Viruses, Vol. 13, Pages 684: Five Antigen Tests for SARS-CoV-2: Virus Viability Matters

Viruses, Vol. 13, Pages 684: Five Antigen Tests for SARS-CoV-2: Virus Viability Matters Viruses doi: 10.3390/v13040684 Authors: Miroslav Homza Hana Zelena Jaroslav Janosek Hana Tomaskova Eduard Jezo Alena Kloudova Jakub Mrazek Zdenek Svagera Roman Prymula Antigen testing for SARS-CoV-2 (AGT) is generally considered inferior to RT-PCR testing in terms of sensitivity. However, little is known about the infectiousness of RT-PCR positive patients who pass undetected by AGT. In a screening setting for mildly symptomatic or asymptomatic patients with high COVID-19 prevalence (30–40%), 1141 patients were tested using one of five AGTs and RT-PCR. Where the results differed, virus viability in the samples was tested on cell culture (CV-1 cells). The test battery included AGTs by JOYSBIO, Assure Tech, SD Biosensor, VivaChek Biotech and NDFOS. Sensitivities of the ATGs compared to RT-PCR ranged from 42% to 76%. The best test yielded a 76% sensitivity, 97% specificity, 92% positive, and 89% negative predictive values, respectively. However, in the best performing ATG tests, almost 90% of samples with “false negative” AGT results contained no viable virus. Corrected on the virus viability, sensitivities grew to 81%–97% and, with one exception, the tests yielded high specificities >96%. Performance characteristics of the best test after adjustment were 96% sensitivity, 97% specificity, 92% positive, and 99% negative predictive values (high prevale...
Source: Viruses - Category: Virology Authors: Tags: Article Source Type: research