How fast are rapid COVID-19 tests coming back?

How fast is a rapid COVID test? Standard COVID tests (depending on the type of test) can take days to provide you with results. This waiting time is an invitation to anxiety about the possible results, but also to the discomfort of being stuck without an answer to one’s state of health.

Antigen Test Results Turnaround Time

Antigen tests are the fastest COVID test on the market, as well as the fastest COVID rapid test. Rapid antigen tests can produce results in 15 to 30 minutes. Antigen tests detect COVID by looking for antibodies in a person’s immune system that have been produced in response to the virus. If specific antibodies are present, it means the body has recently fought off the virus.

When considering the accuracy of rapid covid tests, the antigen test is accurate, but false positives and negatives are increased when the test is not performed by a medical professional. The accuracy of the test also increases if you have symptoms.

The rapid response of this particular test is mainly due to the possibility of testing the antigen instead of more reliable samples, such as the genetic code analyzed by RT-PCR tests. The antigen test requires less time and resources, with the caveat that the results may not be as accurate.

At TIB Diagnostics, our healthcare professionals take painstaking steps to ensure the most accurate antigen test results possible, all on our site, ensuring you receive those results in approximately one hour*.

Time to Obtain Nucleic Acid Amplification Test (NAAT) Results

The nucleic acid amplification test (NAAT) is a form of very precise test used to detect the presence of COVID in a sample. NAATs, detect the COVID virus by copying or amplifying genetic material (nucleic acid) in a sample. Upon replication, the COVID virus, if present, becomes easily identifiable.

The amplification process needed to complete the test requires extensive laboratory equipment. These needs mean that in order to test a sample, it must first be sent to a site that has the appropriate equipment to perform the test. Due to sample travel time, NAATs take 24–72 hours to deliver results to the client.

At TIB Diagnostics, we provide rapid NAATs through the use of our on-site laboratory, which eliminates the need for sample travel. Our rapid NAATs allow us to provide test results approximately one hour* after the test is performed.

Turnaround time for RT-PCR test results

The RT-PCR test, or Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction test, is considered the gold standard of COVID testing among the healthcare community due to its immense accuracy. The RT-PCR test detects COVID through the amplification of RNA samples taken from the sample. Upon amplification, COVID RNA becomes detectable, providing near certainty of the presence of the virus in a host.

Due to this detailed testing process, the RT-PCR test and its subsequent results take longer than other tests, such as the antigen test. When the sample to be tested is collected, it is usually sent to a laboratory to be amplified. Standard RT-PCR, with this process, typically takes up to 72 hours to provide test results.

Rapid RT-PCR tests significantly speed up the time to wait for the test result. On-site labs reduce the time it takes to ship a sample to a secondary location. Instead, the RT-PCR test is run at the same site the sample was taken from, maintaining the accuracy of the standard test.

Take advantage of the short wait time for test results and book an appointment with TIB Diagnostics today.