New 15-minute Coronavirus test kit heading to Australia

March 27, 2020

More than 500,000 new 15-minute coronavirus test kits are set to be distributed across Australia next week.

The 15-minute Antibody IgM/IgG kit from Endo X requires a drop of blood to check for antibodies to the virus and returns results in that time span.

It aims to help essential workers, such as doctors, nurses, and teachers, and the general public in returning to their jobs.

The test kit will also enable workers to be screened daily and reduce quarantine periods of suspected cases from 14 days to five.

Dr David Badov, director of Endo X, said: “The test will reveal if the patient has antibodies in their blood and are now immune to COVID-19, supporting workers in getting back to their jobs in this time of uncertainty.

“We encourage healthcare providers to get in touch with us as soon as possible so that these tests can get to those who need it most.”

The test kit was approved by federal government regulators last week.

Endo X says It has a detection accuracy rate of 94.6 per cent from four to 10 days of the patient developing symptoms and 99.3 per cent after 11 to 24 days, given it takes a number of days for immunity-related antibodies to appear in the blood.

Widespread community testing has been pushed by the federal government, doctors and WHO as one of the best ways to stem COVID 19 infections.

What are the symptoms of someone infected?

Coronavirus patients may experience flu like symptoms such as a fever, cough, runny nose, or shortness of breath. In more severe cases, infection can cause pneumonia with severe acute respiratory distress.

What is the difference between COVID-19 and the flu?

The symptoms of COVID-19 and the flu are very similar, as they both can cause fever and respiratory issues.

Both infections are also transmitted the same way, via coughing or sneezing, or by contact with hands, surfaces or objects contaminated with the virus.

The speed of transmission and the severity of the infection are the key differences between COVID-19 and the flu.

The time from infection to the appearance of symptoms is typically shorter with the flu. However, there are higher proportions of severe and critical COVID-19 infections.