No one really knows what a positive COVID-19 antibody test means yet (for example, we don't know if it means you are immune to SARS-CoV-2), but gathering antibody data now can help scientists who study viral infections like COVID-19. When you get sick with an infectious virus, your immune system produces antibodies to fight off the infection. An antibody test checks to see if you've had the novel coronavirus in the past, rather than checking for current infection. Amanda Capritto/CNETĪntibody tests are an entirely different class of medical tests. Since then, more studies have repeated and confirmed those findings.Īntibody tests are not the same as at-home coronavirus test kits, like the one above from LetsGetChecked. Yale Public Health researchers published preliminary research in April that showed saliva tests were just as accurate - and sometimes even more accurate - than nasal swab tests. When it comes to concerns over how the saliva tests perform compared to nasal swabs, the research is promising. Saliva tests are much less invasive, less uncomfortable and pose less risk for health care providers - so why did it take so long to approve them? The FDA needed to make sure the samples could provide the same level of accuracy as nasal swabs. Both tests are now available without telemedical approval. Now, all you have to do is take an assessment that asks about your symptoms.įollowing that authorization from the FDA, two companies, Vault Health and 1Health.io (the parent company of Vitagene), announced plans to sell the saliva tests for at-home use under supervision from a doctor through telemedicine. This was the first at-home diagnostic test using saliva samples, and it originally could only be obtained with a prescription from a doctor. It wasn't until May 8 that the FDA authorized Rutgers Clinical Genomics Laboratory to actually start testing samples of saliva collected at home for the coronavirus, using collection kits from Spectrum Solutions. ![]() On April 13, the FDA granted Rutgers University's RUCDR Infinite Biologics biorepository emergency authorization for a new method it developed to test saliva samples for the coronavirus. These tests are't invasive and can easily be done at home, which helps protect health care professionals from being exposed to the coronavirus at testing sites, and reduces the demand for personal protective equipment. Much like taking a DNA test, saliva tests have you spit into a tube, seal it and send to a lab. The Spectrum Solutions saliva collection device used for at-home saliva tests.
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