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. 2021 Jun 10;18(12):6310.
doi: 10.3390/ijerph18126310.

Diagnostic Accuracy of a New Antigen Test for SARS-CoV-2 Detection

Marina Di Domenico  1   2 , Alfredo De Rosa  3 , Francesca Di Gaudio  4 , Pietro Internicola  5 , Cinzia Bettini  6 , Nicola Salzano  7 , Davide Castrianni  7 , Andrea Marotta  3 , Mariarosaria Boccellino  1
Affiliations
Free PMC article

Diagnostic Accuracy of a New Antigen Test for SARS-CoV-2 Detection

Marina Di Domenico et al. Int J Environ Res Public Health. .
Free PMC article

Abstract

Background and aims: Quick and reliable diagnostic tools play an important role in controlling the spread of the SARS-Cov-2 pandemic. The aim of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of a new cyto-salivary antigen test aimed at detecting the presence of antigens for SARS-CoV-2, as compared by the gold standard RT-PCR and a lateral flow test.

Methods: A total of 433 healthy volunteers were enrolled in the study and the sensitivity and specificity of the new cyto-salivary antigen test were calculated, as compared to the RT-PCR nasopharyngeal swab and to the lateral flow test.

Results: A total of 433 samples were collected and tested at the Mediterranean Fair in Palermo from February 2021 until April 2021. The new cyto-salivary antigen had a sensitivity of 100% and a specificity of 94.2%. The sensitivity and the specificity of the lateral flow test were 55% and 100%, respectively.

Conclusions: The new cyto-salivary antigen test detected more positive cases than the RT-PCR in a sample of asymptomatic subjects, demonstrating to be a promising tool for a more sensitive diagnosis of COVID-19. Further studies are warranted to better characterize its diagnostic accuracy.

Keywords: ELISA; RT-PCR; SARS-CoV-2; cyto-salivary test; lateral flow test; respiratory disease COVID-19.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Venn plots show the overlapping of positive cases of the three tests performed (cyto-salivary, lateral flow and RT-PCR), n = number of positive cases.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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