In October we announced the start of the pilot study with ultra-rapid Covid-19 PCR tests carried out by miDiagnostics in close collaboration with Brussels Airport, Ecolog (a leading global provider of COVID-19 screening and diagnostics and related infrastructure), and Eurofins Labo Van Poucke (the clinical diagnostics partner performing the standard PCR test as a benchmark). Starting in October 2021, departing or arriving passengers at Brussels Airport requiring a PCR test were given the option of additionally completing the miDiagnostics rapid test, with results of the two then compared. Close to 600 passengers participated in the study over the course of 2 months. The study supported previous clinical studies demonstrating the accuracy of the miDiagnostics PCR test results.
Test result within 30 minutes
The aim of the pilot study was also to assess the turnaround time in a real-life setting, and to optimize the workflow for a future rollout. In the laboratory, conventional PCR tests have a turnaround time of anywhere between 3 hours (for the fast procedure) and 12 to 48 hours, whereas the miDiagnostics’ ultra-fast PCR test requires less than 20 minutes for a result. This ultra-fast, nevertheless very accurate result is possible through miniaturization of the RT-qPCR process, with silicon technology at the heart of this innovation. The workflow from passenger registration and sampling (performed by Ecolog) all the way to reporting a test result was streamlined to provide a result within half an hour from passenger registration.
And what about the Covid-19 breathalyzer?
As part of the pilot study, miDiagnostics also obtained promising initial results for its breath analyzer prototype, a technology licensed from imec and currently in development, which would eliminate the need for nasopharyngeal swabs, making the testing process more comfortable and less invasive..