Rapid Respiratory Panel Testing for SARS-CoV-2: Experience in a Private Tertiary Hospital

Abstract

SARS-CoV-2 has infected more than 643 million individuals worldwide and accounts for close to 64,950 deaths in the Philippines. Due to COVID-19’s clinical overlap with other diseases and non-specific radiologic findings, its diagnosis rests primarily on laboratory methods, including reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and multiplexed molecular platforms for rapid syndromic testing. Compared to RT-PCR which has a turnaround time of 24 to 72 hours, multiplexed molecular platforms can provide alternative diagnoses to COVID-19 in an average of one hour, providing meaningful data that can impact clinical and resource management when handling acute surge of patients with respiratory symptoms.