Abstract
COVID-19 continues to circulate globally in 2021, while under the precise policy implementation of China’s public health system, the epidemic was quickly controlled, and society and the economy have recovered. During the pandemic response, nucleic acid detection of SARS-CoV-2 has played an indispensable role in the first line of defence. In the cases of emergency operations or patients presenting at fever clinics, nucleic acid detection is required to be performed and reported quickly. Therefore, nucleic acid point-of-care testing (POCT) technology for SARS-CoV-2 identification has emerged, and has been widely carried out at all levels of medical institutions. SARS-CoV-2 POCT has served as a complementary test to conventional polymerase chain reaction (PCR) batch tests, thus forming an experimental diagnosis platform that not only guarantees medical safety but also improves quality services. However, in view of the complexity of molecular diagnosis and the biosafety requirements involved, pathogen nucleic acid POCT is different from traditional blood-based physical and chemical index detection. No guidelines currently exist for POCT quality management, and there have been inconsistencies documented in practical operation. Therefore, Shanghai Society of Molecular Diagnostics, Shanghai Society of Laboratory Medicine, Clinical Microbiology Division of Shanghai Society of Microbiology and Shanghai Center for Clinical Laboratory have cooperated with experts in laboratory medicine to generate the present expert consensus. Based on the current spectrum of major infectious diseases in China, the whole-process operation management of pathogen POCT, including its application scenarios, biosafety management, personnel qualification, performance verification, quality control, and result reporting, are described here. This expert consensus will aid in promoting the rational application and robust development of this technology in public health defence and hospital infection management.
Highlights
The development of molecular biology technologies has enabled specific and sensitive detection of pathogen nucleic acids in a sample
Pathogen nucleic acid Point-of-care testing (POCT) mainly includes qualitative and quantitative pathogen detection, and different performance parameters are focused for different examinations (International Organization for Standardization, 2010; International Organization for Standardization, 2015; Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute, 2018)
When the POCT system is used for the first time, the negative and weak positive quality control products should be tested first, and clinical sample examination should be started after quality control is complete
Summary
The development of molecular biology technologies has enabled specific and sensitive detection of pathogen nucleic acids in a sample. Pathogen nucleic acid POCT mainly includes qualitative and quantitative pathogen detection, and different performance parameters are focused for different examinations (International Organization for Standardization, 2010; International Organization for Standardization, 2015; Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute, 2018).
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