Una Health Ltd

Lateral flow tests have been around for many years, think the humble pregnancy test; however, the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic has increased the reach of these point-of-care tests exponentially. Lateral flow tests are rapid diagnostic tests that may be used at the point-of-care (i.e., with a patient during a clinical consultation). Rapid diagnosis of an infection is important to ensure that patients receive the correct care and when necessary, treatment with appropriate antimicrobial therapy (refer to this post to find out more about what is meant by antimicrobial and more about antimicrobial resistance). By the end of this short piece, I hope to share with you the simple yet complicated nature of a lateral flow test, their advantages, and things to look out for when considering such a test for your clinical setting. Lateral flow tests are designed to be easy-to-use with minimal steps, limited equipment requirements and can be completed without laboratory facilities: [take an appropriate clinical sample – add the sample to a buffer solution – add mixed buffer solution+clinical sample to test cassette – wait an allotted amount of time – read the result] Lateral flow tests require an easily accessible and patient-friendly sample type, for instance, urine, finger prick blood, or nasal swab. More than one pathogen can be included in a single lateral flow test, for example, detection of SARS-CoV-2, Influenza A, and Influenza B in patients with respiratory tract symptoms. One example of these combined lateral flow tests is the COVID-19/Influenza A+B/RSV Antigen Combo Lateral Flow Test from Beright. Results are easy to interpret (positive, negative, or invalid) and are available after a short period of time (usually 10-30 minutes depending on the test). Lateral flow tests are inexpensive and can often be stored at room temperature. As the results are available at the point-of-care, both the healthcare provider and the patient are empowered to discuss the results in real time. If applied in a suitable manner to a clinical workflow (as opposed to simply adding to an existing workflow), lateral flow tests may provide a cost-effective healthcare solution to keep appropriate patients out of hospital and managed in the community. This piece has been written with a UK market in mind; however, by their very nature lateral flow tests lend themselves to diagnosis of infections in low- and middle-income countries. As we move slowly out of the COVID-19 pandemic, lateral flow tests look here to stay. Healthcare professionals, policy makers and the public now have an awareness of the value and benefits of lateral flow tests and how they can contribute to much needed change in infection diagnostics. Any new diagnostic test coming to market needs to be compared fairly so that an informed decision can be made about test accuracy and use case. In order to regulate claims that are made about lateral flow tests, some of which can be misleading, standards and agreed methods of evaluation are needed. Lateral flow tests have a lot to offer modern diagnostic pathways. Watch this space for how forward-thinking healthcare providers are adapting their practice to include rapid point-of-care diagnostics, including lateral flow tests, to ensure the best care for their patients.