SL to roll out COVID-19 tests that give results in 30 minutes

• Health authorities to increase COVID-19 testing with rapid diagnostic kits
• WHO-approved antigen tests from Seoul to be used from next week
• 200,000 antigen tests to help with faster, more widespread testing

Health authorities are planning on expanding COVID-19 testing capacities with the use of rapid diagnostic test kits, depending on the success of samples brought down to the country this week.

According to Laboratory Services Deputy Director Dr. Saman Ratnayake, the test kits are approved by the World Health Organisation (WHO). “We have received samples of these test kits and, depending on the results of the samples, the Health Ministry plans to order the required number of test kits.”

On 4 November, SriLankan Airlines posted on Twitter that SriLankan Cargo had carried 200,000 COVID-19 antigen rapid diagnostic test kits from Seoul. The use of the rapid diagnostic test kits is expected to make the COVID-19 testing process quicker and cheaper, thus significantly improving patient identification.

Government Medical Officers’ Association (GMOA) Editor Dr. Haritha Aluthge explained the rapid diagnostic test can issue results in 20 to 30 minutes, whereas a PCR test takes at least six hours for results. In addition to this, the rapid diagnostic test kit costs less than the PCR test, which costs Rs. 6,000.

“The PCR sample must be taken to a lab, which requires a viral transport medium. It must then be extracted. However, there are only a limited number of steps with the antigen test, and samples can be tested in the field itself,” Dr. Aluthge said.

He added that the test would be a great alternative, especially for when the country reaches the limit its PCR testing capacity. “Once it is validated and proven to be a success, we believe it can be used for random community testing,” Dr. Aluthge added.

In its question and answer segment about COVID-19 updated on 12 October, WHO says the PCR test is the most commonly used testing mechanism. Regarding rapid tests, WHO says: “These tests are cheaper than PCR and will offer results more quickly, although they are generally less accurate. We are still learning about how well they perform and when to use them.”