COVID-19 Coming Soon in 15 Minutes: How Rapid Antigen Tests Will Work

Aurelija Žvirblienė, a professor at the Vilnius University (VU) Life Sciences Center, says they work on a principle similar to a pregnancy test.

“It will be possible to simply take a sample from the nasopharynx, add it to a special solution and apply it to the test cartridge. If the strip appears after 10-15 minutes, then the virus is there “, explained the professor in the program” Delfi diena “.

According to her, the ongoing investigation takes several hours, which would greatly facilitate the investigation procedure.

“Laboratories are now plowing around the clock and conducting complex molecular research that takes hours and requires sophisticated equipment. All these procedures will no longer be necessary ”, emphasized the professor.

According to her, rapid tests are important in outbreak areas because they allow a faster response and effective monitoring of the situation, isolating infected people.

It is true that the person himself will not be able to carry out this test himself at least for now.

“For now, it is recommended that this be done by medical personnel. It is difficult for the person himself, because it is necessary to take the sample quite deeply, ”says A. Žvirblienė.

Help control chimneys in companies

Vidmantas Janulevičius, President of the Lithuanian Confederation of Industrialists, emphasizes that these tests would be useful for companies, as they would allow a more effective control of the chimney.

“When a chimney appears, it will be possible to quickly determine that the chimney will not spread and isolate not all people, but a certain number, which are tested,” said V. Janulevičius.

“Today, in a manufacturing plant that has multiple shifts, if an employee gets sick, we have to isolate the entire shift that they may have been in contact with,” he added.

Speaking about restricting part of business activity, V. Janulevičius noted that examples from some countries show that there should be no rush to remove restrictions too soon.

“We believe in the competence of physicians and we understand that opening early would allow us to enjoy a given outing for two weeks and then close again,” he said.

“I think that as the situation gradually improves, some minimal restrictions are likely to be changed from January 31st, but we have to remain in quarantine and then I think we will have some releases in February,” Delfi Day. President of the Confederation of Industrialists of Lithuania.

The government offers companies the purchase of rapid antigen tests to evaluate employees for one to two weeks. This would allow companies to shorten the isolation period for some employees or not isolate them at all. While entrepreneurs generally welcome this offer, they say that under the current plan, companies should buy the tests for their own money. According to them, the state’s contribution is necessary here.

It will test residents and businesses

Delfi recalls that during the meeting with the Social Democratic faction of Seimas held on Monday, Health Minister Arūnas Dulkys hinted at the possible antigen testing of society and business, which will begin in February.

The minister said antigen testing would primarily screen people experiencing symptoms and preventive examinations from educators, psychologists, doctors, prison staff, residents and care staff, people working at coronavirus hotspots, other people in priority groups and businesses. .

The meeting also stated that the successful launch of the new testing program in February could lead to a relaxation of quarantine restrictions in March.

“If we start with the test program, let’s say it will start in February, then its active operation in March should give signs of recovery to companies as well as organizations and educational institutions,” said A. Dulkys.

Delfi has asked the Ministry of Health (SAM) to clarify what the new test system will look like and how companies will be tested.

SAM’s response received indicated that the Ministry will be able to answer specific questions only after coordinating the positions of experts, epidemiologists and municipal representatives.

“The testing strategy that is currently being developed has several directions, from preventive research for target groups, focus management, to testing people at risk or high risk, including changes to isolation rules. Its main objective is manage the situation in such a way that it is not necessary to enforce the requirements immediately once they are published.

Regarding the details of the testing organization processes, such as research locations, funding methods, etc., we will be able to comment on when each of the developed test schemes is approved. The experience of foreign countries when considering new testing strategies is always valued, but is used only to the extent appropriate to our national context, ”said Aistė Šuksta, Advisor to the Minister of Health for Public Relations.

Testing would be done weekly or multiple times

Vidmantas Janulevičius, president of the Lithuanian Confederation of Industrialists (LPK), said that the essence of the commercial tests proposed by the government is to quickly track new cases of disease in companies.

“For the companies to work, it is decided that the employers will test the employees for a week or two whether the company, in which workshop, had a chimney in the factory until there are no cases left. That is, if a fireplace occurs, we test all employees.

The position is to reduce the number of cases. Until now, there is talk of testing at the expense of the companies themselves, which would be included in the cost. In the future, we will see what those costs will be and ask if we could at least partially offset them, at least half the price.

In any case, these tests are better than downtime, but I hope the state will contribute to this in the future, ”explained V. Janulevičius.

“The role of the state is that it should have bought those tests in bulk at a cheaper price and hopefully not doing business for the same price or with a minimal margin would sell the business,” he said.

Asked whether it would not be too expensive for companies to pay for the tests themselves, since companies employ hundreds of workers, an industry representative assured that, in this case, the health of the workers is more important.

“The sums come out a lot, but those companies that don’t want to stop their activities, those that want to, let’s say, industrial companies that export have obligations, costs are costs for them, but a healthy person is more important.

Of course, there may be many medium-sized companies in the regions that do not want to test employees for their own money, ”said V. Janulevičius, saying that testing in general would not be mandatory.

“If you want to force it, you must share the free tests. There will be no coercion, but I hope everyone’s conscience, both employees and employers,” he explained.

According to V. Janulevičius, the industrial business has tested the employees so far, but the employees have been subjected to PCR tests, the prices of which amount to several tens of euros. According to him, in total, industrial companies alone could have spent around half a million euros on such employee health checks.

“Of course, most of this happens through private clinics,” Janulevičius said, adding that now this amount will definitely increase, but, as he emphasized, tests are necessary to work.