Schrödinger's Worker: Are They Positive or Negative for SARS-CoV-2?

Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2020 Aug 31;17(17):6316. doi: 10.3390/ijerph17176316.

Abstract

In these days of 2020, tests for the diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2, and their use in the context of health surveillance of workers, are becoming popular. Nevertheless, their sensitivity and specificity could vary on the basis of the type of test used and on the moment of infection of the subject tested. The aim of this viewpoint paper is to make employers, workers, occupational physicians, and public health specialists think about the limits of diagnostic tests currently available, and the possible implication related to the erroneous and incautious assignment of "immunity passports" or "risk-free certificates" to workers during screening campaigns in workplaces.

Keywords: COVID-19; Predictive value of tests; SARS-CoV-2; occupational health; public health; reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction; sensitivity and specificity; serologic tests.

MeSH terms

  • Betacoronavirus
  • COVID-19
  • COVID-19 Testing
  • Clinical Laboratory Techniques / standards*
  • Coronavirus Infections / diagnosis*
  • Humans
  • Occupational Health*
  • Pandemics
  • Pneumonia, Viral / diagnosis*
  • SARS-CoV-2
  • Sensitivity and Specificity
  • Workplace