The first two corona rapid tests have been approved, Minister Hugo de Jonge (Public Health) told the Wednesday WE. At the moment, it is still being investigated how these tests can best be used.
The two tests, of which the results are known after fifteen minutes, have been approved after an investigation by the Amphia Hospital in Breda and the UMC Utrecht. A total of five variants are being investigated for reliability in the Netherlands.
In the coming weeks, it will be investigated in practice how the rapid tests can be used in addition to the PCR test that is now used in the test lanes. According to De Jonge, it is possible that the rapid tests will be used in the separate test streets for education and healthcare personnel.
“But also in other vital professions,” he told the WE. “Or for people who come out positively from the source and contact studies, so that you can test them very quickly. Or for users of the corona app.”
The minister is not concerned about a possible shortage of rapid tests. He says that “huge numbers” have already been purchased prior to approval, so that the tests can be used if they prove suitable in a given situation.
Rapid corona tests are tested in three locations
The approved tests of the American companies BD and Abbott were used during the study in test streets in Utrecht and Breda and in Aruba. A total of 1,529 people participated in this study. In those cases, a PCR test was also taken as a control.
The PCR test, the result of which is known 24 to 48 hours later, is very sensitive. This means that a person with very little virus will also get a positive result. This is not the case with a rapid test. The two rapid tests are able to detect people with a lot of virus.
According to the WE once with a false positive result. This means that someone was infected with the coronavirus according to the rapid test, when in reality this was not the case. The negative results were correct in all cases.
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