DOH to include antigen test results in official tally of COVID-19 cases

Amid a fresh surge in COVID-19 cases, the Department of Health (DOH) on Tuesday said antigen test results will now be included in the official tally of infections along with results from RT-PCR (reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction) tests.

Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said the World Health Organization (WHO) recommended the use of antigen test kits in Metro Manila, Bulacan, Rizal, Cavite, and Laguna—areas under the most stringent lockdown classification.

“The rapid antigen test will be officially reported for this period that we have this increase in the number of cases… it’s going to be used as part of our outbreak response,” she said at a House health committee meeting.

“In our guidelines and based on WHO recommendations, when there are areas with increased incidence or there are outbreaks like what we are having right now, you can use antigen test as confirmatory already so we do not need any RT-PCR,” she added.

The DOH announced that it would include antigen test results in the official tally shortly after lawmakers expressed concern that there could be an “underreporting” of COVID-19 cases since results from non-RT-PCR tests are not reported.

RT-PCR is considered the “gold standard” for COVID-19 testing because its results are more definitive.

The WHO said that while antigen tests are “substantially less sensitive” than tests like RT-PCR, “they offer the possibility of rapid, inexpensive and early detection of the most infectious COVID-19 cases in appropriate settings.”

Earlier in the day, testing czar Vince Dizon said the government aims to increase daily COVID-19 tests to as much as 90,000 by using antigen test kits.

“But if you are going to use the rapid antigen in areas where there is low prevalence and you use them for asymptomatics or screening, you need the use of the RT-PCR for you to confirm that test,” Vergeire explained.

The number of active cases in the Philippines rose to 124,680 after the DOH reported 9,296 new infections on Tuesday, the fifth consecutive day with over 9,000 new cases. — DVM, GMA News