The five-minute blood test that could signal the end of Ebola epidemics

A 15-minute, on-the-spot blood test for Ebola was as accurate in a patient trial as the most widely-used laboratory-based test, its U.S.-based developers said. An affordable, rapid diagnostic test would be an invaluable tool for health workers on the ground, allowing them to quickly identify and isolate infected individuals and curtail the spread of the deadly haemorrhagic virus. Dubbed ReEBOV, the kit manufactured by Colorado-based Corgenix, works with a drop of blood from a finger prick and a test strip that changes colour in five to 15 minutes. It requires very little training to use, but one potential drawback is that it needs refrigeration.

Laboratory results can sometimes take days to return. Delays like this result not only in the failure to diagnose and treat Ebola-infected patients, but also in individuals without Ebola being admitted to holding units where they may be subsequently infected with the virus.

Dr Nira Pollock, from Boston Children’s Hospital in the U.S.

For the trial, Dr Nira Pollock and a team used both the ReEBOV rapid test and RealStar on 105 suspected Ebola patients in February this year at two government-run treatment centres in Sierra Leone - one of three countries hardest hit by the current outbreak. ReEBOV detected all 28 Ebola cases diagnosed by RealStar - a 100% level of sensitivity, but much, much faster. ReEBOV is the only rapid diagnostic test for Ebola to have been granted emergency use status by the UN’s World Health Organization.

Health Ebola