The CoLab-score rapidly and efficiently excludes COVID-19 at the emergency department without need for SARS-CoV-2 testing: a multicenter case-control study

Background Rapid identification of emergency department (ED) patients with a possible COVID-19 infection is needed. PCR-testing all ED patients is neither feasible nor effective in most centers, therefore a rapid, objective, low-cost screening tool to triage ED patients is necessary. Methods Results: from all routine lab tests from ED patients at the Catharina Hospital were collected from July 2019 to July 2020 and used in a statistical model to obtain the CoLab-score. The score was validated temporally and externally in three independent centers. Results The CoLab-score consists of 10 routine lab results and can be used to safely rule-out a COVID-19 infection in more than one third of ED presentations with a negative predictive value of 0.997 (95% CI: 0.994 – 0.999). Conclusions The CoLab-score is a valuable tool to rule out COVID-19, guide PCR testing and is available to any center with access to routine laboratory tests.