Multicentre comparison of quantitative PCR-based assays to detect SARS-CoV-2, Germany, March 2020

Containment strategies and clinical management of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) patients during the current pandemic depend on reliable diagnostic PCR assays for the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Here, we compare 11 different RT-PCR test systems used in seven diagnostic laboratories in Germany in March 2020. While most assays performed well, we identified detection problems in a commonly used assay that may have resulted in false-negative test results during the first weeks of the pandemic.

Source: Eurosurveillance - June 18, 2020 Category: Infectious Diseases Authors: Maximilian Muenchhoff, Helga Mairhofer, Hans Nitschko, Natascha Grzimek-Koschewa, Dieter Hoffmann, Annemarie Berger, Holger Rabenau, Marek Widera, Nikolaus Ackermann, Regina Konrad, Sabine Zange, Alexander Graf, Stefan Krebs, Helmut Blum, Andreas Sing, Be Source Type: research