Performance of the VitaPCR Rapid Molecular Test for SARS-CoV-2 Screening at Hospital Admission

Objective: To evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of rapid VitaPCRTM (Credo) assay as screening test in emer-gency department (ED) patients prior to transfer or medical interventions.Methods: In this prospective study 6642 oropharyngeal swabs from nonpreselected ED patients were tested for SARS-CoV-2 with (1) extraction-free VitaPCR and (2) extraction-based reference assays (Aptima (R), cobas (R), Xpert (R) Xpress).Results: The median TAT of VitaPCR was 47 minutes (IQR: 38-59), while reference assays required 6.2 hours (IQR: 4.4-13.3). VitaPCR's sensitivity, specificity, PPV and NPV was 77.9%, 99.9%, 97.9%, and 98.9% in relation to Hologic Panther TMA; 78.3%, 99.8%, 96.4%, and 98.5% compared to Roche cobas6800 PCR; 71.2%, 99.2%, 94.9%, and 94.3% using Cepheid GeneXpert PCR as reference.Conclusion: High-sensitivity testing is needed to limit nosocomial spread and identify asymptomatic COVID-19 patients. However, time advantage of the VitaPCR must be weighed against its significantly lower sensi-tivity, especially when used in high-risk environments such as hospitals.(c) 2023 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.