Alliance for Pandemic Preparedness

January 19, 2021

Evaluation of Abbott BinaxNOW Rapid Antigen Test for SARS-CoV-2 Infection at Two Community-Based Testing Sites — Pima County, Arizona, November 3–17, 2020

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The sensitivity of the BinaxNOW antigen test, compared to RT-PCR, was lower when testing specimens from asymptomatic (35.8%) than from symptomatic (64.2%) persons, based on 3,419 paired specimens from community testing in Arizona. Specificity was near 100% for both groups. Sensitivity was higher among the 96 specimens positive for viral culture (92.6% and 78.6% for those from symptomatic and asymptomatic persons, respectively). However, 11 out of 96 specimens positive for viral culture were antigen-test negative. Despite low sensitivity, the authors suggest that antigen testing could be particularly useful in high prevalence settings.

Prince-Guerra et al. (Jan 19, 2021). Evaluation of Abbott BinaxNOW Rapid Antigen Test for SARS-CoV-2 Infection at Two Community-Based Testing Sites — Pima County, Arizona, November 3–17, 2020. MMWR. https://doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm7003e3