The test has been developed by UK-based SureScreen Diagnostics in collaboration with Yorkshire-based medical technology provider TestCard and the trials are being conducted at Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust in London.
This new test works by using a small drop of finger-prick blood. Currently, Monkeypox is diagnosed by a PCR test with a viral swab taken from one or more vesicles or ulcers that appear on patients’ skin.
The lateral flow test has become the need of the hour as the virus has now been identified in more than 50 new countries outside the countries in Africa where it is endemic.
In view of this, the World Health Organization has called for testing to be ramped up.
The health body has also said that "sustained transmission" of monkeypox worldwide could see the virus begin to move into high-risk groups, such as pregnant women, immunocompromised people and children.
WHO said on Wednesday it was investigating reports of infected children, including two cases in Britain, as well as following up on reports in Spain and France. None of the cases in children has been severe.
"I'm concerned about sustained transmission because it would suggest that the virus (is) establishing itself and it could move into high-risk groups including children, the immunocompromised and pregnant women," said WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
There have been more than 3,400 cases of monkeypox, and one death, since the outbreak began in May, largely in Europe among men who have sex with men, according to a WHO tally. There have also been more than 1,500 cases and 66 deaths in countries this year where it usually spreads.
Last week, the WHO ruled that the outbreak did not yet represent a public health emergency, its highest level of alert. However, Tedros said the WHO was tracking the outbreak closely and would reconvene the committee "as soon as possible" to assess whether this was still the case.
The UN agency said it was also working on a mechanism to distribute vaccines more equitably, after countries including Britain and the United States suggested they were willing to share their stockpiled smallpox vaccines, which also protect against monkeypox.
