Provider costs of professional COVID-19 rapid antigen testing in low-income settings.

ABSTRACT: World Health Organization recommends antigen rapid diagnostic tests (RDT) as point of care tests for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in suspected outbreaks when polymerase-chain-reaction testing is not accessible; to trace the extent of outbreaks; and in areas with widespread community transmission. Annual economic costs were estimated for professional SARS-CoV-2 testing as part of several COVID-19 testing use cases in Malawi, Nigeria and Zimbabwe. Symptom screening and antigen-based RDT was implemented as part of a multi-country, Unitaid/STAR 3ACP (Africa, Asia, America COVID-19 Prevention) funded project (April 2022-June 2023). Testing services were provided through trained health providers in outpatient departments of primary care facilities (Malawi and Nige

SUBMITTER: Mangenah C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12507259 | biostudies-literature | 2025

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature