Many public officials are calling for increased testing for the 2019 novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), and some governments have taken extraordinary measures to increase the availability of testing. However, little has been published about the sensitivity and specificity of the reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) nasopharyngeal swabs that are commonly used for testing. This narrative review evaluates the literature regarding the accuracy of these tests, and makes recommendations based on this literature. In brief, a negative RT-PCR nasopharyngeal swab test is insufficient to rule out COVID-19. Thus, over-reliance on the results of the test may be dangerous, and the push for widespread testing may be overstated.
【초록키워드】 COVID-19, RT-PCR, Nasopharyngeal swab, 2019 novel coronavirus, Accuracy, Sensitivity and specificity, disease, Government, measure, nasopharyngeal swab test, negative RT-PCR, recommendation, widespread, evaluate, 【제목키워드】 COVID-19, Testing, Appropriate,