FDA Says COVID-19 Antigen Tests May be Less Sensitive to Omicron Variant, but They’re Still an Important Tool

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) provided new information regarding SARS-CoV-2 antigen diagnostic tests that suggests they may have reduced sensitivity to detecting the Omicron variant

The FDA said its recent studies with the National Institutes of Health showed that although the antigen tests detected the Omicron variant, they did so with less sensitivity — meaning they’ll spot an infection less often.

The agency said it could not share any information on how much less sensitive any of the tests might be to the Omicron variant, but it is working to get more details.

“Studies are under way to confirm the reason for the apparent decreased sensitivity. Once that is known, adjustments to existing tests can be undertaken by each developer with support from the FDA, if appropriate,” the FDA told CNN in a statement.

Read the full article on CNN.