Why are pcr test results taking so long - why are pcr test results taking so long.How long do PCR Covid test results take?
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Why are pcr test results taking so long - why are pcr test results taking so long.Pathology insider on why PCR tests are taking so long: 'The game's changed'
Why are pcr test results taking so long - why are pcr test results taking so long. About COVID-19 testing
Why are pcr test results taking so long - why are pcr test results taking so long. How you get your NHS coronavirus (COVID-19) test result
If your specimen hits Quest Diagnostics today, for example, their schedule follows an end-of-day rule. That is, your expected turnaround time for results will begin at the end of the calendar day upon which the delivery was received. If there are a lot of patrons coming through a given point of service or a lot of tests to examine back at the lab, getting through them all simply takes time.
With more people making COVID testing a priority than ever, our infrastructure is slowly growing to adapt to the demand. Your PCR specimen is rarely analyzed at your point of service. In order to receive your results, it needs to make it to the lab and back to your testing provider.
The courier? According to insiders, it takes less time for a positive result to register than a negative result. Why keep holding things up? Smaller labs — such as molecular labs at some hospitals — can do far fewer per day but get results to patients faster because they save on transit time.
Even at such hospitals, the tests are often prioritized for patients who have been admitted and staff who might have been exposed to COVID, said Chahine. His lab can process 93 samples at a time and run a few cycles a day, up to about , he said. Last week, it did a day, three days in a row. As the worldwide demand for testing has grown, so, too, have shortages of the chemical agents used in the test kits, the swabs used to get the samples, and the protective masks and gear used by health workers taking the samples.
At the front of the line, she said, should be health care workers and first responders; older adults who have symptoms, especially those living in nursing homes or assisted living residences; and people who may have other illnesses that would be treated differently if they were infected. Bottom line: prioritizing who is tested will help speed the turnaround time for getting results to people in these circumstances and reduce their risk of spreading the illness.
Still, urgent shortages of some of the chemicals needed to process the tests are hampering efforts to test health care workers, including at hospitals such as SUNY Downstate medical center in hard-hit New York.
Looking forward, companies are working on quicker tests. Indeed, the FDA in recent days has approved tests from two companies that promise results in 45 minutes or less. Those will be available only in hospitals that have special equipment to run them. One of those companies, Cepheid of Sunnyvale, California, says about 5, U.
Both firms say they will ship to the hospitals soon but have given few specifics on quantity or timing. But many public health officials say doctors and clinics need a truly rapid test they can use in their offices, one like the tests already in use for influenza or strep throat.
A number of companies are moving in that direction. The tests are processed on a small device already installed in thousands of medical offices, ERs, urgent care clinics and other settings.
Think they're busy at the moment. I have a positive result within 24 hours. The local walk in one we had back within 12 hours but the postal one is taking forever!! It did feel like the priority postbox was jammed with them to be fair. A very hollow boxy sound when I posted it and it didn't drop far inside. My son has Covid now at the start his main symptom was a sore throat and bit of a cough.
He already had a cough from a previous respiratory virus. I wouldn't assume it's another cold. Ours negative results finally came through at 10pm last night, 10 hours after my son's positive one although they were done at the same time. Register today and join the discussion Have your say, get notified on what matters to you and see fewer ads Register now.
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