unreliable results.5. Not all at-home COVID-19 kits need nasal swabsIf you don’t love poking the insides of your nose when you are sick, you may benefit from a saliva-based test kit. Fast Lab’s COVID-19 Rapid Antigen + PCR Testing kit simply needs a saliva sample from the patient.
The information provided in our blog posts is for informational purposes only and is not intended as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on this blog.
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