{"id":769,"date":"2021-12-19T11:04:11","date_gmt":"2021-12-19T11:04:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.imperial.ac.uk\/medical-centre\/?p=769"},"modified":"2021-12-19T11:04:11","modified_gmt":"2021-12-19T11:04:11","slug":"detecting-covid-19-infections-from-omicron-using-lateral-flow-devices","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.imperial.ac.uk\/medical-centre\/2021\/12\/19\/detecting-covid-19-infections-from-omicron-using-lateral-flow-devices\/","title":{"rendered":"Detecting Covid-19 infections from Omicron using lateral flow devices"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Several patients have asked me if lateral flow devices (LFDs) will detect Omicron infections. These are the rapid tests that people can use to check for Covid-19 infection while they are asymptotic. NHS staff are required to use these tests regularly if they are in patient-facing roles.<\/p>\n<p>Short Answer: Yes. The UK HSA has confirmed this in an initial laboratory evaluation of the LFDs currently used in the UK. The data from the initial samples in the HSA study show a similar sensitivity for the detection of Covid-19 from Omicron to that seen for previous strains of SARS-CoV-2 including Delta, which has been the predominant strain in the UK from May to December 2021.<\/p>\n<p>All LFDs approved for use within the UK specifically detect the nucleocapsid protein of SARS-CoV-2 using a combination of 2 or more different antibodies, each targeting a distinct epitope. Full details of the study are available on pages 14-16 of the HAS study. Finally, remember that LFDs are not 100% sensitive and won\u2019t detect some infections. Full details of the study are available on pages 14-16 of the HSA report.<\/p>\n<p>If you have symptoms of a possible Covid-19 infection, get a PCR test. Irrespective of your test result, continue to practise good infection control measures such as wearing a face mask and avoiding higher risk venues such s very crowded indoor spaces with poor ventilation.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Several patients have asked me if lateral flow devices (LFDs) will detect Omicron infections. These are the rapid tests that people can use to check for Covid-19 infection while they are asymptotic. NHS staff are required to use these tests regularly if they are in patient-facing roles. Short Answer: Yes. The UK HSA has confirmed [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1115,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[296231,404],"tags":[274465],"class_list":["post-769","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-coronavirus","category-health","tag-covid-19"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Detecting Covid-19 infections from Omicron using lateral flow devices - Medical Centre<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/blogs.imperial.ac.uk\/medical-centre\/2021\/12\/19\/detecting-covid-19-infections-from-omicron-using-lateral-flow-devices\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Detecting Covid-19 infections from Omicron using lateral flow devices - Medical Centre\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Several patients have asked me if lateral flow devices (LFDs) will detect Omicron infections. These are the rapid tests that people can use to check for Covid-19 infection while they are asymptotic. NHS staff are required to use these tests regularly if they are in patient-facing roles. Short Answer: Yes. 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