Abstract:

Since the beginning of 2020, millions of people have been caught in the COVID-19 disease and died due to the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. Early detection of positive persons is critical in controlling the virus spread. Therefore, laboratory methods that are fast, accurate and capable of screening a large number of patients were required. For this purpose, the World Health Organization has recommended the use of molecular and serological tests in routine clinical diagnosis. Real-time PCR has become the most used test method due to its high sensitivity and specificity, its ability to result in a few hours, to show viral load and to run tests from many different clinical samples. The efficiency of serological tests in the diagnosis of COVID-19 remained low due to the variable and late antibody response of the patients to the virus. Although the routine clinical diagnosis has not yet been made, Loop-Mediated Isothermal Amplification (LAMP), CRISPR and Sequencing methods have potential for use in the diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2. In this review, the tests used in SARS-CoV-2 laboratory diagnosis, and the advantages and limitations of these test methods are summarized in the light of the available data and offered to use of medical professionals.

Keywords:

Abstract:

Since the beginning of 2020, millions of people have been caught in the COVID-19 disease and died due to the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. Early detection of positive persons is critical in controlling the virus spread. Therefore, laboratory methods that are fast, accurate and capable of screening a large number of patients were required. For this purpose, the World Health Organization (WHO) has recommended the use of molecular and serological tests in routine clinical diagnosis. Real-time PCR has become the most used test method due to its high sensitivity and specificity, its ability to result in a few hours, to show viral load and to run tests from many different clinical samples. The efficiency of serological tests in the diagnosis of COVID-19 remained low due to the variable and late antibody response of the patients to the virus. Although the routine clinical diagnosis has not yet been made, Loop-Mediated Isothermal Amplification (LAMP), CRISPR and Sequencing methods have potentials for use in the diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2. In this review, the tests used in SARS-CoV-2 laboratory diagnosis, and the advantages and limitations of these test methods are summarized in the light of the available data and offered to use of medical professionals.