Role of admission rapid antigen testing (RATs) for COVID-19 on patients transferred from acute hospitals to a post-acute rehabilitation setting.

Gaffney, Ann, Smyth, Edmond G., Moore, Zena ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4692-9718, Patton, Declan, Connor, Tom O. and Derwin, Rosemarie 2025. Role of admission rapid antigen testing (RATs) for COVID-19 on patients transferred from acute hospitals to a post-acute rehabilitation setting. American Journal of Infection Control 53 (3) , pp. 357-360. 10.1016/j.ajic.2024.10.031 Item availability restricted.

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Abstract

Rapid antigen tests (RATs) are suitable for point-of -care testing, require no laboratory time and give immediate results. However, are RATs useful for detecting asymptomatic COVID-19 infection when compared with polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing in healthcare settings? The aim of this study was to implement a reliable testing system utilising RATs to promptly detect COVID-19 infection in predominantly asymptomatic patients transferred from acute hospitals to a post-acute rehabilitation unit (PARU). RAT testing was carried out on all new admissions without a history of confirmed Covid-19 infection within three months of admission. PCR testing was carried out on all patients with a positive RAT for confirmation purposes. The cycle threshold (Ct) values of COVID-19 detected results on PCR testing were examined to determine the utility of the RATs. A total of 1,403 patients were transferred to the PARU from January to December 2023. The results of the study revealed an 85% accuracy of RATs with a 15% rate of false negative results at the time of admission. All patients that had a positive RAT at the time of admission also had a positive PCR test. This testing algorithm resulted in early detection and prompt isolation of positive cases reducing the likely spread of COVID-19 infection, hospital outbreaks and bed/ward closures. [Abstract copyright: Copyright © 2024 Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.]

Item Type:	Article
Date Type:	Publication
Status:	Published
Schools:	Schools > Medicine
Publisher:	Elsevier
ISSN:	0196-6553
Date of First Compliant Deposit:	19 November 2024
Date of Acceptance:	27 October 2024
Last Modified:	03 Mar 2025 15:00
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/174151

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