UK healthcare firm, Forth, has launched its COVID-19 antibody testing kit on to the UK market. It meets MHRA guidelines and is available to the public.
The finger prick test is laboratory analysed to check for the presence of COVID-19 IgG antibodies which develop after exposure to the virus. The kit meets the required MHRA guidelines of more than 98% specificity and sensitivity, and has CE marking. All kits can be purchased online with the samples taken in the home or workplace, before being sent away for analysis, and is currently available for over 18s.
Forth have worked with accredited laboratory, Eurofin, to develop the home testing kits. The IgG antibodies are thought to be made by healthy individuals in response to exposure to the virus as an ‘immune response’. These antibodies reach 100% detectability 20 days after the onset of symptoms meaning Day 20 is the recommended earliest test date. Currently, it is not known to what extent immunity is conferred nor for how long as COVID-19 is such a new virus. The test will not tell if the tester currently has Coronavirus as that is done using a PCR swab test. However a positive result will suggest a past infection of COVID-19, a negative result will mean that no COVID-19 antibodies have been detected at the time of collecting the sample. If the test is done before 20 days post onset of symptoms, there is a risk of a false negative if the body hasn’t had enough time to generate the antibodies.
From the point of receipt of the sample, Forth aim to have the results processed and returned to the tester within 24-48 hours. Personalised results are accessed through their secure dashboard. The new kits extend Forth’s range of home health check tests including male and female hormones, nutri check, Vitamin D, Immunity check as well as their baseline kit.
Commenting on their product launch, CEO and co-founder, Sarah Bolt said: “Helping people look after their health is our core passion and purpose. Clearly with the global pandemic, personal health care has been heightened beyond anyone’s expectation. As soon as we entered this crisis we knew we wanted to make a positive contribution in helping to defeat this disease. We are grateful to our lab partners and our team who have worked hard to make this available as soon as it met the high validation criteria set out by the MHRA. The results are for information purposes to better understand our bodies. This complements the provision provided by the NHS and other health services. That way we can all begin to plan for our own health care with more knowledge than before.”
