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Thea van de Mortel, Professor, Nursing, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Griffith University

Is my RAT actually working? How to tell if your COVID test can detect Omicron

Omicron Covid-19 TGA Australia
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You’ve tested negative for COVID using a rapid antigen test (RAT), but are a close contact of a positive family member and have symptoms. So you might be wondering if you’re really COVID-negative or if the test is working as well as it should.

There are many reasons why your RAT may not give you the results you expect. But one factor is whether RATs can detect the Omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID).

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