Journal Article

Evaluation of the Abbott BinaxNOW COVID-19 Test Ag Card for rapid detection of SARS-CoV-2 infection by a local public health district with a rural population

Ceniseros, Aimee, Pollreis, Rachel E., Washington, Charles H., Malesha, Surabhi S., Phinney, Rachel J., Ball, Christopher L., Nutting, Andrew J., Roscoe, Clay, Burns, Matthew C.

2021

Overview

SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR, the gold standard for diagnostic testing, may not be readily available or logistically applicable for routine COVID-19 testing in many rural communities in the United States. In this validation study, we compared the BinaxNOW™ COVID-19 Test Ag Card with SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR in 214 participants who sought COVID-19 testing from a local public health district in Idaho, USA. The median age of participants was 35 and 82.7% were symptomatic. Thirty-seven participants (17.3%) had positive RT-PCR results. Results between the two tests were 94.4% concordant. The sensitivity of the BinaxNOW™ COVID-19 Test Ag Card was 67.6% (95% CI: 50.2–81.9%), and the specificity was 100.0% (95% CI: 97.9–100.0%). The positive predictive value (PPV) for the BinaxNOW™ COVID-19 Test Ag Card was 100.0% (95% CI: 86.2–100.0%), and the negative predictive value (NPV) was 93.6% (95% CI: 89.1–96.6%). Although the sensitivity of BinaxNOW™ COVID-19 Test Ag Card was lower than RT-PCR, rapid results and high specificity support its use for early detection of COVID-19, especially in settings where SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR testing is not readily available. Rapid antigen tests, such as the BinaxNOW™ COVID-19 Test Ag Card, may be a more convenient tool in quickly identifying and preventing COVID-19 transmission, especially in rural settings.

• Publisher: Public Library of Science,Public Library of Science (PLoS)
• Subject: Antigens / Biology and Life Sciences / Confidentiality / Coronaviruses / COVID-19 / COVID-19 diagnostic tests / Disease transmission / Evaluation / Informed consent / Investigations / Laboratories / Medical tests / Medicine and Health Sciences / Methods / People and places / Performance evaluation / Polymerase chain reaction / Public health / Research and Analysis Methods / Rural areas / Rural communities / Rural populations / Sensitivity / Severe acute respiratory syndrome / Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 / Supervision