One way to reduce the mental stress and worry about whether or not that headache, tickle in your throat, or fatigue is allergies or COVID-19 is to hold Covid Rapid Home tests on hand to fast test yourself.
Testing at home can deliver peace of mind, and it doesn’t bear to take a long time or be costly. COVID-19 isn’t running away anytime soon.
There are many options to get sampled for COVID-19, varying from free tests at a community testing center or your doctor’s headquarters, but what about testing at residence? Well, it hangs out; there are plenty of opportunities for that as well.
Below we’ve rounded up four different tests. Each one will provide you with test results and, hopefully, peace of mind in 20 minutes or less. The three tests are inexpensive and widely public rapid antigen tests, while the Cue Health test is more costly, but the outcomes can be used to clear you for travel or complete work and school needs.
There’s presently a high demand for all tests in the US as the omicron variant continues to spread, and we all plan to spend time with our families. So be patient but steady while shopping for tests. And, again, if all else fails, visit a nearby testing base.
The FDA currently supports the options listed below underneath an Emergency Use Authorization.
BinaxNOW Antigen Rapid COVID-19 Self-Test
You may have attended or seen the BinaxNOW test on store shelves. It’s has a multitude of two trials and can generally be located at CVS, RiteAid, Walgreens, and Walmart.
Inside each box are two sheet instruction manuals, two solution droppers, two nasal swabs, and two test cards. Every card has two queues on it, one Control and one Sample. A purple line near the Control will always display, while the Sample line is only observable if the test is positive.
You will choose this test process over the iHealth test kit simply because you don’t have to concern about adequately transferring the sample. You only have to put the swab inside the card, turn it in a few times. However, while reasonable, the cost of this kit can count a layer of hesitation for frequent testing.
The companion app will step you through the testing process and even record your outcomes for you, giving you quick entrance to the last time you took a test and the concurrent results.
Cue Health COVID-19 Test
Cue Health’s COVID-19 Test is the most expensive test on the list. Each test cartridge is sold in batches of three or ten. To use the cartridges, you’ll need to process, analyze and transmit the results to your phone.
Cue Health’s test stands a rapid antigen test. Instead, the test uses “nucleic acid amplification,” equivalent to a PCR test. PCR tests are the tests you reach a doctor’s office or a resident’s testing center and can handle several hours or days to get your outcomes.
Cue shows two different subscription plans for those who don’t want to spend a lot of money upfront for a Cue test system. The Cue+ Essential plan gives you ten tests per year and 24/7 access to primary care doctors in the Cue Health app.
Cue+ Complete provides 20 tests per year and, most importantly, can bring a supervised test at home. By taking a supervised test, your test effects will be CDC-compliant and can be used to return to work, school, or travel.
Therefore, instead of going to the doctor to get a PCR test and waiting a couple of days for the results before going back to work, you can take a test at home and have the effects in 20 minutes.
iHealth COVID-19 Antigen Rapid Test
iHealth started marketing its at-home antigen rapid tests in a batch of two for $13.98. iHealth tests were 94.3% valid in detecting a positive test result and 98.1% accurate when detecting negative test results.
Each test contains the nasal swab, an extraction tube, and the test card. The card has two probable lines on it. The Cline will invariably turn purple to show it’s a valid test. If the test is positive, the T line will remain absent if it’s a negative result or turns purple — matching the Cline.
The process is easy but confusing the first time because you share the sample from the swab to the tube. But once you get satisfied with the process, you’ll have no problems.
BD Veritor At-Home COVID-19 Digital Test Kit
This test performs a little differently from the other; instead of reading the outcomes on the test stick yourself, you have to utilize the smartphone app for scanning the post to obtain the results.
Conducting the test is done thru a nasal swab, which is then dipped. Next, it is swirled into a collection tube that’s already filled with the test liquid. Next, you put three drops from the tube onto the test stick and stay 15 minutes. Once the time is up, you have your mobile camera to scan the bar. A minute later, you’re given your test outcomes.
Every step has clear instructions thru a video built into the app itself. You can’t handle the test without using the app, as there’s no path to read the outcomes otherwise. The FDA’s test outcomes can be seen, but the straightforward interpretation is this test is in the exact ballpark as the other EUA test kits listed and marketed on store shelves.
Final Thoughts
A PCR test is a correct test type for COVID-19. The outcomes from a PCR test are often what’s needed for school, work, or travel. However, depending on where you carry a test, the results can take many days to come back. A PCR test examines the genetic material of the virus. Rapid antigen tests often deliver results in 15 minutes but aren’t as precise as a PCR test. The antigen test examines the proteins of the virus. Antigen tests aren’t usually acknowledged for travel or entry to work or school.