We found a match
Your institution may have access to this item. Find your institution then sign in to continue.
- Title
The Appropriate Use of Testing for COVID-19.
- Authors
Zitek, Tony
- Abstract
Many public officials are calling for increased testing for the 2019 novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), and some governments have taken extraordinary measures to increase the availability of testing. However, little has been published about the sensitivity and specificity of the reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) nasopharyngeal swabs that are commonly used for testing. This narrative review evaluates the literature regarding the accuracy of these tests, and makes recommendations based on this literature. In brief, a negative RT-PCR nasopharyngeal swab test is insufficient to rule out COVID-19. Thus, over-reliance on the results of the test may be dangerous, and the push for widespread testing may be overstated.
- Subjects
COVID-19 testing; NASOPHARYNX microbiology; POLYMERASE chain reaction; RNA viruses; REVERSE transcriptase polymerase chain reaction; ROUTINE diagnostic tests; COVID-19
- Publication
Western Journal of Emergency Medicine: Integrating Emergency Care with Population Health, 2020, Vol 21, Issue 3, p470
- ISSN
1936-900X
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.5811/westjem.2020.4.47370