16 October 2020 -
Analytical Sciences
The Importance of Sensitivity in COVID19 Real-Time RT-PCR Assays
Precision is key when it comes to choosing your REAL TIME SARS-COV-2 RT-PCR TESTS and that is why the limit of detection (LOD) is one of the most important factors to consider. The viral load reaches its maximum usually at 5 or 6 days after the infection, which causes the highest risk of contagion. Before that, it is often too low to be detected. The LOD is the cut-off value above which the sample can be considered positive. If the viral load is lower than this, false negative results will be obtained. It is therefore imperative that the tests have a low LOD and low cut-off values. In order to differentiate the tests, the FDA developed an experiment to precisely compare the performance of SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acid-based tests that have received EUA authorization.
