Testing for COVID-19 Infectivity

Explore the complexities of determining COVID-19 infectivity in this 35-minute video featuring Dr. Matthew Binnicker, Director of Clinical Virology at Mayo Clinic. Delve into various testing methods including viral culture, rapid antigen tests, PCR cycle thresholds, and subgenomic viral RNAs. Understand the advantages and limitations of each approach in assessing a patient's potential to transmit SARS-CoV-2. Gain insights into the interpretation of test results, the significance of CT values, and the current state of evidence for different infectivity indicators. Learn about the challenges in clinical reporting and the future directions for research in this critical area of COVID-19 management.

Introduction
Why is it important to determine whether someone is infectious
Viral culture
Disadvantages
Viral Culture Methods
Positive Negative Viral Culture
Rapid Antigen Tests
Rapid Antigen vs PCR
Sensitivity of antigen tests
Should antigen tests be used
Cycle threshold
Understanding CT values
What do we know about CT values
Variation in CT values
CT values on patient reports
Reporting on casebycase basis
Subgenomic viral RNAs
How good is the evidence
Subgenomic RNAs
Strandspecific RNA
What should people do next