Comparative Study of the Efficacy of the Abbott ID Now Rapid Assay with Real Time PCR for the Diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 RNA

Abstract Rapid diagnostic tests are of great importance in hospital settings during the current outbreak of SARS-CoV-2. The clinical patient management and spread of infection is critically dependent on molecular assays with shortest possible turn-around time. Here we report performance of a point of care Abbott ID NOW COVID-19 assay in comparison to routinely used real-time RT-PCR assay on 205 clinical specimens. Overall agreement of ID NOW was found to be 93.7% with positive percent agreement (PPA) of 91.8% and negative percent agreement (NPA) of 95.4%. Based on our findings, low turnaround time, minimal infrastructure need and ease of performing the assay, Abbott ID NOW COVID-19 assay can be considered as a point of care test in hospital settings.